Ofri has never been afraid to chart her own path. A transfer student who has moved through three different schools, community college, a state university, and now Brandeis University, she has always been willing to pursue something more challenging. She is taking on rigorous math courses in pursuit of her psychology and neuroscience double major, and even considering adding a third applied mathematics major to the list. And she’s doing it all while dedicating serious time to her own independent research project for her psychology class.

Despite her academic determination, Ofri knows a feeling shared by many students: the uncertainty of not knowing what comes next.

Finding CareerVillage while at a crossroads

When Ofri first came across CareerVillage.org, she was in a particularly uncertain moment. She had just applied to Brandeis, and was waiting to hear back. She was questioning whether psychology alone was the right path, and wrestling with a persistent worry about her future.

“This is my biggest fear,” she shared. “Focusing too much on the now… but there’s that voice in my head that keeps saying, ‘but what does this mean for later?’”

She had been applying to scholarships and stumbled upon CareerVillage’s scholarship opportunity, which required submitting a career question to the platform. What she found when she did surprised her.

“I’ve never been really big on LinkedIn… so I wasn’t actually expecting real people to respond. It felt nice that someone real actually responded to me.”

The value of a thoughtful, written response

Like many students, Ofri has sought career guidance in a variety of ways, including visiting her campus career center at Brandeis. But she noticed something distinct about the advice she received on CareerVillage: the written format seemed to bring out a different kind of thoughtfulness.

“When you write it out, and when you’ve got a platform where many people can see it at once and think it through before they write back, even just the act of writing the advice, not just talking about it, will completely change what you’re going to give to people.”

Because professionals on the platform take the time to read and respond in writing, Ofri found the guidance especially practical and specific to her situation.

The mindset that drives her

What stands out most about Ofri isn’t just her academic ambition, it’s her philosophy about the voices she chooses to listen to. She’s encountered her share of skepticism along the way. When she expressed interest in adding mathematics to her studies, she was told it was too hard and that she should have a plan B. When she mentioned interest in a PhD program, she was told it was impossible to get into one.

She doesn’t let it stick.

“When you’re first expressing an interest in a subject, I don’t think that is the right time to immediately say you should have a plan B. Because if you come to that with that mindset, you’re immediately going to be on a path to failing.”

Instead, she seeks out the other kind of voice. “There are two types of people. There’s the type who says, ‘yeah, go for it, try your best.’ And then there’s the type who is skeptical and believes that somewhere down the line you’re going to give up and fail.”

“I don’t want to give up on things that seem a little too impossible,” she said simply.

Looking ahead

Ofri doesn’t have everything figured out, she’ll be the first to say that. She’s still in her first semester of applied mathematics, still exploring what a psychology background might mean for her career, and still deciding whether a PhD is in her future.

But she’s asking the right questions. And she knows where to go when she needs thoughtful answers. She’s already thinking about returning to CareerVillage to ask more questions when her schedule allows.

And someday, she might be the one answering them.