Aquila
Yeong

What made you decide to undertake postgraduate study at NTU?

Personal Development: I’ve spent much of my time in the Malay and Chinese Speaking world. I would like to explore and experience living in Western culture, which would surely enrich my perspective and personality.

Career Development: I’ve been working for more than ten years and has grown from being an engineer into taking up cross disciplinary managerial positions. I would like to explore my potential further in the global market by pursuing MBA in the UK.

What were the key features that attracted you to your course?

I’ve chosen MBA as in my opinion the course is better catered for people with prior management experience. With this, I believe the cohort will create a positive learning and sharing environment. It also has ‘Consultancy Modules’ which provide hands-on opportunities. The personal development theme which parallels the academic studies is also one of the main attractions.

Why did Nottingham Business School stand out from other Business Schools you applied for?

Personally, it was mainly the design of the course with the inclusion of Consultancy Projects as part of the course. The positive progressive attitude of NBS over the years is seen to have potential to allow student participation in contributing towards achieving additional successes to me is a strong attraction, as there is potential win-win outcome.

When choosing a course for postgraduate study what did you consider it important to have?

For me, accreditation was important but not a must as long as it can be seen that the university progresses throughout the years. I don’t mind to be part of and contribute towards achieving more accreditation.

Work-based learning and opportunities to work with companies was important. I see postgraduate especially professional postgraduate courses as a pool of available and proven talents readily to be further explored by potential employers.

Scholarship is part of consideration as it lowers the barrier, especially for international students as the UK has a very strong currency. The diversity of the cohort was important as well, a good mix of backgrounds (work experiences, ethnicity, culture, gender) is crucial as it is part of the main objective of studying overseas.

What’s your favourite part of the course?

My favourite part of the course apart from the theories and concepts taught, is that it equally emphasises the ‘personal and professional development’ of an individual by embedding professional workshops and talks, such as on leadership development. Other than this, it gives opportunities to engage with the industry through the two consultancy projects (one is within the UK and the other is outside of the UK) embedded as part of the course.

What places have you visited, what have you done that you remember/wouldn’t have been able to do if you stayed home?

I’ve travelled to 11 countries while studying my MBA at NTU and I did quite a number of assignments while travelling. It was a good experience with a good mix of leisure and work. I also found the team building at the Lake District interesting, it was a good start to a reflective journey throughout the course and beyond.

Have you been involved in any clubs or societies?

I joined the NTU badminton squad and represented NTU in some competitions. I particularly enjoyed myself attending trainings twice a week. A few of us even took extra one or two days a week to sharpen our game outside of the training sessions. I was also involved in setting up of a new society: the NTU wine society.

Final thoughts

For potential MBA students, it’s a tough course. However, with good time management and adequate self-discipline, it was an insightful course for personal and knowledge development. Apart of the lectures, the special sessions with consultants and professionals from industry was very helpful as well. Providing insights into development of leadership skills as well as issues in the practical world. It was also a good mix of professional training as well as knowledge building, looking at current issues from both the academic and practitioner perspectives. Another important factor is to be humble to learn, to challenge in a constructive way, and experience the ‘metabolic cycle’ of on-going improvement.