Afra Cader likes to do things a little differently. She’s been a student, a consultant, and an activist. Now, she’s rethinking the way we work, understanding how we can bridge our skills and education to create meaningful social change.
When it came time for university, Afra become enamoured with the city of Melbourne, and decided it was where she wanted to be. She enrolled in a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Melbourne, majoring in finance and marketing.
‘In coming to university, I knew that my goal was to drive social change, so I wanted to develop a skillset that would allow me to do that. I chose Commerce as my vehicle for doing that,’ says Afra. ‘I enrolled in finance and marketing majors, and got the chance to pair that with breadth classes focused on geography and the environment which aligned with my interest in sustainability.’
While she was studying Afra interned at a selection of market research and advertising agencies, saying she was particularly interested in marketing and communication strategy. However, not long before her graduation her interests ‘pivoted’, a term we all became very used to in 2020. Afra was just ahead of the curve.
‘I became interested in understanding how businesses function and what is needed to create larger scale transformation, and when I graduated I started my career as a Management Consultant to do this.’
'It was there I started pulling across skills I had built in my day job, to organisations furthering education, health and gender equality. Simultaneously I was having all of these conversations with other young people I was working with, who were also articulating how they felt they needed to put their skills into creating some kind of social good.
Afra’s not-for-profit work has included stints working with the United Nations, Global Shapers, the Centre for Multicultural Youth and Headspace. Where she actively encourages other young professionals to get involved in social causes they care about. It’s a portfolio career that balances her skills and interests.
The last year has shed light on the advantages we can benefit from with remote work, and sometimes a change of environment and a different office desk can spark a new found creativity and motivation to do things differently.
Afra thinks that this way of thinking is something that the workforce, and particularly young people, can benefit from. The variety, the flexibility and the responsibility for their own outcomes and hours can build towards a more resilient workforce.
The Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) equips students with the skills and knowledge to understand and solve key business challenges. Make a difference to society, policy, and organisations while forging a pathway to a global career. Choose from majors including Accounting, Actuarial Studies, Economics, Finance, Management and Marketing.