''The practical grounding in HR principles that I received at IU helps me every day''
Joseph Inba Raj, 28, is from Tamil Nadu, India. He enjoys sketching, hiking, food adventuring and travelling.
His father had an NGO when he was growing up, and seeing the way he influenced, encouraged and lead the organisation sparked his initial drive to study Human Resources. Given this, it made sense that he would pursue HR when it was time for him to consider his postgraduate studies.
An International Environment & Industry Expert
As for my choice of university, there was a variety of factors that attracted me to IU: for one, their Master programmes are offered entirely through English, and I loved their commitment to small-group teaching, the practice-oriented ethos, and the internationality of the campus environment. It was also a big advantage that during our third semester in particular, all our lectures were taught by industry experts, which really helped me understand how the skills I was learning would help me in an actual HR role.
Recruiting for a better future
My interest in HR and my enthusiasm for NGOs dovetailed during my thesis period, when I began working with the Global Talent Acquisition team of the UN World Food Programme in Rome. My focus there was on employer branding and acquiring new talents for various permanent positions around the world. This role helped inspire me to centre my thesis around the factors necessary to foster trust between recruiters and candidates in virtual recruitment scenarios. This led into my first role after graduation as a Recruiting Specialist with ProVeg, a non-profit designed to inspire and motivate people to start living a more plant-based lifestyle.
New City, New Start
Today, my role is that of HR & Talent Acquisition Leader with BeamNG, an indie game studio based in beautiful and historical Bremen. This move has represented a big shift for me, but I am getting to combine my passions for HR, physics and games as part of a company that puts their people first and cares for their wellbeing. In this role I deal with the entire HR life-cycle from need assessment, through talent acquisition, performance management, branding and analytic, all the way to offboarding. Here, as in my previous roles, the practical grounding in HR principles that I received at IU helps me every day.
Networking and Learning on the Alumni Council
Finally, I am very pleased also to have gotten involved with the IU Alumni Council. Now I have the opportunity to share my knowledge and experience in order to give something back to the university, as well as to further both myself and my fellow alumni’s prospects by networking and learning together. I found it particularly rewarding to address new graduates as keynote speaker at the most recent Berlin graduation ceremony, and I can’t wait to continue my support for the university and its students with my continued participation in the Alumni Council.
The Alumni Representatives of IU’s Alumni Council aim to improve connections between students, alumni, and IU as well as linking alumni with all programmes and study models. Anyone who has completed a degree as IU International University of Applied Sciences is part of the alumni community and can be elected as an Alumni Representative.
Awards, accreditations and certifications
