Franco
Fabregas

What made you choose this course? 

Being an undergraduate student at NTU (studying International Relations), I decided to stay at NTU for my postgraduate course as I fell in love with the style of City Campus. As a campus within a city, you have the benefits of a campus university and a city university all in one! This allows me to enjoy city life whilst remaining close to NTU’s educational facilities. The City Campus also has a wide range of buildings to study from, with study areas all over the campus buildings, which gives a very welcoming feeling of community. Being an undergraduate student of the Department of Social Sciences, specifically the Politics and International Relations department, my previous experiences with them at undergrad solidified my choice to stay at NTU. The staff are friendly, approachable, and always willing to help with studies, which gives me an added level of comfortability. In terms of student life, Nottingham is a great city to explore with your friends, with exciting places to go day and night.

How has the course so far helped you prepare for your career?

In just one term, MSc Public Policy at NTU has already given me so much for my future career! In our Theory and Trends module, we undertook a variety of different policy simulations, where students play the roles of different actors with varying perspectives on a policy issue, like a health crisis, and try to facilitate a coordinated response with the resources available to each actor. This course gives me a plethora of employability skills that expand on my work at the undergraduate level. The course’s final major module, a policy lab, has students collaborating and working with an external contact to conduct research on a policy issue of your interest. This is unbelievably helpful for my future career, as I am currently working on research with the NHS, a research topic I am extremely interested in. My future collaboration with NHS Trusts in the Policy Lab Activity in Term 3 will absolutely help me in my future career, as it shows employers my interests in the field, and my capability to work at a professional level with external contacts.

Could you describe your experience of being a student at NTU so far?

My experience as an NTU student for the past 3+ years has been amazing! Staff and services provided by NTU are always friendly and willing to help you however they can. There is a thriving social life at the centre of the campus, with multiple university facilities nearby to help you destress and socialise (the Global Lounge, the NTSU gym and sports facilities). My time in first-year living in University-owned accommodation was great, I met a lot of great people and made life-long connections. Academically and socially, NTU has a lot to offer students!

Could you tell us about the support you received from your tutors and university staff?

The university staff at NTU are wholeheartedly amazing! From library staff to lecturers and tutors, everybody at NTU makes you feel as if you are part of a wider community. Whenever you have an issue, staff are always available, reasonable, and approachable. It is very easy to stay in touch with staff, especially if you have major issues that could hinder your learning.

We’ve had to transition to remote teaching during the coronavirus outbreak. How have you found that change? Do you feel the University’s responded well to the challenge?

The transition to online learning as a result of the pandemic has definitely made university life harder, motivating yourself at times can be an issue, and the lack of socialisation and face-to-face contact with staff and classes can make some already-stressful periods of study worse. Personally, I have found the change difficult, yet manageable, as at times I have had technical difficulties certain facilities of the City Campus have remained open to accommodate those who may not be able to work from home as efficiently. NTU’s response to this challenge is not perfect at the high decision-making level, but regardless, the academic departments and university staff are doing their utmost best in making sure students are supported during this outbreak. Students and staff keeping in touch with how online studies are going will be essential to getting through this trying time.

During this period of remote teaching, have you still been able to access the kinds of guidance and support you’d normally expect? Are you still comfortable about your prospects?

NTU’s staff are indeed doing the best in the situation that they are in. During this period of online teaching, support and guidance lectures and seminars are constantly made available to students. Although I don’t believe that NTU’s response to the pandemic has negatively impacted my prospects, it is much harder for students to keep aware of what is available to them.

If you recommended this course to a future student, what would you say?

If you are interested in public service or are keen to understand how policy both in the UK and abroad works, MSc Public Policy is a great course! I can confidently say that this course has not only given me the academic insight into policymaking, but also given me the future connections and key skills that will enhance my employability and my future career. The staff, module leaders, and course leaders are all especially friendly and approachable, so students should never feel isolated or disconnected from help. The sessions are all interactive and engaging. The many different simulations done in the Theory and Trends course really pulls you into the world of policymaking. And throughout the postgraduate course, you will learn the skills necessary to be able to affect the realm of public policy through the policy lab activities with external partners as a final module! This course is great if you want to gain skills, knowledge, and experience in the policymaking arena!