Questions

Hi Amore, I plan to pursue an MSc degree in International Business. As an alumni of UoB, what does UoB really want to see from their students and what impact did UoB have on your career journey?

Hi, the business school encourages us to be proactive and they have been very helpful in supporting me throughout my PhD and during my first academic job. Hope that helps.

Hi, I have got an offer letter for MSc Organisational Leadership & Change. If you can help me with average work experience students have in such courses as I have around 11 yrs of experience. Would this course add me any value after so many years of experience? Also I want to pursue a PhD, would this course help me? I wanted to know about job opportunities after completing this course, as well as part time job opportunities available whilst studying this course?

Hi, in my experience I have only had 3 years of experience working in the industry prior to my Masters in International Business. I then pursued my PhD right after my Masters and since then have been working as an academic in the Birmingham Business School. Good luck!

Hi, Amore, I am interested in IB. I am from India and I am an MBA graduate with 3 years worth of work experience. Can you please shed light on how useful this course is and employability of the course?

Hi, in my view international business operations are increasingly important for today’s business graduates, and this is where postgraduate courses come in useful. Based on my experience, this program give me an understanding of the different business practices (from various industries) found all over the world and prepared me to work abroad or in organisations that are engaged in global business. Hope that helps and good luck!

Hi Amore, I have completed my Bachelors in Computer Science in 2014. I have professional experience of 4 years in IT. I wish to pursue the Masters in Management with specialization in Strategy pathway from Birmingham Business School. Am I eligible to apply?

Hi, you are definitely eligible to apply for a Masters course. However, our standard requirement for the MSc Management with Strategy Pathway is as follows: The previous degree must be in business, management, economics, accounting, finance or a similar subject area in Business. With your background in Computer Science perhaps you would like to consider our MSc International Business instead?

Hi, I am from India and I am planning to pursue my Masters in International Business. I wanted to know the career opportunities and what support does the University of Birmingham give to help find a job.

Hi, very good to hear you’re pursuing a Masters degree! Here at the university, we regularly organize not only job fairs abut also there’s ‘careers network’ where they provide guidance on finding a job.
Please see the link below for more information.
https://intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/as/employability/careers/index.aspx

Hi, I’m not sure I’m asking the right person this but I hope you'd be able to direct me. My brother from India wants to study postgraduate Business Management in the UK. He received a referral letter, but the agent is talking about fees payable before hand and the amount he is quoting doesn’t make sense. Please could you give some advice on what we should do and how? As time to join the next intake is running out.

Hi, I would recommend liaising directly with the university registry department to get better advice n how to apply to the postgrad program.
Detailed criteria and information regarding the application can be found on our postgraduate funding page – https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/postgraduate/pgt/pgt-fees/postgraduate-loans.aspx
Full University fees and funding information can be found on our postgraduate pages – https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/postgraduate/pgt/pgt-fees/index.aspx

I am currently in my final year at the University of Wolverhampton's India campus. I would like to know with this Masters degree, which companies can I get a job with and do any companies come to the University of Birmingham for job fairs and to help students to get a job?

Hi,

Thanks for your questions. Depending on your previous background, an International Business degree allows you to apply any jobs in various industries and companies. Again, that would depend on your interests and future aspirations. As for the job fair, exhibitors changes every year. The key to get an interview is to be actively looking and exploring not only during the job fair but also through the companys official website.
Hope that helps, and good luck for the application.

Hello! I am planning to take this course in September 2020 so I wanted to ask about the opportunities provided by the university. Is there any internships we have to do during the 1 year course? Are there any job fairs organized by the university? What is the cost of living in Birmingham if we don't stay on campus? Are job opportunities available in Birmingham or would I have to move to London after study for a job?

Hi thanks for your questions.
– From my experience back in 2012-2013 there was no internship during the course, this might change but it depends on the program
– Secondly, I believe the university organise job fair regularly (at least twice a year).
– Cost are varies depending on the location and the type of accommodation i.e., shared houses, university accommodation, ensuite/shared facility, etc (can also check here https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/study/accommodation/index.aspx)
– Job opportunities available in both depending on the required skills and capabilities, I myself work in Birmingham at the moment.

I want to get a Masters of Management, the Organisational Leadership and Change pathway. I am a graduate from the English department, but I have a certificate of a 3 month course, a mini MBA in Sales and Marketing. Entry requirements to the Management Masters says I have to be a graduate from Business or Economics, will my online study/certificate of the mini MBA give me chance to be accepted onto this Masters?

Hi, apologies I am not quite familiar with entry requirement for each department. However, in my case, I graduated from Chinese studies (for my undergrad/bachelor degree) and following that, I had 4 years working experience in the industry before I applied for the Master programme. Perhaps if you contact the school (email: business-school@bham.ac.uk) they would be able to help. Good luck!

Hello Amore, Greetings for Day...!! I am looking to pursue MBA (One Year) form UK while exploring i came to know about Bhirmingham Uni. I am from India and had pursued MBA wit 10 years career i am now heading department & team of 15 in cement industry for my company in Ghana. While I am loking for MBA (1 Yer) to give my profile more global prospective with management skill learning to fill gap for future career requirements. Please guide me how BU- MBA can help me with career & post MBA job opportunities in global world. Thanks

Hello! Thanks for your question. As I am teaching MBA myself, I believe all of our MBA students have the opportunity to join an interactive Mock Assessment Centre. The day includes a range of exercises which are designed to reflect those typically used by employers in assessment centres such as case studies, group exercises and interviews. In addition, as well as developing their presentation, communication and interview skills, students also receive peer and tutor feedback on their performance and have the chance to network with employers. Hope that helps!

Could you share what the job opportunities are like in UK after pursuing an MSc in International Business from the University of Birmingham? I am from India.

Hi,

Apologies for the late reply!

I would say depending on the required skills and capability, but definitely you can apply for a job here. In my case, I graduated from MSc International Business and PhD Strategy and International Business and I am now working as a Research Fellow and Lecturer in Birmingham, thanks.

What has been the highlight of your time at Birmingham?

For me it is to be able to present at local and international academic conferences, I really appreciate this kind of exposure to my work. Following my fieldwork in Indonesia back in 2016, I found that Indonesia as an archipelago has a unique character of solving problems and different ways of doing business compared to the other shipbuilding nations and it is interesting to be able to explore that.

Was there a big transition from undergraduate to postgraduate study?

When I did UG and PG, which were both taught programmes, everything was decided for me. i.e. specific timetable, assignments deadline, course structure, etc. Whilst now, doing PG research gives me more flexibility. You will have more pressure with time, as sometimes you have to submit several works at the same time, but you will get used to it eventually. Those are some of the benefits of doing research, it allows you to create your own timeline and set your own goals on how much you want to achieve.

What was your motivation for undertaking postgraduate study?

It started when I was doing my MSc dissertation back in 2012 -2013. I took International Business at the University of Birmingham and I did a piece of research on the vertical integration among manufacturing firms in Asia. I really enjoyed it and I wanted to learn to develop it into a further research project. Plus, I have two supervisors who are very supportive, both of them are my MSc lectures, I really admire their work. Those are my main motivations to apply and continue with this PhD programme.

What piece of advice would you give to anyone considering postgraduate study in your field?

Always choose a research project or a theme that you are interested in. It has to be something that you enjoy reading, developing, writing, and talking about it, and for the next 3 – 4 years. More importantly, it has to be fun!

How will your degree prepare you for what you want to do afterwards?

I am very keen to keep working in the research environment after I completed my PhD. Therefore, I am using this opportunity to keep learning new techniques. Having said that, apart from working on my PhD project, I am also involved in several other research projects within the university. That helps me a great deal to improve my research skills.