Edith Cowan MBA With Ambitions For Canadian Government

Pubudu Edirisinghe has relocated to Canada as he believes there are far more job opportunities

Pubudu studied at Edith Cowan's partner college in Sri Lanka

Pubudu Edirisinghe studied for his Edith Cowan MBA in Sri Lanka and has now moved to Canada in the hope of contributing to global economic development for the Canadian government.

Sri Lankan born Pubudu studied electrical engineering at the University of Peradeniya for his bachelor’s degree and became a site engineer for Sierra Construction after graduating. When his job began to move into marketing and business building and took him all over the world he decided to obtain an MBA and prior to that a Diploma in Project Management.

The decision to do an MBA was driven by Pubudu’s “fascination with international business. And due to the fact that I got some rare opportunities to be involved in some of the re-structuring work of the government departments of Sri Lanka as a young professional, I felt the need for qualification and recognition.”

Pubudu, 37, studied for his Edith Cowan MBA at one of their partner colleges in Sri Lanka, he was looking to further his knowledge of business strategy and economics.

Pubudu chose Edith Cowan as he “wanted to have my MBA from an international university rather than a local as I felt it would be more demanding and appropriate as an international business development professional. Edith Cowan was popular in Sri Lanka and I had an idea to migrate to Australia.”

Sri Lanka is a country full of business opportunities, “especially post-war tourism could be a big opportunity. However, I always felt that Sri Lanka could be a strategic location to develop like Singapore as a maritime, trading and communications hub. Sri Lanka has the knowledge required, is situated in a very strategic location right below one of the most developing nations in the world. It also has many natural resources and has a business-friendly culture and Sri Lankans can speak many languages. What is lacking is the political vision and leadership.”

It is for this reason that Pubudu has relocated to Canada, “to look for a better future, I believe there are many opportunities in Canada where I can build my career.” The application to get a Canadian Visa was “easy” but it did take about two years to process.

Working now for a financial company in Toronto, Pubudu wants to become a contributor in the economic development field. He is optimistic for the future: “if you have the will and the skills, there are many opportunities available. My long term plan is to actively become involved in the economic development both locally and internationally.” Ideally as part of one of the Canadian governmental development programs.

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Tuesday 20th December 2011, 15.56 (UTC)

mark murray

Sri-Lanka, Australia, Canada - good case-study for international mobility!

Tuesday 20th December 2011, 16.15 (UTC)

Nathan Portman

why didn't you emigrate to australia? hope you can eventually help sri lanka get back on track economically...

Tuesday 27th December 2011, 10.29 (UTC)

Jen Ten

I didn't realise that nearly 40,000 Sri Lankans died in the 2004 Tsunami that devastated parts of the country. The news coverage I remember mostly focused on Thailand - I had no idea Sri Lanka was affected so badly. Has the southern coastal region and tourism industry recovered fully yet? How many Sri Lankans go overseas for an MBA? And do they return to help their country's business sector?