James Yamanaka Director American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Sri Lanka and CEO and MD of one of the largest multinational corporations in the island had few but very pertinent tips for Juhaan Johar (Lyceum Nugegoda '10) on the eve of Juhaan's departure to St.John's University in Central Minnesota when they were recently brought together by Scholarships for USA (Pvt) Ltd (www.scholarshipsforusa.com) who expose all their students to corporate leaders prior to their departure to USA.

James being a fourth generation Japanese-American explained to Juhaan how US is still the land of opportunities. He related how hard working immigrants came up so well in America contributing in return making USA the world's only super power. Is there a single right answer to a problem? James explained how many right answers are there to any issue. His point was that US higher education prepares you to look at many different avenues before choosing the best.

James graduated in '90 from UC San Diego majoring in Political Science and a minor in Economics and earned Master of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and an MBA from the London Business School. Hence he could speak through his experiences both within the classroom and through internships.

He urged Juhaan to do as many internships as possible. He said the GPA's are important, where you studied is important but those will only get you through the door. Once you're in, James wouldn't even look at your impressive certificates. He would only be interested in what you could bring to the table and where would you like to see the business in the next few years and how you plan contributes to reach there.

Talking about central Minnesota he said it was very cold and probably very rural and this was probably why Lankan students are offered such amazing financial aid. He said many of the private liberal arts schools in Midwest are considered hidden gems providing value for money and offering excellent academics in small classes. And his parting advice was to make the best of a rare opportunity.