In our special Profit from Pageantryseries, the Career Goddess Academy highlights the accomplishments of women who have used their crown to create career success. Send an email to hello@ceounlimitedfirm.com if you would like to be featured.
1. Who is Sujita Basnet?
Raised by a single mother in a low-income, immigrant household, my childhood goal was to live my “American Dream”.
Waking up today, I realized that I did it. I am living my American Dream!
Today as a Technology Consultant for a Fortune 500 firm and a woman of pageantry, I can proudly say I turned my dream into a reality.
I am living the best of both worlds, a Woman in Tech and a pageant queen, in a world where women are still labeled not confident enough, not assertive enough, not capable.
Many underserved youth can relate to the challenges I faced while trying to find an identity during my upbringing, and through my organization LiberatED I want to help empower them!
2. How did you get started in pageants?
I randomly stumbled into my first pageant experience.
In 2011, during an annual Nepalese American conference I decided to audition, without any preparation, for the Miss Nepal US pageant.
Somehow I made it to the finale in NYC and ended up winning the title. I was crowed the first ever Miss Nepal US!
At this time I was 18 years old and needed something to keep me busy over the summer before I started college, so I spontaneously auditioned and here I am today loving every bit of that decision!
3. How has pageantry influenced your career success and progress in your profession?
As a young girl, I was very shy and feared public speaking. I would get very nervous during school presentations and wanted to avoid a career where I would have to speak in front of large groups of people.
But as a pageant titleholder, I was instantly put into situations where I had to be a spokesperson on various topics, some which I was familiar which and many which I wasn’t. Pageantry has helped me to become more conscious, compassionate and confident! All skills that have led me to be a successful consultant at a Fortune 500 firm.
4. What is it like to be a woman in tech and pageant contestant?
I think there is still a negative stigma associated with pageantry, where people believe that pageant contestants don’t have a meaningful career, or that they aren’t intellectually adept.
But through my pageant journey I have met the most talented men and women. I think as pageant contestants and titleholders, we are essentially ambassadors who have a voice and platform to spread awareness, educate and influence outcomes.
As a Woman in Tech my goal is to help de-stigmatize the worlds view on pageantry and a woman’s inability to pursue a career in STEM!
5. What does it take to break into the tech industry? Are there any certifications or specific skills needed?
I would recommend an Agile training or certification.
Most tech companies, where your role involves actively working with the client to build requirements for a technology solution and then implementing those requirements, will require the team to have a good grasp on project/timeline management.
The “Agile” way of working is the new trend in this field and so I would highly recommend it. I would also recommend people looking to break into this field to do some research on the company they are joining. Different companies specialize in different cloud solutions (ex. ServiceNow, Pega, Salesforce … so many more).
It would be a good idea to take an introductory course on the platform which you will be working on implementing so you can provide the best recommendations to your clients and team!
What advice do you have for women who want to become a tech consultant at a leading firm?
One simple piece of advice I would give to anyone pursuing a career in STEM is to be curious and adapt quick. STEM fields are all about innovation which means constantly changing norms. What you know today can change tomorrow, so it’s very important to be up to speed with the industry to be successful.
Ready to become a Career Goddess?
Here’s a list of resources to help you add more certifications to your career portfolio:
- Here’s How I Passed the Real Estate Exam in Less than 30 Days
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