School of Business and Law on ECU's Joondalup Campus
ECU Commerce and Psychology graduate Rebecca Smith.
"I wish I could go back to that anxious teenager and tell her not to worry so much," says Rebecca.
Looking back on a career that includes travelling the world with L'Oréal, heading up marketing at the anti-poverty social enterprise thankyou, and later at frank green, a company taking sustainability to the world, Rebecca offers this advice:
"Sometimes you just have to get into the right environment, be open, meet and listen to smart people and follow your interests and passions – this is true of university and your career."
Some of those smart people were clearly Rebecca's parents who were very supportive, encouraging her to think big, create opportunities, follow her passions and to have an independent career.
Working out what to study
Rebecca loved reading crime novels as a young adult, so decided to follow that interest by starting a double degree in Criminology and Psychology at ECU.
You have to start somewhere, right?
But in her Psychology lectures, Rebecca discovered students doing a double degree in Psychology and Business and that really interested her.
So she swapped to Business and Psychology the following semester and loved it!
On reflection, Rebecca says that what she loves about a business degree is that it allows your career to be diverse.
"You can work in a range of businesses, from fast-paced global corporates to founder led start-ups, social enterprise, not-for-profits and every industry imaginable.
"Also, ECU knows that a degree is not enough, you need networks and industry experience to give you an edge when you graduate.
"They gave me lots of opportunities to connect with industry and work on real business challenges."
Finding a passion or a purpose
"I always looked up to strong female business leaders and particularly those that had clearly found a passion or a purpose that they could contribute to driving forward," says Rebecca.
"I've always wanted to have a positive impact on people and the environment throughout my career and I've learnt that you can do that in lots of businesses in lots of different ways.
"At frank green I was able to inspire and excite generations to engage in reusable and sustainable behaviour."
Not bad for the anxious kid who relied on crime novels to start her remarkable career.
Is a Business degree for you?
If Rebecca's story has got you thinking about studying for a career in business, we suggest you visit our Business page.
