[caption id="attachment_2174" align="alignleft" width="268"] Berkeley College International Graduate              Edwina Kulego[/caption] Moving to a foreign country and to the vibrant city of New York at the age of 19 was a crazy journey. I had to get out of my comfort zone and establish myself. I wanted to achieve 3 things: • Graduate college with honors • Get a job and a sponsorship after college in my field • Find a job that enabled me to travel and use my languages After my first quarter at Berkeley College I realized that school wasn’t going to be enough. My goal was to graduate and work in the U.S. so I had to differentiate myself from the average student. I started by switching my major from Fashion Marketing to International Business. My plan was to broaden my options and treat fashion as a minor, so I began doing internships 24 hours a week while remaining a full time student. My first internship was at Essence Magazine where I gained knowledge about the editorial fashion industry. My second internship was at Tommy Hilfiger where I worked under Andy Hilfiger in the fashion and celebrity department. My final internship as at PROJECT, a fashion tradeshow held bi-annually in New York City and Las Vegas. PROJECT was the most exciting internship by far. The team was an interesting group of creative professionals who shared ideas. It was inspiring. After a year of interning at PROJECT (right after graduating from Berkeley) I was offered a job as the executive assistant to the president. Initially, it was a nervous wreck because I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. However, it turned out to be one I the most rewarding experiences in my life. My organizational skills grew, along with my ability to think from a sales and marketing perspective. One of the most important things that I learned was to be CURIOUS and to constantly question the way things are being done. In 2012, Tom Florio, former vice president at Vogue became the CEO of our Fashion Group. I was presented with the opportunity to work as his business coordinator. My task and responsibilities grew as I began working on various business plans and projects. Last month, I was promoted to international account executive. This role involves traveling and conducting research to find new and cool international brands to participate in our show. My advice to students would be NOT to wait until graduating before experiencing the workforce. Utilize the time you have while you are in school to intern at companies that interest you. By doing this, you are gaining real-life work experience that you can apply to your studies but more importantly, it will enable you to establish relationships and increase your chances of landing the perfect job after graduation. I am now 25-years-old. I received the 3 things I asked for before moving to NYC and the journey continues … Edwina Kulego is a Berkeley College International Graduate from Sweden.