Malahat Ghoreishi, LUT University
“Follow your dreams, especially the ones that fear you the most! Even though the path may look scary, be strong enough to challenge yourself.”
What have you studied and what influenced this choice back in the day?
I came to Finland almost 7 years ago to pursue my master’s studies in Industrial engineering and management at LUT University. My favorite topics during my studies were sustainability, circular economy, and digitalization, for which I have done my master’s thesis. As I wanted to know more and delve deeper into the topic, I decided to take one step further and continue my education to PhD.
How did you become a development manager?
During my PhD journey, as a junior researcher, I had to assist in different courses. I realized that I am passionate about teaching and sharing knowledge about the topics of my interest with others. I would have liked to develop my own course with a specific focus on the field of ‘digital technologies and circular economy’. On the other hand, as a researcher, I wanted to pursue my research on the topic of my interest where I could have the chance to work on projects related to circularity and sustainability. It all led to where I am now, a senior lecturer and RDI (research, development, and innovation) specialist.
What is the best thing about your job?
My job has different aspects that I absolutely love!
One part is teaching, which is a different style nowadays than the traditional ones. I call it sharing knowledge. Especially when it comes to an interactive course with students who are really motivated and curious to know more, teachers must continuously update their knowledge so that they can support students’ needs. This leads to continuous knowledge and skill growth for us teachers as well. Close communication with students helps us understand how and what needs to be improved in the course and our supervision. On the other hand, as a university lecturer, we have close collaboration with company representatives which makes it possible to organize company guest lecturers who are experts in the field of the course. They provide real case studies and challenges for students to solve.
The other side is research & development, which includes working on different projects as well. Projects are at different national, European, and international levels which includes collaboration with different universities and companies. So, they enable realizing one’s strengths and weaknesses and support self-skill growth and development while working with different experts who have multidisciplinary backgrounds.
What have been the highlights and most important lessons of your career?
One’s own growth is, of course, an important highlight of one’s career, allowing you to know where you have started and how your growth path has been evolving. But also, the best highlights are when you witness other people’s success through you, knowing that with your supervision and mentorship they could reach their goals. Especially when it comes to the young and ambitious students, it’s very delightful to be part of their success path.
What do you expect from the future?
During the past 5 years of working at the university, I found my passion and interests in academic work. I would like to improve and strengthen my career in the scientific world so that I can contribute to the community in a more efficient and useful way.
For whom is this a suitable career option?
Working as a researcher requires high resilience since you are most of the time in a trial-and-error phase. It also requires a lot of patience sometimes until you achieve the desirable outcome. On the other hand, you are in a continuous learning environment and process that challenges your skills and knowledge all the time. So, it requires curiosity, an open mind, and high ambition.
What message would you like to send to a young person pondering their career?
Follow your dreams, especially the ones that fear you the most! Even though the path may look scary, be strong enough to challenge yourself. And always remember that you are an individual and you should never compare your growth and achievements with others, only with your past self. You should, of course, learn from the lives of successful people, but also understand that your path might be different.