UNIVERSITY of GLASGOW

Management

Student profiles

"The MSc broadened my vision of what a manager needs to consider in the day-to-day running of a business, and taught me to think critically about the sort of decisions that need to be made from various points-of-view. " 

Meet Catriona Gamble, MSc Management student from the United Kingdom...

I completed a four-year MA in Business and Management before taking the MSc in Management programme. I have to admit, there was so much more to learn about business and management than I had anticipated. The MSc broadened my vision of what a manager needs to consider in the day-to-day running of a business, and taught me to think critically about the sort of decisions that need to be made from various points-of-view.

What were the tutorials and coursework like?

Every day in our tutorials and group exercises, students on the programme were required to identify and analyse, and then provide solutions to problems. All of our assignments were structured around analysis, evaluation and recommendations to deal with current business issues or mock scenarios designed to test our problem solving ability. All of our assignments pushed us to research and to separate relevant information from irrelevant, and to build our analysis and recommendations on only what’s pertinent to the problem.

 What did you learn? 

I developed transferable key skills such as the ability to work with people in a team, oral and written communication, persuasion/influencing skills, and interpersonal skills and understanding. I have seen a remarkable improvement within myself, most noticeably with regards to my personal ability to work with people in a team. This year of study opened my eyes to the problems and issues with working in large groups and particularly working together to produce a single piece of work. But I have learned from this and have continued to improve my team-working skills. The emphasis placed on presentations and oral communication has given me confidence when presenting in front of large groups of peers. 

What did you get from the programme?

It’s beyond the academic knowledge where the full value of an MSc is realised. A year on a course of approximately 170 personally and culturally diverse students has improved my own self-awareness. I have become very aware of my own strengths and weaknesses, and learned more about how these characteristics will impact upon interactions in the wider world.

Perhaps the most crucial element of my personal development from the MSc is my increased ability to get the job done. During this extremely intensive year, it was often hard to see the final outcome and the goal of achieving the postgraduate qualification, so I have had to stretch myself, and develop my self-motivation. Whatever the job or assignment, getting it done became more obviously achievable. I learned to be flexible and adaptable, and my confidence increased. I now believe in my ability to complete any work set for me.  Time management, openness to new ways and methods of working, and openness to change, have all helped with my improvement in this invaluable skill.