Mengleng
Touch

Introduce yourself

My name is Mengleng Touch, but you can call me Leng. Before coming to Nottingham Trent University (NTU), I used to work for the Department of Employment and Pension in the Ministry of Economy and Finance, we are the regulator for the insurance sector for the country. I also graduated from my bachelor’s degree in Economics.

What course are you on?

I am studying MSc Finance which has been interesting so far. I really enjoy the course because the school is very student friendly and it offers a 1-2-1 student teacher mentorship.

What made you choose to study in the UK?

So, firstly the UK education system is one of the best in the world. NTU offers a variety of quality modules, especially in my subject area. For example, we have a Financial Statement Analysis module and a Corporate Finance Management module, both of which will help my work in the Ministry of Economy and Finance.

Why NTU over other UK Universities?

I looked at many Universities across the UK, but I saw that NTU was student friendly and it ranked very high in terms of teaching. More importantly the city itself was neither too big or too small, not too busy or too quiet. Everything is here and easy to find, I really enjoy it so far. Where I am from, Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia is very crowded, and the traffic is bad. The UK has public transportation, which makes the city less congested in terms of traffic and it’s very convenient to travel using public transport. The weather so far has been not too bad, I like the balance between sunshine and rainy days.

What do you enjoy most about the course?

So, let’s start with the teaching, for the first module, The Global Financial Markets Institution. I was really impressed by the tutors; all the tutors are knowledgeable, friendly and very helpful. We can explore not just the textbook itself, but we can use the Bloomberg station, with real-world data. The Boots Library is also open 24/7 and you can find everything in here. If you don’t have a laptop you can rent it from the library.

The NowLearning room is also useful as it can be used to view the lectures and you can learn, watch and revise.

What do you think of the course staff and the support services which are available to you at NTU?

The tutors are knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. The course staff here are always helpful., I can get a response very quickly. I am more than satisfied with the staff.

How would you say that studying here is different from your home country? How have you coped with the changes?

Studying here is completely different because more of the studying must be done by ourselves whereas in my country most of the studying part is done by the lecturer, not the students.

The quality of the education and the knowledge provided by the tutor here I can say is a different level.  You can not only explore the course content, you can do more by investigating the real world, for example, at the end of the term you have the option to choose whether you do an internship, go for the consultancy project, or dissertation – you have options.In my country you don’t have that option. In master’s degree you can only go for the exam or dissertation.

Myself, I will be doing the dissertation because I already have work experience. I want to update myself in terms of research skills, just in-case I want to open myself for a PhD as this will provide me with the background knowledge.

What do you think the best things are about living in Nottingham?

It’s not too crowded, and it’s not too quiet.Nottingham is very lively, very vibrant, and you don’t only have the day life, you have the night life. As an international student with workloads you can really go out, enjoy yourself and release the stress. I really like going to Riley’s bar as I enjoy playing pool and Snooker.

So, are you involved in any sports or societies?

I do play sports, I play football, but not at NTU, I play outside, and I really like it, although the weather can be quite cold which can be a challenge. I play football as a defender, I used to be a forward but I got injured so I don’t go up top and I can stay back.

What are your plans for the future?

I already have a plan after graduating. I will continue to work at the Department of Employment and Pension in the Ministry of Economy and Finance. I aim to climb the ladder with my degree from the UK.

Did you apply for a scholarship?

I am currently funded by the commonwealth office of Great Britain with a scholarship called Chevening. Myself and 17 Cambodian students are now in the UK pursuing different courses at different Universities across UK. The scholarship is very competitive 6 - 7000 applied and only 18 got the scholarship. I was recommended the scholarship by some of my friends who themselves got this scholarship and helped me along the way and are a big part of this achievement.

When you won the scholarship how did you feel?
It was fantastic, I have never received a scholarship before, I funded myself during my bachelor’s degree. So, receiving the scholarship is a big achievement, I never imagined I would come to the UK, it was a dream, a very big dream that has come true.