Surrounded by friends searching for jobs in the UAE or graduate schools abroad, Ghimire found herself applying for jobs on LinkedIn with the location set on "worldwide." Amidst the sounds of frenzied mouse-clicks and clattering keys, she had forgotten that for a long time she had closely-held onto the desire to work in her home country, Nepal. Ghimire ultimately decided to move back home to take a gap year. The two main activities she planned to do were reading, and writing. That included challenging herself to write for 12 hours straight on a weekend. Over time, she says, her introspective form of writing became more evocative and vulnerable as she wrote on family dynamics, love, and relationships.
Until one day, she heard about a job at the Kathmandu Post from a friend. Ghimire saw this as an opportunity to naturally transition out of her gap year and to pursue a job that incorporated her interests for reading and writing.“I actually really enjoy being a journalist! I get to talk to people and write; my extroverted self is extremely exhausted but fulfilled at the end of the day,” Ghimire added.
Despite the steep learning curve, she has been enjoying navigating the differences between journalistic and academic writing. Ghimire credits the liberal arts education at NYUAD with helping her approach social issues with a variety of perspectives. Through her current role, Ghimire plans to develop a ground-level understanding of social issues in Nepal and continue her studies in law in the near future.