My name is Patrick Miklos Szell and I am originally from Budapest, Hungary. During my secondary school studies, I was unsure about the subject that I would pursue during my university years. I started to work in a private hospital in Budapest to identify the key areas that interested me. I often asked questions in my head, “How does this end up here?”, “How do they price their product?”, “Why is this a sought service?”, etc. I was curious about multiple subjects, like health care, technology, and consulting. This led to my decision to study Economics as it’s a broad subject, with a rooted, rational, and analytical mindset. And so, my journey began at Queen Mary University of London.
Sketch … A brand-new initiative founded by academics to create an umbrella across the university’s pro-bono initiatives
During my first year, I came across an initiative called Student Consulting Project (SCP), which offered pro-bono consulting services to local SMEs and start-ups. The services were provided by QM students, supported by professionals. I was fascinated by the initiative: to help and create value for the community using the university’s resources, knowledge, and academics is a great way to give back to society. Thus, I have applied and got into the program, where my team successfully delivered a 10-week long project to our client. Months later, I got introduced to a new initiative that was looking for students who will support its aims and help deliver them, called Student Knowledge Exchange Through Community Hubs — short for SKETCH. A brand-new initiative founded by academics to create an umbrella across the university’s pro-bono initiatives, namely: SCP, QM Legal Advice Centre, qLegal, qNomics, QM Social Venture Fund, and Social Impact Unit (founded by SKETCH). This was an opportunity for me to give back to my community and to my peers. Therefore, I joined SKETCH as an Ambassador in 2020.
My role is a mix of everything: creating a roadmap, defining milestones, attending recurring board meetings, recruiting and onboarding new SKETCH members, running various projects. This led to new experiences and challenging scenarios from which I have learned a lot. For example, recruiting undergraduate and postgraduate students as Associates challenged my interpersonal skills. Leading the podcast project shaped my managerial skills such as time and team management.
It is such a great opportunity for students to deploy their academic knowledge on real-life projects whilst learning.
Being an Ambassador at SKETCH has helped me, a 21-year-old individual, gain insights, experience, connections, and knowledge. Whilst doing so, it was also generating value for the community through SKETCH’s projects. It is such a great opportunity for students to deploy their academic knowledge on real-life projects whilst learning. Fundamentally, I believe that it is our mission, as university students, to generate a positive impact for our surroundings and communities.
