The Road Less Travelled By: My Experiences With Bocconi’s BEMACC And How They’ve Shaped My Gap Year
There is a poem most of you have probably heard of, The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, which I think fits here quite well (and adds some romanticism while we’re at it). It talks about life choices and the different paths we could follow in our lives - more or less. If you don’t know it yet, I highly recommend reading it . Anyway, here is a quote from it that I would like to begin with:
“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.”
I think a lot of things that we are going through during these years of our lives, seem so serious, the decisions seem to bear inevitable consequence of the upcoming future and it is probably true, we are vigorously shaping our character and determining who we want to be and what we want to do. For me a first serious decision was what university and course I am going to attend and I’d like to think that it has indeed had an influence on my professional and personal development.
When applying to Bocconi my preferred course was Finance, once Economics and Management for Arts, Culture and Communication in English appeared as an option I quickly jumped at the chance to sign up. It may seem as a strange choice, since some of the people would go the other way around, but for me it was a chance to escape the risk of over-focusing my studies too early and expanding my horizons with things I didn’t get to learn in high school. Until this day I believe that all of us, even the Finance students, could use a bit of philosophy and history of art.
As one of the students that were part of the first batch to take BEMACC ever, there were some challenges and some doubts, but something that I can’t deny is that it was an experience that changed me profoundly. You can argue different ways about some subjects, but out of the focused range of courses that Bocconi offers this one was a breath of fresh air and it came ahead of the curve, since at the time not many universities paid attention to management of cultural institutions. After being involved in the topic for about four years I can assure you that we do need qualified and trained people to lead cultural and artistic institutions, which think about both sides, both the economy and the culture. Otherwise there will always be tension in the way any museum or institute is handled. This I learned the hard way, after having left Bocconi and having familiarised myself with different industries from the cultural sector.
I could write a lot about specific classes, what to choose what not to choose, but I think the best advice I can give regarding that course is make it yours, don’t stop with what the class has to offer, find professors that are willing to expand your knowledge, talk to them, try to attend events, join and start associations, etc. What you learn in a classroom is really important, but it only can pass the “life test” if you put yourself out there and use what you think you know. University is really the best time to try and experiment while you’re studying, because you always have a “base” to come back to. Also, some of the professors are way more interesting than you might think, so if I were you I’d take advantage of that.
My second piece of advice is about Milan; it is probably one of the best cities you could live in. Excluding the trouble you have to go through during housework and medical emergencies, in my opinion it is hands-down in the top ten places to live in in Europe. Learn to appreciate its beauty, remarkable hidden spots that make the experience worthwhile, make it your home, maybe learn Italian (start early - speaking from my own troubled experience). It can be really magical and and a truly inspiring city. The relationships I formed with my Italian and Yoga teachers, hairdresser, as well as restaurant owners, waiters, cafes, etc. make my every visit feel like I’m coming home.
When I was close to graduating the tantalising question remained, and I think I can say that every person battles with this in their own way and level: What should I do after college? The conclusion I came to is that I had no idea what the answer. During my three years at Bocconi I became fascinated with art history and heritage management, which disturbed my life-long plan of going into creative film production. It seemed wrong to go to a Master’s course which wasn’t exactly what I wanted, so I made the decision to take a gap year. To be honest it turned out completely different than what I had planned for it, and I can’t even blame the coronavirus crisis for that. It actually went sideways after only three months.
My genius plan was to work on a film with a Polish, Oscar-wining producer and then move onto a six-month long TV show production for HBO. I started with the film, which ended up being two months of 16-hour work days with barely any days off. I personally loved it, but more importantly, it gave me a life lesson I couldn’t get in a school. It not only taught me an amazing amount about film production, but also opened my eyes to different departments and creative cooperation. After such an amazing experience I was ready for more challenges, but as you might have guessed the rest of my plans for the year fell apart. Partially because I wanted to try new things, partially independently of my decisions. Thank God, it turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. What’s funny about taking time off to really get to know yourself and what you want to do is that you might stumble upon things that surprise you in the best way possible. As probably you are right now, I was trained during my high-school and Bocconi years to be ambitious, move towards my goal, work hard, etc., but what I wasn’t prepared for is not knowing in which direction I’m going.
I decided to try different things, and therefore joined the sales team of the biggest auction house in Poland. Another great lesson. There, I learned all about the art market, both in Poland and internationally, and received information I couldn’t get by reading books, or learning about Sotheby’s from forums and their website. This kind of invaluable knowledge is something nobody can take away from you and you have to learn it really quickly because you have to keep up with your co-workers. I was the only person on the team who didn’t have an art history degree. So I decided to do a post-graduate course in the History of Art and Modern Visual Culture. I took me almost a year to complete, but I can proudly say today, that I have passed the final exam. My job motivated me to do something I might not have done otherwise, which coincidentally was something I was considering for 2 years in Bocconi, but never had the guts to do.
After three months I decided to try a new challenge. I joined the international team of Piql, a technological company which works primarily in long-term ultra-safe preservation of data and storage of information the Arctic World Archive. Because of the amazing team I am able to now work primarily with cultural and artistic institutions and focus on preservation of cultural heritage preservation in Poland, and the world. I have talked to foundations and Nobel Prize winners in literature about the heritage of the world and it has become the most fascinating project of my lifetime.
In terms of personal growth I continued to learn Italian and started learning French, I took up horse-riding and read more books than ever, I discovered online courses and fell in-love with them, and I continued the mental-health exercises I wrote about a few months ago. The pandemic made us all stop and reassess who we are and how we move forward and it was at the same time the scariest and most amazing few months of my life, because I reconnected with friends, loved ones and most importantly with myself.
So what’s the takeaway? Bocconi is truly amazing if you keep an open mind and try to take from it as much as you can. Milan is magical. If that’s what you wanted and you’re there, you’ve done really great! So trust yourself in taking risks, and realise that being lost is ok. It is an important time, there are many roads diverging, and most importantly you should be the one choosing what you want to be doing. There is a trend of jumping into programs and careers for the sake of safety, but it won’t do you any good. If you know what you want to do and how to get there - great! But if you don’t, I would say there is an exciting road ahead of you. Even though it’s hard, there is nothing better than discovering what you love and who YOU are.
And remember:
“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.”
