MSc alum shares effective study secrets

10 February 2023

MSc Business with Marketing graduate Caroline Wong outlines her preparation for an efficient and enjoyable experience at Warwick Business School.

  1. Make good use of the spaces on offer

One of the best things I enjoyed at WBS was the vast array of options you have in terms of study spaces.

For example I might start in WBS’ Postgraduate Hub in the morning for my dissertation research, pop over to the Library Café for lunch, and continue my work through the afternoon at University House.

Whilst these spots are perfect for solo study, I also found them to be a great opportunity to meet friends.

 

  1. Be kind to yourself

Studying for a Postgraduate degree at a top university can be mentally challenging at times. We’re all here to ace some good grades and land our dream jobs, but don’t forget to take a break.

I completed a French beginners’ course during the first half of my WBS Masters, which was a great platform to meet people outside of my course. I was also a Finalist of the Warwick Postgraduate Student Poetry Competition, and was proud to see my poem on a poster displayed around campus.

Warwick offers over 250 societies, there will definitely be at least one for you – even if you don’t know it yet.

 

  1. File your notes digitally

Though your Masters course will only span across one year, it can still be an intensive task to take notes – not to mention organising them for exams. 

I’d suggest working together with friends and storing your notes online. You could create a study group and assign each of you with a list of topics – then each person could be responsible for uploading their allocated subject notes, ready for revision.

Storing your notes online is also a very helpful back-up, especially when your laptop or tablet fails – it happened to me twice! It also means you can access your notes whenever you are, just in case you’re feeling productive on your next train or bus journey…

 

  1. Plan your dissertation process carefully

It takes a great deal of self-determination, hard work and discipline to sail through the dissertation period.

On top of giving myself a daily timetable, I created a biweekly plan with specific goals per stage. For example: coming up with a literature review, deciding on a methodology, carrying out the research, drafting the findings, and so on.

In the end, I managed to send off my dissertation three days before the deadline, and enjoyed a little more free time than some of my peers – which I’d highly recommend.

 

We all have our own way of staying organised and using our time wisely – but I hope these tips may act as a useful guide to build on. Good luck!

 

Find out more about the student experience at WBS by reading our Postgraduate blogs, or discover more about Caroline's course, MSc Business with Marketing, on our course webpages.