Embracing the differences in people and a desire to learn about other cultures are qualities Safal Madaan was born into. Raised in India by his Hindu family, Safal was privileged to be raised in a diverse environment.
“My parents run their own private school back home which has students from different religions, with different cultures. We used to celebrate all the festivals together,” Safal said. “That made me curious to learn more about different cultures outside of India.”
When exploring studying abroad, Safal’s immigration consultant gave him a few options to choose from. College of the Rockies rose to the top of the options, for a couple different reasons.
“I chose Cranbrook because, being in a small town, the College has a good record of engaging international students from different countries,” he said. “Also, I had never lived in mountains, so the mountains here, the lakes, and the beautiful area of Cranbrook attracted me to come here.”
Safal embraced Canadian culture from the start. He celebrated Christmas for the first time with his landlord, and Thanksgiving and Easter dinners with a College friend. Now he even goes ice-fishing, snowboarding, and hiking.
Safal completed both an Arts and Science certificate and an Environmental Studies certificate during his time at the College. He also filled the role of Vice President of the Students’ Association for two years which provided him an opportunity to be creative and find ways to make students’ lives more joyful on campus. While attending school, he also worked part-time and found that working for someone else wasn’t a very good fit for him. An entrepreneur was born.
Safal is now the franchisee of a Cloud Kitchen called Spice Symphony which prepares authentic Indian food and delivers it to customers for free. It is Safal’s hope to help international students access food that tastes like back home, at a reasonable price. Students can subscribe on a monthly, weekly, or daily basis.
Safal has also been working as a financial broker for the past year and a half and is building his own agency. He and fifteen other agents help individuals and families, providing them with the financial education that can help them save and grow their money, building their long-term health.
“I am self-employed but have sponsorship through the World Financial Group,” he explains.
Safal credits his time at the College for helping to develop his entrepreneurial mindset.
“I always feel grateful that I got a chance to study at the College. The faculty are amazing, and I have learned a lot of good things from them that triggered me to be an entrepreneur,” he said. “The programs I did at the College built the foundation for where I am right now. I always recommend College of the Rockies because it is diverse with students from different nations and you get to learn a lot about different cultures, ways of doing things, and most importantly, benefit from the affection and care you get from the community, faculty, and the staff from the International Department. Avery Hulbert also has been great, and I learned from her how to deal with situations effectively.”
Safal has clearly spread the word to family about his experience at the College. He estimates that since 2020, 15 to 20 of his cousins have come to Canada to study here.
“The College always felt like home, from day one. The affection and care I got from faculty and my friends from the community is something I want all my younger cousins to experience as well. Thank you so much COTR and Cranbrook.”