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What brought you to CPS and what were you hoping the experience would give you?

I came to Northeastern’s College of Professional Studies from Nigeria with a clear intention: to sharpen my project and product management skills in a global environment and position myself to build something impactful. I wasn’t looking for a degree for its own sake. I wanted an experience that felt practical, demanding, and deeply connected to the real world.

What drew me to CPS was the way it blended theory with real problem-solving — and its alignment with the kind of thinking and execution I was already passionate about. CPS felt built for people who want to do more than study concepts: people who want to build, lead, create, and execute.

What I hoped it would change was my scale of thinking. Coming to Toronto as an international student from Nigeria was a major leap, and I wanted to prove I could thrive in unfamiliar environments, compete at a high level, and build beyond the classroom. Looking back, that is exactly what happened.

What is the moment, class, conversation, or experience that stands out most from your time at CPS?

What stands out most is how intentionally practical this program is compared to what I expected graduate school to be. The coursework never felt disconnected from the real world — it felt designed by people who understood what practitioners actually need.

What cemented that for me was discovering the PMI partnership woven into the program: discounted membership, exam discounts, and structured alignment toward PMP certification. For someone who came here to build a career and a company, that signaled that CPS was serious about outcomes, not just academic completion.

I also didn’t expect how broad the program would feel. The way the curriculum blends analytics, business analysis, construction, and technology reflects something true about the real world: every industry has projects, and every industry needs people who can think across disciplines to execute them. Experiencing that changed how I engaged with every course.

How has being part of CPS changed you — professionally, personally, or both?

CPS changed me in ways I didn’t anticipate.

Professionally, I came in with experience but without the structured frameworks to scale it into something bigger. CPS gave me the language, methodology, and confidence to operate at a higher level — from managing projects to architecting them, from executing tasks to leading teams, from having ideas to knowing how to take them through discovery, validation, and delivery.

Personally, the change was quieter but just as significant. Coming to Toronto from Nigeria, I felt a responsibility to prove something to myself. CPS became the environment where I discovered what I was actually capable of. The rigor, the diversity of peers, and the expectation that you show up prepared and contribute meaningfully pushed me to grow in ways a comfortable environment never could have.

I came here for a degree. I am leaving as the founder of an incorporated startup launching this fall, a Laurel and Scroll School of Distinction honoree, and a CPS Student Ambassador. The person who started this program was capable. The person finishing it knows it.

Is there a person — student, faculty member, advisor, or colleague — who made a meaningful difference for you at CPS? Tell us about them.

Stephanie Cochrane.

There is something rare about someone who believes in your journey before you can fully articulate it yourself. Stephanie did that for me. In moments where I was still figuring out how to put words to what I was building and where I was headed, she held space for it — without needing it to be perfect or polished. She listened, she pushed me forward, and she never made me feel like my ambitions were too much or too soon.

I hope she knows how much it mattered.

The degree is the smallest thing you are leaving with. What you are actually taking with you is how you think, how you show up, and what you now believe is possible for yourself.

Casandra Onwuocha

What do you want the Class of 2026 to know as they step forward from here?

The degree is the smallest thing you are leaving with.

What you are actually taking with you is how you think, how you show up, and what you now believe is possible for yourself. Don’t let the noise of what comes next make you forget that.

You are going to walk into rooms that feel too big, opportunities that feel too soon, and challenges that feel too hard. Go anyway. Discomfort is not a sign that you don’t belong — it’s a sign you’re exactly where growth happens.

Don’t wait until you feel ready to start building what you came here to build. Readiness is a myth. Momentum is real. Start with what you have, where you are, and trust that the rest will follow.

Is there anything else you want us to know?

I came to CPS as an international student from Nigeria with a suitcase, a goal, and a lot to prove — mostly to myself and my mother. I am leaving as a founder, a Laurel and Scroll honoree, a student ambassador, and an author in the making: someone who genuinely believes the best is still ahead.

BinR, my startup launching in Ontario this fall, exists because of the thinking, confidence, and community CPS helped me build. What happens inside these walls doesn’t stay inside these walls — it follows students into boardrooms, conversations, businesses, and ideas that create real impact in the world.