Cover From Vienna to Yale in New Haven, Carolyn Lai’s colourful life story proves how life can take unexpected turns, despite rejection and struggle
From Vienna to Yale in New Haven, Carolyn Lai’s colourful life story proves how life can take unexpected turns, despite rejection and struggle
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From Vienna to New Haven, Carolyn Lai’s colourful life story proves how life can take unexpected fruitful turns in spite of adversity
It’s evening here in Malaysia when a text from Carolyn Lai lights up my phone screen. “I’ve since started my orientation week at Yale!” she says enthusiastically, referring to her acceptance into Yale Divinity School this year to pursue a Master of Divinity. It’s an unconventional educational path, to say the least, for someone who moved to Austria at the age of 13 to train in music.
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“I would say that I learned a lot of discipline sitting in choir practices for six hours every week for four years,” she tells Tatler, fondly recalling her school days at the Vienna Boys’ Choir senior high school. It has been said that a third of the students who attend the prestigious co-ed school go on to pursue professional careers in music.
“I don't think I’m an expert in any one thing, but I have dipped my toes into very many different things and have been exposed to so much,” adds Lai, who speaks over four languages and is fluent in German.
Above Lai moved to Austria at age 13 to train in music in Vienna
Lai moved to Austria at age 13 to train in music in Vienna
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From moving continents to undergo vocal training and compete in competitions like Prima La Musica in Vienna to performing in shows back home in Malaysia during school breaks, Lai was not afraid to let her voice be heard, even from such a young age.
At 16, she took a leap of faith and applied to attend Cambridge University, desiring to use her voice to make a positive difference in the world. To her dismay, she was rejected. After years of planning and visualising Cambridge as the inevitable next step, she pivoted, staying in Vienna to study political science.
“I think I had my first existential crisis when [Cambridge] didn’t happen,” Lai says. “Navigating that was really an eight-year process. It took me eight years to get over it, an eight-year journey of realising that my self-worth is so much more than just one thing that I wanted to do in my life.”
Above Moving to Vienna at the age of 13, Lai was not afraid to let her voice be heard, even as a youngster
Moving to Vienna at the age of 13, Lai was not afraid to let her voice be heard, even as a youngster
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After some time, Lai took on different roles, working at Teach For Austria and later joining the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber as innovation and digitalisation advisor—a role that would shape her life significantly.
There, she helped build its global innovation network, the BOLD Community, identifying groundbreaking innovations in science and technology around the world and forming a global community of innovators to bring that creativity back to Austria.
She was also involved in organising the Youth Speak Forum at the United Nations Headquarters for several years, including a fully online version in 2020.
“I know I’m good at building something out of nothing, including building a new life for myself in a completely foreign country,” Lai shares. “I always thought I would do public policy for my Master’s, but I also felt a deep conviction that at some point down the line I would do a ministerial course and either work in a church or create my own initiative.”
For a time, Lai considered public policy and faith as two worlds apart, until a friend of hers who attended Yale mentioned studying at Yale Divinity. “At first it seemed more suited for those interested in entering the priesthood. But I realised in university—or anywhere really—the world within that world is your oyster, and you can do anything with it.”
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Above Joining the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber as innovation and digitalisation advisor and building the BOLD Community shaped Lai’s life significantly
Joining the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber as innovation and digitalisation advisor and building the BOLD Community shaped Lai’s life significantly
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“We don’t live in a time where, if you study to be a lawyer, then you have to become a lawyer. We have more autonomy today. I also had never explored the US before, so I applied for a Master of Divinity at Yale and Harvard,” Lai says.
After many difficult (albeit highly productive) years of battling rejection and depression, Lai’s finally saw the fruits of her labour in the form of an acceptance letter by Yale.
“I think viewing time as your biggest enemy is not helpful,” she says. “Even if the days go slow, the years do go by really fast, so even thinking about the fact that it took me eight years to get here is incredible.”
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Above Lai posing with the famous Yale bulldog mascot on campus
Lai posing with the famous Yale bulldog mascot on campus
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Her goal? To develop an understanding of how public policy, the arts and Christian leadership can intersect towards ethical policymaking and a more inclusive society.
“My desire for that is based on my lived experiences. From growing up in Malaysia to living in Austria, where Catholicism is very political to living in very religious political societies in different colours, shapes, and sizes, especially as someone who practices faith. To me, faith is a lot more pure than what religion is politicised to be or when used as a political tool.”
Above Lai speaking at BOLD Community’s Manufacturing Serendipity session at the Gitex Global event in Dubai in 2024
Lai speaking at BOLD Community’s Manufacturing Serendipity session at the Gitex Global event in Dubai in 2024
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“That is painful to think about, that people don’t see it for what it is, especially in a society today where secularism is big and religious institutions are becoming less and less relevant. If that is something that society chooses, so be it, but I didn’t feel like that was being reflected properly, not just in policies but in everyday life,” Lai adds.
Interestingly, Lai credits her multicultural upbringing in Malaysia as her biggest influence, shaping the values she lives by and the area of study she will undertake at Yale.
“From what I’ve experienced, Malaysia is a good example of people who live amongst each other with a good understanding and acceptance, laying aside politics. There’s a sense of, ‘we may not believe the same thing, but I still wish you well’. To me, that is really important.”
From visiting Yale’s Institute of Sacred Music to exploring the Center of Public Theology and Public Policy, Lai looks forward to a season of growth and learning after many on-the-go years of doing admittedly what she does best, which is “not sticking to one thing or another”.
“I’ve learned that you can do anything with nothing,” she says. “And that with time, anything can find a resolution. I do believe there is a perfect time in which things can be resolved, even if I’m not the one who resolves it.”
Previously contributing to Esquire Malaysia, Expat Lifestyle and Newsweek, Tania oversees digital stories across Tatler’s key content pillars, also leading the Front & Female platform exploring issues and topics affecting women today.
