Arun Balu Pazhayannur
Name: Arun Balu Pazhayannur
What country are you from?
India
What is your program?
MBA 2019
Why did you choose to come to Western?
I came to Canada 18 years ago with my family with the intent to migrate here. However, we were unsuccessful to migrate and ended up moving back to India. Ever since I was a kid, it has been my dream to move into Canada. I have come to Ivey Business School to pursue my MBA and later settle down in Canada.
What was the experience of moving here like for you?
It was a very good decision to move to Canada. I have enjoyed the experience and recommend it to most of my friends back in India. The people were very welcoming and ensured that I had a good experience moving in.
What advice would you give to current international students?
I would strongly advise ahead of your decision to come to Western / Canada. Moving to a new country involves a huge change to your lifestyle and culture. Try to spend some time researching about the things you may need to do be doing in moving here, getting your permanent residency, your driving license, your health insurance, where you might be staying, how you plan to cook daily, etc.. These might be useful when trying to move in here. In total try to have at least 3-4 months of time to prepare to come here and constantly reach out to your seniors for advice and next steps.
What was your favourite thing about Western/favourite memory?
I enjoyed making new friends and learning from them. I have spent most of my career in the financial services space and have constantly interacted with accountants and finance managers to solve some tough challenging problems. I enjoyed every class and case discussion and this will continue to be my fondest memory at Ivey. The case discussion revolves around students from diverse backgrounds offering solutions to problems from their perspective. This was a unique experience because I got to learn about the different means to solve the same problem and made me think very differently. I will forever cherish this memory.
