Julia Ozaniakova head shot

Júlia Ozaniaková ’21, Turany, Slovakia
Majors/Minor: Business – EconomicsComputer Science – Data Analytics; International Affairs

How do you make Concordia feel like home?

This is my third year in the United States, specifically in the Fargo-Moorhead area. I had a host family when I attended high school that I am still very close to. They are absolutely amazing and I truly consider them my second family. I am surrounded by so many incredible people here, which makes me feel like home.

What are you involved in on campus?

I am on the executive team of a newly established club at Concordia called Women in Business. I love the business school and I am so excited to be part of this amazing team. I am the president of the International Student Organization as well.

I am also interning for International Admission and I work with Global Learning to promote studying abroad. Additionally, I participated in the campus Circle Keepers program last year.

Concordia Women in Business leadership

What do you do as an international admission ambassador?

We work to promote Concordia College around the world. We try to find the best fit when working with international students. The visas are also a big thing with so many international relations issues. It’s a lot of work with foreign partners and screening and processing applications. That is very interesting because then I get to work with the data from a number of different countries and the Salesforce software as well. Right now, we are actually starting a new program that we got to research and propose that will allow alumni to donate miles to international students to help them reduce the cost of coming here.

Tell us about Concordia’s newest student organization, Women in Business, and your position on the executive team.

I’m the volunteer coordinator. Our mission is to create a community of inspiring women that motivate and support each other. We host women leaders in our meetings as well as volunteer in our local community. Entering a male-dominated field as a woman can be challenging; thus, we believe in creating a strong community of female leaders that support each other and strive for success.

Julia speaking at podium in campus center

In what ways has Concordia helped you grow?

It has definitely made me more confident. I have been able to practice my leadership skills through all the opportunities on campus and find my career path. I’ve also met so many amazing people and built up my network. I have definitely grown as a person.

How did you decide on a major?

That’s a long story. I came in as an international business major. Soon after I arrived on campus, I met Dr. Reusch, who got me really excited about the global studies program and I ended up adding that as a second major.

Later, I found out I’d have to minor in a foreign language in order to major in international business, which wouldn’t fit in my four-year plan. I can also speak a number of foreign languages, which discouraged me in minoring in another language; thus, I withdrew from the international business major.

My mentor introduced me to the field of data analytics and I found myself interested in pursuing a major in the tech field. Currently, I’m double majoring in business with a concentration in economics and computer science with a concentration in data analytics. I am also minoring in international affairs.

Traveling is my passion and I would love to work internationally one day. I’ve been to 26 countries so far and I would love to continue traveling during my career as well.

Have you had a favorite professor or class?

Yes! The education system here in the United States is so different. Being able to be so close to my professors is truly special to me. For example, I spoke at a conference at NDSU last year and one of my professors came to support me during his free time on a Saturday night.

I enjoyed my IWC class with instructor Archer, IOC class with instructor Bosch, as well as Global Studies 117 with Dr. Zakhirova. I really liked my Business Development class with Julie Lovin as well. I took that class the first semester of my freshman year and ever since then we’ve been really good friends. We still get coffee sometimes and just talk about life.

Julia with group of faculty and students

What has been your favorite memory so far at Concordia?

I have so many. Coming back to Concordia after a summer in Europe and seeing everyone and hearing about their summer experiences was very nice, so that definitely stands out. I enjoyed all the traveling I got to do with Concordia. And Homecoming, of course.

What advice would you give to a prospective student?

Try to find out as much as you can about the school and the area you are interested in. I applied for colleges across the U.S., Denmark, and Japan. I remember looking up all their social media. Explore their campuses, student life, and the opportunities they offer. It’s important to figure out what student life is actually like.

I would recommend talking to the students of the college because you can ask them questions you probably wouldn’t ask your admission representative. In the end, it has to be your own choice. No one else should make the choice for you because it will be you attending the school for the next four years.

Do you have any advice specifically for international students?

As part of international admission here at Concordia, we have a program where you can schedule a call with a current Concordia student. Reach out! Schedule the call – they are students, so it’s not an interview, not anything formal, and you have nothing to lose.

Julia speaking in front of group

Have you had any mentors on campus?

There are actually a lot of people I consider mentors. I am part of the Offutt School of Business Mentorship Program and I have a really amazing mentor, Dr. Katie Hasbargen, who is the senior business manager at Microsoft. We really connected. She is really inspirational.

What’s next for you?

I literally don’t even know which continent I want to be on! I have two conferences coming up through Bank of America in New York and Charlotte. I will be attending a summer school for political economy and political philosophy in Hong Kong in July. I’ve also applied for a number of internships in Manila, Philippines, Sao Paulo, Brazil, and at Microsoft. I’ll also be studying in Liverpool in the fall and I can’t wait for that!

What’s your dream job?

I actually have two. One of them is working for a big tech company on a global scale. I know both Google and Microsoft have programs that bring the internet to places without access and I think that is really cool. I’d love to work on such a project. I’m also considering learning more about artificial intelligence and maybe working in that field.

The other one is working for the Economic and Social Council of the U.N. I grew up in a country with a lot of corruption in government and I would love to work toward policies against corruption and discrimination from the government.

Published April 2019