VMware : Bridging the Corporate-to-Campus Gap with VMware Ambassador Program India

The VMware Campus Ambassador Program is a six-month program for talented, ingenious, and resourceful university students to represent VMware on university campuses worldwide. It aims to create a platform for students with similar interests and passions, bringing them together to promote and represent VMware at their university.

The program was brought to life for the first time in India last year and VMware Careers sat down with Elina Parida, the Program Manager who helped run it successfully. 

VMware Careers: Elina, can you tell us how the Campus Ambassador Program unfolded at VMware India?

Elina Parida: In India, we have a vast pool of untapped talent but many students here are not aware of VMware as we are a B2B company. They often learn about VMware only during the preplacement talks held at their universities during their placement season.

As a result, the University Talent team at VMware India wanted to bridge this corporate-to-campus gap and create a program that would allow students to know about our organization even before the official campus hiring season begins!

Through this program, the Ambassadors are mentored by VMware employees and provided with an opportunity to collaborate on various events and establish our brand presence in their universities, thus making more students aware of VMware. 

VMware Careers: Last year saw the commencement of the program's first edition in India. Can you share what some of the highlights were?

Elina Parida: We had five participating universities for the first year of the program and the five Ambassadors could choose which events they wanted to host, for example:

• Campus to Corporate Talks
• Webinars on topics such as Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Cloud Computing and Virtualization
• A two-day hands-on workshop on Docker, Kubernetes, and VMware Tanzu
• The VMware Campus Ambassador Program Virtual Hackathon

We had high engagement from over 2500 students across five campuses with impressive feedback that the sessions were very interactive, informative, and relevant. The Ambassadors also received VMware merchandise and were included in VMware's intern program events like Leadership Speaker Series and Stand-up Comedy Evening with Sumukhi Suresh, a popular comedian in India.

VMware Careers: What feedback have you been hearing from the students who are Campus Ambassadors?

Elina Parida: We asked some of our previous Campus Ambassadors to share their feedback about the program, below is a selection of what they had to say.

Divanshi Sethi: "This program was curated really well by VMware's UT team. My mentor guided me throughout the program and helped me with every little detail to plan the events. The program manager from the UT team managed the entire program effortlessly. Kudos to all the people who made this program a success."

Suryansh Singh: "It was a great experience. My mentors supported and guided me throughout the program. The University Team has a major role in making this program so exciting. I have learned a lot in the past 6 months and enjoyed each moment being a VMware Campus Ambassador."

Swati Gupta: "I just want to say I could not have asked for more. One of my best experiences that I will cherish forever. Each person involved in this program was so supportive throughout."

Manah Shetty: "We were all made to feel very comfortable with our roles and interactions. The mentors and the UT team were always very responsive and available which made for a smooth experience. It was a wonderful six months here."

VMware Careers: Are there any plans to develop the Campus Ambassador Program?

Elina Parida: Yes, definitely! Starting this year, information about the program is accessible to all via our dedicated Campus Ambassador section on the VMware Careers Website here. The Ambassadors get the opportunity to collaborate with VMware mentors on various events such as campus to corporate talks, webinars, workshops, and hackathons, and they are also encouraged to host a completely different event as per their vision as well. 

VMware Careers: How can people who are interested in joining the program apply?

Elina Parida: The applications have been closed for this year, however, interested students can visit the VMware Campus Ambassador Program page to know more about the program and follow our University Talent social media channels linked below for regular updates. We look forward to more participation for the next season!

VMware LinkedIn 
VMware University Talent Twitter 
VMware University Talent Facebook 
VMware University Talent Instagram