Students in Conestoga’s Information Technology Business Analysis (ITBA) graduate certificate program participated in Career Connections at the Doon campus on June 25. The event is held annually and was established to connect students with industry representatives to learn more about the various job roles that support the growth and advancement of businesses.
This year, Rosalin Macwan (BMO Financial), Radhika Patel (FDM Group) and Reema Pravasi (TD - Wealth) shared tips for a successful job search. All three completed the ITBA program in 2018 and now work full-time as business analysts. They completed the program at Conestoga to complement their existing skills and credentials in computer science.
While the trio shared practical advice on networking, developing resumes and earning additional certifications, they also provided a realistic glimpse of what it’s like to begin a job search.
“You will face failure,” said Pravasi. “But don’t lose faith because there will always be someone there to pull you out.”
Patel and Macwan echoed the same sentiments as they shared details of their own job search journeys, but reminded students never to lose confidence and to always look at the potential career pathways available to them.
During Career Connections, program coordinator Saifur Rahman said the future does, in fact, look quite promising for IT business analysts. The country will face a significant shortage in the field between now and 2026 as the demand for professionals with both a business and technology side -- who understand how to turn insight into action -- has grown.
Other presenters at the event shared employer perspectives and highlighted the skills and qualifications they look for when recruiting. Guests included Steve Downer, founder and principal consultant with Down2BASkills Inc., Tooba Amjad (SunLife), Erwin Driever (Cober Solutions) and Nilesh Deshmukh and Khubno Pathan from Enercare.
Students in Conestoga’s Information Technology Business Analysis - Operations graduate certificate program students develop critical skills in the areas of application software, business data analysis and modeling, customer engagement management, business processes, enterprise resource planning and communications.
Visit the program page for more information.