News and events

01 October 2020 - 6:07pm

Congratulations to Saba Azeem on completing her PhD!!

Congratulations to Saba Azeem on completing her PhD!!

We’re delighted to share the news that Saba Azeem has completed her PhD! Many of you will know Saba through her warm, inspiring leadership in Graduate Women Manawatū’s (GWM) Friendship Bridge and as a recipient of GWM’s Beyond the Thesis award for outstanding community contributions in 2019. We’re so excited to continue following Saba’s journey.

Saba earned her PhD from the School of Economics and Finance at Massey University. Originally, she’s from Pakistan, and has been living in Palmerston North, Aotearoa New Zealand for the last five years.

Saba has been the president of the International Postgrad and Mature Students’ Club at Massey University for two years, and has also participated in 3MT competitions. Saba has been an active member of the Massey Business School Committee, and also managed to combine her PhD research with working at the International Support Office as a NZ-AID Scholarship Advisor for the last four years.

Looking back, Saba is immensely grateful for the learning opportunities she could afford, and considers coming to Aotearoa NZ one of the better decisions of her life. Saba is extremely thankful to her mum (who’s a doctor in Karachi, Pakistan) who inspired Saba to pursue higher education, and has been a stellar support in her life. Saba considers a PhD to be an intensive qualification, one that may not be for people who are not adequately motivated and self-driven: two qualities that are extremely important to surviving in academia. Saba feels her employment experience with Massey has been a positive contributor to her studies, and she managed to keep doing different things at the same time.

Looking ahead, Saba wants to pursue a career in the corporate field, working with businesses, banks or other financial institutions in understanding customer insights and promoting customer centricity. Saba is very hopeful her PhD experience has made her resilient, patient, and determined to confront the challenges that the current times present, and she thinks her adaptability is going to be a key strength for her to succeed in her career.

Thanks for being such a bright, positive, and caring member of our graduate community, Saba. Cheers!!!  👏 🎉 🎓