After finishing my undergraduate studies, I was left with two options, to go back home and find a job or to stay in the UK and continue my studies. With no jobs secured, I was left stranded with just a degree certificate in hand, an offer to do a Masters course, and a decision to make. This was when I started to wonder what I should do with my life. The completion of my undergraduate studies not only brought me to a milestone in life but also something called ‘post-series depression’, which is the similar feeling to when you finished binge-watching your favourite Netflix series.

Feeling like I was not ready for an office life yet, I decided to take a leap of faith into furthering my studies and hence accepting my offer for a Masters in Economics and Finance. Being interested in Economics was what motivated me into applying for the course in the first place. As autumn term went and passed by, I found myself busy, with both course work and job applications. I applied for various career events, actively participating in workshops and one-to-one career appointments, with the idea of exploring different options and preparing myself for future possible job applications.

Attending mock assessment centres helped clarify how things work in real life when actively searching for a job. It gave me an opportunity to get in touch with experienced employers and see things through their eyes – what traits they value most in employees. Industry insight events, where working people ranging from newly-recruited employees to well-experienced employers, participated in sharing their own experience of applying for their current roles or showing a glimpse into how the firms and sectors function.

Besides the career support provided by both the ICMA Centre and Henley Business School, I also enjoyed the networking events that provided opportunities to meet interesting people and connect with people from the other side of the world. I’ve become friends with people from different countries and ethnicities, getting to understand our similarities despite our different backgrounds. Henley Business School has also given me the exposure to build an international network with people from around the world. This has opened my eyes to things that I otherwise would not be able to see or experience back home.

I daresay that my time in Henley Business School has not been wasted, regardless of whether I continue utilising the courses that I studied in my future career path or to venture into other different pathways further down the road. And for that, I am utterly grateful to have the privilege to study abroad in an international university.

Lee Yi Wen, Henley MSc student