Pragash's Story: A day in the life of an MSc Management student

Our MSc Management student ambassador, Pragash shares his typical day from start to finish.

As a Masters student, the workload has definitely increased compared to undergraduate level study but the focus is now on individual study, research and group work. Term 1 and Term 2 have been quite different, to say the least, due to the impact of COVID-19. Being on campus in Term 1 allowed me to make use of everything the university has to offer but the new restrictions that came into effect before Term 2 started has meant teaching is now fully online. However, the best part of the course and being a WBS student is that every day brings about new experiences and challenges so no two days are ever the same.

Planning my week

After a busy weekend, a typical Monday begins with an early start and planning the week ahead. Each module follows the ‘1+1+1 model’ which is 1 lecture, 1 hour of pre-recorded individual study work and 1 seminar. I note down all the work I need to complete for the week and start the day with a group meeting with 5 others for our Business Immersion and Critical Thinking project where we prepare for the presentation that week on the strategies of the companies in our chosen sector, which for me was sport, and lets us delve into the business perspective of European football clubs. My group has students from across the world as some were yet to make it to campus, so we have a catch-up and a productive call.

Jumping into online lectures

I then join the first online lecture of the day, which is for the Business Immersion and Critical Thinking module from 11:00-12:00 pm and after a short break, we have the Customer Value Management lecture from 12:15-1:15 pm which covers interesting topics within marketing and operations. After my lectures, I go to grab lunch and meet my friends on the Piazza to eat and then we head to the library or the WBS Postgraduate Lounge to crack on with some work. After going through the lectures and study work for two of my modules, I find some space to take a group call with my Strategy Analysis and Practice group, so we can split the work. This module takes an ‘art of strategy’ perspective and helps us understand how strategy is constructed, developed, and implemented in global companies today.

Staying active and taking time to relax

Once I get a good amount of work done, I call it a day and go to my accommodation to pick up my tennis bag and head over to the Tennis Centre. I train for 2-3 hours from 6:00-8:30 pm before heading back to then have dinner and chill with my flatmates. The university offers sports for everyone and for all abilities, for me, playing tennis is a good way to break up the day and stay active.

Joining societies and using the CareersPlus service to prep for my dream role

After dinner, I would normally do a bit of interview prep as my aim was to land a role as a Consultant after my masters. After a number of applications, I managed to secure a dream graduate role at PwC in the Consulting division starting in September 2021. In this role, I will be working with Global Corporate and Private Equity clients on Mergers & Acquisitions transactions ranging from £50m to over £40bn in value.

I would recommend joining as many university societies as you can. For me, joining Warwick Consulting Society as an undergraduate helped me meet lots of new people who had similar career aims. We are able to give each other advice and also speaking to the WBS CareersPlus team allowed me to get in contact with an external coach who could help with my interview preparation too.

Starting Term 2 with exams was difficult but it was a relief to get them out of the way early. The new term means the start of new modules as well as our chosen electives, I chose International Business, which looks to answer questions such as why firms do business across borders? How do cultural differences and market changes shape cross-border business? And how firms respond in theory and in practice? The focus of my MSc Management course is shifting towards individual work and essay writing this term with the dissertation being the next big project. The learning experience has been great so far and I’m excited to see what the next few months will bring!

Discover more about Pragash’s course and our range of postgraduate courses