Alumna Kim Nguyen shares her experiences through MBSP Community Connections
The current Master of Accounting student connects with current scholars through a new mentoring program.
Mentorship plays a pivotal role in the experience of Multicultural Business Scholars. Scholars are mentored by faculty, employers, MBSP staff, and sometimes, most importantly, their MBSP peers.
Kim Nguyen, a MBSP Class of 2020 alumna, has made the most of her mentorship opportunities. She has several mentors of her own, each in different aspects of her life.
One of her mentors, whom she found through KU Business Mentoring, has a similar academic background and helped her find comfort in moving to San Francisco for her internship. She also has a mentor based on shared Asian-American identities, which helps her stay in touch with her Vietnamese identity and culture.
For Kim, mentoring is important because it “helps people understand where they want to go … it gives you relief that everything will be okay,” she explained.
Not only does Nguyen receive valuable guidance as a mentee, but she also gives back her own insights and experiences to her younger peers. As a graduate of the program, Nguyen participated in MBSP Community Connections, a new mentorship program specifically for MBSP juniors and seniors to mentor freshman and sophomore scholars.
“As people of color, we have similar experiences being underrepresented,” Nguyen said. “I would have wanted a mentor in MBSP when I was younger.”
This experience also helped Nguyen appreciate her own accomplishments.
“I realized I should spend more time celebrating my achievements,” she said. “It makes me happy when lessons I’ve learned can be passed on.”
Nguyen is pursuing her Master of Accounting through KU and plans to be CPA eligible by May 2022.
