'Start a company in Estonia in 15 minutes'

Gopichand Gopini, 24, from Piler, a small town in Andhra Pradesh, enjoys Estonia's flexible work-study options to help him gain real world experience

I had a passion for Management studies since my days as a BTech student in Electronics and Communication Engineering at Sree Vidyanikethan Engineering College, Tirupati. While working as a project engineer with Wipro after graduation, I zeroed in on Estonia for a master's degree. What attracted me to the country is the fact one can establish a company in 15 minutes flat.

With a population of 1.3 million, Estonia has the most unicorns per capita in the world, reinforcing my belief that it is a country driving on innovation for talented young minds.

I chose MA in Innovation and Technology Management at the University of Tartu, which focusses on various concepts of innovation management and digital business analysis modules. Through the course's industry links, we continue to gain practical knowledge and work on innovation projects. By being given access to a company's data and practices, students can bring up their data-backed suggestions in reports. Since the university stands among the top destinations for Erasmus scholars, it gave me a whole new network of friends, experiences and cultural learning.

Estonian academia is based on continuous feedback mechanism.

Students learn, adapt and implement new ideas through group work. A blend of theoretical and practical knowledge has given me an insight into analysing business concepts and innovation management practices.

This would help me choose job roles as a consultant/business analyst/product manager. Along with my master's degree, I am working as a business analyst at Finnair business services.

Since I am in the second year, it would be challenging for me to manage my professional life and finish my thesis. Estonia allows students to do a full-time job while studying as long as it does not disturb their studies. I work for 40 hours per week as I can manage my academic load. Most of the Estonian companies allow students to work for 26-40 hours per week.

Tartu is a hub for global students and centre for corporate and tech giants. I am vice-president for Tartu's Erasmus student network (ESN Tartu), which helps me to meet new people during events. My University hosts various EU level and international workshops, events and seminars. I have free access as a student to most of the local and international hackathons and workshops.

With plans to get a permanent residency in Estonia within 2022, I hope to excel in my current job.