International Student, Pandemic Studies

Wen Sze Foo, MOrgM, Class of ’21

Wen Sze Foo is from Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia. She graduated this fall with her Master of Organizational Management (MOrgM) which she felt was the perfect program to help take her fifteen yearlong career in marketing and communications to the next level: “My last two roles prior to pursuing my Masters involved corporate strategy projects and new business developments, both of which sparked my interest in project and strategy work, which led me to pursue my Master’s at Crandall.”

Already well-versed in the business world, Wen took the selection process rather seriously when it came to where to pursue further education: “The main reason that I chose Crandall’s MOrgM is due to the topics it covered, which are focused on working with and managing people, which I knew would tie in well with my workplace interests as well as be more specific than a general MBA.”

Being in the midst of a global pandemic for the majority of her studies at Crandall, Wen had a bit of an unconventional student experience, and wasn’t actually physically in Moncton until March of 2021, 5 months before she completed her program. When she was finally able to make it to Canada, Wen was grateful: “it was an interesting experience travelling on a plane during the pandemic and having to quarantine for 3 days in Toronto and another 14 days when I arrived in Moncton. I’m so thankful for the support that I’ve received from Crandall staff, especially Erin Bateman (’11), and also from my fellow course mates, who had arrived before me and helped me settle into life in Canada.”

Despite the effects that the pandemic has had on schooling, the MOrgM program was able to host a number of guest speakers from the greater Moncton business community, as well as some high profile officials including the Premier of New Brunswick, Blaine Higgs, and Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Jennifer Russell, all of which Wen highlighted as being an extremely helpful part of her education: “These speakers gave us a taste of what it’s like to utilize the theories we discussed in classes (e.g. strategic management) in real life leadership scenarios and ultimately, that was invaluable. I really appreciate Professor Donald Moore for his commitment to organizing these real world examples for us.”

Aside from guest speakers, Wen’s other favourite factor of the MOrgM program was the investment of the staff and faculty that were involved in her day to day studies, including Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Jon Ohlhauser, who shared: “I had the privilege of having Wen Sze Foo in my graduate level course on Not-For-Profit Management. Teaching during the pandemic has been a challenge for anyone who enjoys getting to know students personally but it only took a couple of ZOOM classes to discover Wen’s academic strength and vibrant personality. In this course I quickly came to appreciate Wen’s ability to grasp the contents of the material and make immediate, creative connections to her life and professional experience. The entire program here at Crandall University benefits when the caliber of students like Wen decide to enroll.”

Wen is now working as Director of Project Management and Performance at BrainWorks Marketing in Moncton and could not be more excited about the opportunity she’s been given: “I am very happy to be able to stay in Moncton and gain experience in the marketing and creative industry here in Canada. I look forward to being able to explore the Maritime region that I am blessed to call home.”