Alumni Feature: Siri Brudevold
Today, Event Leadership Institute alum, Siri Brudevold, is an Event Planner at Charles Koch Institute, but her journey towards a career in events didn’t begin there. Knowing she needed to fill gaps in her experience, skills and knowledge in order to better succeed in her industry, Siri enrolled in the 10-week Event & Meeting Management Fundamentals Certificate online course at ELI.
“I had been working in a fairly niche area of events and because I didn’t have a degree in Events Management or Hospitality, I was self-conscious of my standing in the events industry more broadly. Enrolling in this course was a way for me to gauge my skills and information,” Siri explains, “I didn’t know what I didn’t know. I wanted a firmer understanding of my knowledge gaps in the industry and I thought this course was the perfect way to do that.”
The course provided Siri a thorough understanding of the vast scope of the events industry. She shares, “The Event and Meeting Management Fundamentals Course opened my eyes to how vast and varying the events industry really is.”
“The instructor was helpful and friendly. But the main reason I thoroughly enjoyed the course was because the lessons were very clear and well mapped out, which made information retention a breeze,” Siri says about her time studying with ELI, “Knowing how many seats can fit comfortably at a standard round table, how much square footage each person needs when setting up a room classroom style versus receptions style, the ratio of screen to stage, etc. All that basic but vital information about size and space really allowed me get creative while remaining realistic thus better ensuring my attendees have memorable and comfortable experiences.”
Armed with years of experience in the industry and her event planning course, Siri has big goals for the future, “The course inspired me to step outside of my comfort zone and as a result, I will be attending the University of Greenwich to pursue a Masters in International Event Management starting in the Fall. I plan to have a much clearer long-term picture of my career path at the completion of my degree program. But for now, the plan is to keep my eyes open to the endless possibilities that the events industry presents. I can’t wait to see what doors will open!”
