MSc Management with Marketing graduate Sophie Attard took home a prestigious Worshipful Company of Marketors award for her dissertation ‘Listening to Branding: Proposing a method to evaluate consumers’ perceptions of sound in branding.’ She shares how she transformed her career through evening study.
Sophie receiving her award. Photo by Harry Pseftoudis Photography .
I’d been working in music management for about four years when I was furloughed during the first Covid lockdown. It was the first time since leaving university that I’d time to think about my life and where it was going. I realised that I hadn’t been happy in my old job and started to look at other options.
I wanted to study and work at the same time and keep that momentum, so Birkbeck was an obvious choice. I chose MSc Management with Marketing because the management side would open up new opportunities and broaden my skills, while marketing appealed to my creative background.
The teachers at Birkbeck are outstanding: I got great support and it always felt like they really cared about the lectures and our learning. A particular highlight was working with Benedetta [Crisafulli], my dissertation supervisor. I picked quite a niche topic for my dissertation and she was really encouraging and took the time to understand what I was trying to achieve and to push me to write something I was passionate about.
When you do a master degree, regardless of the topic, it trains you to think differently and that is something you can apply to any field and role. I’ve learned how to back up everything I say with facts, to extract key information from large repertoires or datasets, to make up my own mind and make my own decisions. Building that sort of confidence is so important in management positions. I’d advise anyone to do a masters in any field that they’re passionate about to gain those skills.
Birkbeck’s Careers service gave me a way into the job I have now. I applied for a traineeship role in a start-up, which was a lower level than my previous role, but allowed me to switch industries while not interfering with full-time study. I now work for the same company as a product and brand manager, in charge of launching multiple different products, and there’s no doubt that the MSc got me here. The training in areas such as market research, brand development and thinking from a consumer point of view has equipped me with the skills to know what to expect and think about all these different areas while we develop and launch products.
For someone considering a masters, I’d advise to pick a topic that you’re really passionate about, because you will work on it a lot! Be clear on your ‘why’ – do you want career progression, to transition to a new field, or to increase your knowledge of a topic you love?
I’m now working with Benedetta to convert my master dissertation into a published paper. Winning the award from the Worshipful Company of Marketors has been the thing that keeps me going through the hard work. Benedetta encouraged me to apply for the award – collecting it at the ceremony will be the first time we meet face to face, as all our work together was done online due to the COVID lockdowns!! It will be a fantastic opportunity to celebrate. I’m really happy with where my life is now and Birkbeck has played a big part in that process.
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