We are honoured to introduce you to the new member of our small but selective Edu Evolution family. This is our external HR consultant Milena Pridraški, a communication specialist and certified Points of You L.2. coach.
Since Milena’s task will be providing help and support in time planning the beginning of the career and career path for our students, we could not help but asking her how she remembers her student days and what challenges she encountered on that journey. .
Edu Evolution: Dear Milena, tell us a little more about the decision of enrolling into the field of communication, and then improving in the field of HR: what motivated you, attracted you about this career?
Milena: The decision of entering communication studies was planned during my high school days, since I had a great desire of working in journalism at the time, so the choice of studies was a logical consequence. The desire to improve in the field of human resources came later – during the practical work I realized that for work in human resources, communication is key to a successful realization of business tasks.
Edu Evolution: Was studying a big challenge for you and what do you remember from that period?
Milena: It may sound like a cliché, but when you do what you love, you enjoy every moment. So it is with learning, when you are fully committed to the field you are interested in and when you find yourself in it, learning is not so much of a challenge as a great desire to master everything to be more successful and gain as much knowledge which will benefit you later. Even today, I dearly remember the joint preparation of exams with my then colleagues, today my godparents, so in my experience, studies bring not only knowledge, but also friendship for life.
Edu Evolution: What did University teach you and what are you most grateful for?
Milena: The opportunity and ability of listening, understanding and respecting other people’s opinion.
Edu Evolution: Do you have any advice for future students? What shouldn’t they do, and what they shouldn’t miss during their studies?
Milena: We shouldn’t miss out on the socializing of student days. What should they not do? Throughout my life, the most valuable experience is my own experience, so I would not give advice of this kind – what I would not do out of my belief being wrong, does not necessarily mean that it is wrong for someone else.
Edu Evolution: If you could turn back time, what would you advise Milena from her student days (should she be less nervous, learn more, what to dedicate herself to, and what not to waste time on)?
Milena: I would be even more focused on gaining practical experience during the studies themselves, either through student internships or engagement in various student organizations.
As Milena is a long-term and very experienced HR consultant, we were interested in her professional opinion and point of view about modern education and future career life, and we asked her for some professional advice on employment and writing a resume that will help our students.
Edu Evolution: What would be your primary advice to young people who are at a turning point and are planning to enroll in college or get a job?
Milena: There is one quote that I really like, although I don’t know if it is possible to implement it 100% in practice: “If you do what you love, you will not work a day in your life.” I think that the most important thing is to choose a vocation in accordance with your interests and desires, but at the same time stay realistic – what are we best at?
Edu Evolution: What is crucial for a successful career and which qualities and skills should a young person aspiring to become successful one day possess?
Milena: Unfortunately, I still do not have enough work experience to answer this question, and on the other hand I think that there is no universal recipe – with work and effort, adequate education, I think that we still need a dose of happiness and faith to succeed.
Edu Evolution: Is college necessary for a successful career? What does the University mean to you?
Milena: I don’t think it’s mandatory, there are many biographies of people from the business world that will convince us that it isn’t necessary, but if I didn’t consider acquiring knowledge at a higher level an advantage, I wouldn’t enroll in college myself. University represents an opportunity to upgrade knowledge in the narrowest sense – until then it is general education, and from the moment we become freshmen we specialize in the area that interests us the most and we learn in what manner to communicate.
Edu Evolution: What compulsory skills, in your opinion, must be found in the biography of a good candidate?
Milena: Communication is all and all is communication!
Edu Evolution: What do you first notice in candidates and what are the most common mistakes we should not make in a job interview?
Milena: The first impression of the candidate is gained by reading the C.V. – it is extremely important to avoid spelling mistakes. When it comes to the interview, looking at the interlocutor in the eye during the conversation, clear and concrete explanations about the course of the career will interest every Recruiter.
Edu Evolution: What do you think about student internships and studying abroad?
Milena: Student internships are an ideal way for young people to gain their first work experience and show that they can apply theoretical knowledge, also gaining organizational skills and getting used to teamwork.
For the end, we wanted to get to know this successful and very inspiring lady a little better, so we asked her a set of 5 quick questions. Read how Milena coped below:
Edu Evolution: The book that left the strongest impression on you and why?
Milena: There are various, they differ depending on the period of life in which I read them. If I had to single it out, it would be “Wandering Bokelj*”.
Edu Evolution: Who is your 2021 hero?
Milena: Considering the conditions in which the whole planet has been living for the past two years, all those “little” people who managed to save their families, health and jobs during this challenging year.
Edu Evolution: Who do you consider being most successful persona in Serbia and why? What would be your criteria for success?
Milena: The measure of someone’s success for me is an individual thing. The criterion is the feeling of satisfaction that success gives to a person, which can’t be measured. On the other hand, I mostly admire people who often live their lives away from the public eye and about whom we do not read in the newspapers, do the work they love the best they know, surrounded by their family.
Edu Evolution: If you could have a super power, what would it be?
Milena: Teleportation.
Edu Evolution: A city you would like to visit?
Milena: Havana.
Edu Evolution: What does the word “believe” mean to you? What do you firmly believe in?
Milena: In myself. On the first place. Not from narcissistic motives, but from the belief that healthy self-confidence is the key to success, whatever success means to someone personaly.
