Sarah Atiq
Sarah Atiq

Being born and raised in the diverse country of Doha, Qatar, the small peninsula located in the Middle East, and having lived in London, Singapore and most recently Hong Kong, has positively shaped both my personal and professional experiences. While I initially began my career in Finance, I took a step away from the industry when I decided to start my family. During this time, I chose to pursue a career in a more creative field, and 2016 I established my boutique styling advisory and a personal style blog on Instagram. Over the last few years, I have been able to gain hands-on experience in branding, content creation, digital marketing and styling for clients within Asia and the Middle East. Both of these distinctly different experiences have positively shaped who I am today and led me towards my journey to pursue an MBA.

My motivations for applying to the HKU MBA stem from my desire to restart my career and build a network in Hong Kong. As a woman looking to re-enter the workforce, I firmly believe that the HKU MBA programme will provide me with opportunities that will allow me to pursue my dreams and be an inspiration for other women who may have taken a career break. I believe this current uncertain time of COVID-19 has provided the perfect opportunity to enhance my knowledge and skill set, and to learn more about being adaptable to the current business environment in Hong Kong, one of the most exciting and vibrant cities in the world.

My MBA journey so far has been a fantastic learning experience. Not only have I learnt new concepts and knowledge from our professors, but I have also learnt so much from my peers. We are an incredibly diverse class and there is so much to learn from our different cultural backgrounds and work experiences. We are currently studying for an MBA in challenging times, and the university has done an excellent job of providing us with Hybrid Mode learning, which offers us great flexibility. I have thoroughly enjoyed my electives and learning new perspectives. For example, China Marketing provided me with great insights to China, which has been extremely useful, and Big Data Consumer Analytics allowed me to gain a better understanding of what I could personally apply to my own business. Another great support system has been the Career Development Team.They have tailored the experience for each of us and have been a great pillar of guidance. Our first few months have been extremely intensive, yet fulfilling. We have been lucky enough to be introduced to industry experts and leaders in multiple industries through our lectures, career workshops and networking events.

My initial plans were to go on the London track and to study at London Business School. However, after the travel difficulties we have all faced this year, I chose the Hong Kong track to be closer to my family. Moreover, I was thrilled to be elected as class rep for the Hong Kong track, and I have enjoyed creating our little network while being a support system for my peers in Hong Kong. I am also VP of the Marketing Club, which has provided me with an excellent opportunity to explore the industry further and to build my network in Hong Kong.

Even though we have only spent three months together so far, I can confidently say that I have made some lifelong friendships and I am proud to be a member of the HKU MBA family. I firmly believe this will be the perfect stepping stone for me to discover my new career path in Hong Kong.