Graduating summa cum laude while working in a multinational technology company like Microsoft is no easy feat. However, for Karen Kusnadi, an alumnus of Master of Communication Science FISIP UI class of 2022, discipline and perseverance are the keys to balancing both. The alumni, who graduated in 2024, was named the best graduate with a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.96.
From Agency to Tech Giant
Karen has been in the communications industry for over a decade. She started out at a public relations agency, but the experience of working with clients from the tech industry made her more interested in the tech world. “Because of the speed of the industry itself, the topics that are raised, and the fact that I can have relationships with journalist friends, it makes me have more interest in the world of technology,” Karen said during an online interview (11/10/2025).
This eventually led Karen to pursue a career as Communication Lead at Microsoft Indonesia since 2021. Now, after working for four years at Microsoft, Karen continues her career as Corporate Communications and PR Manager for Apple in Indonesia since April 2025.
In the midst of the career she was building, Karen decided to continue her Master’s degree in Communication Science FISIP UI, by taking the Communication Management Program (Special Class). Her decision to return to college was driven by her aspiration to teach as a lecturer. “The master’s degree is in a department that is linear with my undergraduate degree because my goal is to teach,” Karen said.
However, once the lectures started, Karen immediately experienced culture shock. Academic tasks required her to spend more time. She even considered quitting her job to focus on her studies. However, encouragement from her boss at Microsoft changed her plans.
“At that time, the office also said, ‘we’ll give you flexibility, do what you want, pursue your study,‘ but yes, don’t be shy, so just do it as much as possible,” she recalled.
Strict Schedule Makes Parents Wary
From then on, Karen developed a “strict schedule” that she followed with great discipline for four semesters. From 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, she would allocate her time entirely to work and office meetings. Then, from 4pm she would shift into “student mode” to focus on her evening lectures. Meanwhile, he uses the weekends specifically to complete college needs, such as reading materials, completing assignments, and having group discussions to make presentations or research reports.
Her strict schedule did not go unnoticed by her family. Karen says that her mother often expresses concern because she sees her hard work while studying and working. “Until my mom said something like, ‘are you really okay? Your health is number one after all,'” Karen said with a laugh.
However, Karen is grateful that the learning environment she feels in Communication Science is very conducive. Starting from lecture material that is relevant to her career, to friendships that support and understand each other. “Because we both know that we are working while studying, so we help each other, like exchanging schedules if someone is out of town,” said Karen.
In fact, Karen and her classmates had promised to graduate on time and graduate together. “If it wasn’t for fellow friends who were like, ‘we have to be in the graduation photo together,’ if there weren’t things like that, I don’t think my thesis would have been caught up,” Karen continued.
Finding the Relevance of Lectures to the Career World
Another thing that made Karen grateful for taking the Master of Communication Science Program at UI was the relevance of the lecture material to her career at that time. In several courses at the Communication Science Postgraduate Program, Karen admitted that she often found answers to the challenges she faced in the office.
“Every time I do an assignment, I often take a case study in the office where I work. In the Digital PR course, my group used a real Microsoft account to work on a digital PR campaign project,” Karen said.
Not only in working on assignments in several courses, the thesis that led her to the Summa Cum Laude title also took a phenomenon that occurred in her office. Karen raised the issue of a work mentorship program for adults with autism at Microsoft Indonesia.
Karen advised the Postgraduate Communication Science students to take advantage of the study period as an opportunity to hone their abilities, open new perspectives, train discipline, and form a structured way of thinking. According to Karen, this ability to hone oneself is very important, especially for those who want to have a career in a multinational company (MNC).
“At MNC, we must have an open mindset, because we work with people across countries. Also, we have to be able to do everything quickly with good quality,” Karen concluded. (FSI)
