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Q+A: Meet our 2022 Laidlaw scholars

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The scholarship is directed towards extraordinary women with clear leadership potential.

Saïd Business School, University of Oxford is delighted to introduce its eight new Laidlaw Scholars.

Aki Higuchi, Shwe Yee Win, Lais Higashi , Lucy Nyamaah, Maral Ganghuyag, Omowale Ajose, Shruti Jain and Nitya Nangalia were all selected to join the MBA programme as Laidlaw scholars.

The Laidlaw Scholarships are directed towards extraordinary women with clear leadership potential. Recipients are individuals who have a passion for gender equality and have demonstrated their commitment to leading change in their sector. They are supported by the Laidlaw Foundation.

This year’s scholars join a historic cohort. With 48% female participants, our 2022-2023 MBA class contains the highest percentage of women students in the school’s 26-year history.

To mark their appointment, we spoke to all eight scholars ahead of them joining the school.

Aki Higuchi

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Aki comes to the school on the back of an internship she just completed at UNICEF. She has a passion for delivering quality education and improving gender equality beyond cultures, having founded an education start-up, which works closely with 5,000 children and parents.

Q. How do you feel having been selected as a Laidlaw scholar?

A. ‘The Laidlaw scholarship is my dream come true. I am honoured and thrilled to be able to learn and grow together with many future female leaders!  This scholarship is critical because it gives women tremendous learning opportunities to dream big. It encourages women, especially those who are facing financially and culturally seemingly impenetrable obstacles.’

Q. What are you most looking forward to at Oxford Saïd?

A. 'Diving into the diverse community, meeting new people and deepening my expertise! One of my favourite quotes is an African proverb: ‘If you want to go fast, go alone." If you want to go far, go together." I truly believe in the power of teamwork. I am looking forward to discussing and working with many cohorts who have similar interests, different opinions, and crazy ideas!'

Q. Anything else you would like to add?

A. ‘I love playing tennis and piano and exploring new cuisine from different countries. I would love to get to know people who love sports, music and good food!’

‘If you want to go far, go together.’

Shwe Yee Win

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For the past 5 years, Shwe has been leading two business arms of her family’s business in the garment and retail fashion industry. They have over 300 staff, 85% of which are female.

Before that, Shwe studied Business Management in Singapore and worked at Uniqlo Store Operations as an Assistant Store Manager in Singapore for two years.

Q. How do you feel having been selected as a Laidlaw scholar?

A. ‘I am incredibly honoured and excited to be selected as a Laidlaw scholar. Coming from Myanmar's garment industry in all aspects of a challenging country, achieving the Oxford MBA with Laidlaw scholarship definitely proves that circumstances aren’t barriers to anybody’s dreams.

Being a Laidlaw scholar means being a part of a network of inspiring women who are breaking glass ceilings and leading ethically. It also means that we have a community of amazing female leaders where everyone relies on and supports each other so that everyone succeeds.  I am truly grateful for the opportunity to be pursuing my dream without any financial burden and being a part of such an incredible community.’

Q. What do you think this scholarship, aimed at future women leaders, is so important?

A. ‘This scholarship serves as a beacon that opportunities are open to everyone, especially women, regardless of gender, age and background. It is an encouragement to aspiring women leaders that dreams do come true to those who put in actions and effort to make it happen.

It will also allow future women leaders to gain confidence, build a network, be part of a community of successful women and improve gender equality in all aspects such as career development, employment.’

Q. What are you most looking forward to at Oxford Saïd?

A. ‘I am most looking forward to meeting the distinguished and diverse cohort and learning from each other. I am also very excited about the curriculum, which emphasises social impact and entrepreneurship, along with many interesting electives such as Political Economy for Business Leaders, Entrepreneurial Finance Project. I am also looking forward to the college experience, unique to Oxford University and the historic beautiful buildings.’

‘Being a Laidlaw scholar means breaking glass ceilings.’

Lais Higashi

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Hailing from Brazil, Lais is a graduate in Business Administration from Universidade de São Paulo. She also holds a double degree from Kedge Business School in France.

In 2015 she founded the São Paulo team of ‘Litro de Luz’ meaning ‘Litre of Light’, which brings solar lighting to communities without adequate access to electricity. In 2016 assumed the presidency of the organisation in Brazil.

Lais has acquired many accolades in her time, notably becoming a One Young World Ambassador in 2021.

Q. How do you feel having been selected as a Laidlaw scholar?

A. ‘I am very grateful. The scholarship allowed me to take this unique opportunity of learning in a world-class school and meeting international impact leaders. I also feel valued as a women leader and encouraged to continue my social entrepreneurship journey. Finally, I feel the responsibility to make the most out of this experience so that I can make a bigger change.’

Q. What do you think this scholarship, aimed at future women leaders, is so important?

A. ‘This scholarship recognises the work that women are already doing, valuing our work, perspectives and potential. Moreover, it is an incentive for women to pursue leadership roles, showing that we can be in these spaces and that society needs that.’

Q. What are you most looking forward to at Oxford Saïd?

A. ‘Learning about social impact and business at a global level and getting to know my brilliant peers from all over the world.’

I feel the responsibility to make the most out of this experience so that I can make a bigger change.

Lucy Nyamaah

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Born in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana, all of Lucy’s education had been in Ghana until her postgraduate degree.

She read for a BSc in Geological Engineering in the University of Mines and Technology and pursued an MSc. in Petroleum Geoscience at the Imperial College in London. A major part of her career has been in the oil and gas industry.

Lucy considers herself to be a female champion, passionate about mentoring young people, especially young women. She describes herself as an avid reader and considers herself to have a wanderlust she has so-far ‘unsuccessfully tried to trace’.

Q. How do you feel having been selected as a Laidlaw scholar?

A. ‘Frankly, it is humbling to have been selected among what I imagine was a highly competitive list of exceptional female leaders. In many ways, it is also a validation of my journey up to this point; my conviction of female leadership capabilities, the struggles I have had to overcome and the successes that have followed. The scholarship is also a boost to stay focused.’

Q. What do you think this scholarship, aimed at future women leaders, is so important?

A. ‘The world is beginning to recognise what Lord Laidlaw knew all along; the link between female empowerment and societal wealth creation. The strong business case for gender diversity at all levels most especially in board rooms and at the executive is now unequivocal. The Laidlaw scholarship is so important because it is committed to unloading some of the burden and barriers that stops women from pursuing top graduate business and management education especially in prestigious schools like Oxford. It is essentially acting as the conduit to give women the education and networks needed to navigate the proverbial glass ceiling.’

Q. What are you most looking forward to at Oxford Saïd?

A. ‘Everything! Interacting with the diverse and impressive group of people in my cohort, the high quality of teaching and immersing myself in the Oxford culture. I cannot wait!’

The world is recognising what Lord Laidlaw knew all along; the link between female empowerment and societal wealth creation.

Maral Gankhuyag

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Before joining Oxford Maral worked in the non-profit sector of Mongolia, where she sought to address entrenched societal issues through a wide variety of education and entrepreneurial programs and projects.

One such programme was the Women’s Leadership Program, which worked to address the underrepresentation of women in leadership and decision-making positions, as well as gender-related stereotypes in Mongolia. Her work has directly allowed hundreds of women from across the country to benefit and unlock their potential.

Q. How do you feel having been selected as a Laidlaw scholar?

A. ‘I feel highly honoured to be selected as a Laidlaw scholar and am grateful to be a part of such a fantastic community of women across the globe.’

Q. What do you think this scholarship, aimed at future women leaders, is so important?

A. ‘I’m truly grateful to the Laidlaw Foundation for providing such an exceptional opportunity for women. While some exceptions exist, women are still widely underrepresented in leadership and decision-making roles. I see the Laidlaw scholarship as a concrete step toward addressing this issue. The scholarship provides a unique opportunity for women to develop themselves, connect to a supportive community, and empower them to create positive changes in their respective industries worldwide.’

Q. What are you most looking forward to at Oxford Saïd?

A. ‘Oxford Saïd is known for attracting a diverse community of individuals passionate about making the world a better place. I’m looking forward to meeting these extraordinary people and learning from them.’

The scholarship provides a unique opportunity for women to develop themselves.

Omowale Ajose

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Omowale is from Lagos, Nigeria and has lived there all her life until now. She studied Accounting at the University of Lagos and obtained the ACCA qualification shortly after. Her work experience spans investment research, corporate finance and financial advisory. Her last position prior to the MBA was in the Deal Advisory team at PwC Nigeria.

Q. How do you feel having been selected as a Laidlaw scholar?

‘It is truly a great honour- I feel seen and accepted. Being selected out of the large number of applicants gave me the validation I didn’t even realise I needed.’

Q. What do you think this scholarship, aimed at future women leaders, is so important?

A. ‘This scholarship is really important because it gives disadvantaged women with big dreams and huge potential, the platform to make a difference in their communities and the world at large.’

Q. What are you most looking forward to at Oxford Saïd?

A. ‘I am really excited about interacting with my classmates from diverse backgrounds as well as engaging with renowned intellectuals amongst the faculty and alumni.’

It gives disadvantaged women with big dreams and huge potential.

Shruti Jain

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Shruti is both a Laidlaw and Skoll Scholar. 

Shruti is the founder of Kaze Living, a sustainable foods venture involved in hydroponic farming and ecommerce activities. Her farm to-fork marketplace has created a scalable platform for farmers and food producers to build their own brands, sell directly to customers, and achieve greater financial stability. In three years, her work has empowered 1,500+ farmers and built a community of 6,000+ conscious customers. Prior to this, Shruti worked at an international consulting firm for F&B clients on procurement and supply chain projects. She holds a Bachelor of Business Studies degree from Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies, University of Delhi. Shruti is also a Laidlaw Scholar at Saïd Business School

'The world needs social entrepreneurs more than ever. '

Dr Peter Drobac

Director of the Skoll Centre for Entrepreneurship

Nitya Nangalia

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Nitya is a join Laidlaw and Skoll Scholar.

Nitya is a Central Team Coordinator at India’s largest women’s organisation, Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) Bharat, where she brings a focus on entrepreneurship as a way to achieve economic empowerment. In her time at SEWA, she has setup up a ‘Women’s Enterprise Support System’ (WESS) to incubate, accelerate and invest in collective businesses setup by urban/rural poor women across India. Nitya has previously worked as a part of the setup team of Paytm Payment’s Bank, a fintech unicorn in India, and in the fintech practice at PwC, Mumbai. She is an alumna of University of Chicago Trust’s International Innovation Corps (IIC) Fellowship, and Lady Shri Ram College for Women. Nitya is also a Laidlaw Scholar at Saïd Business School.