Can you please tell me a little bit about yourself? (Briefly about what you are studying its)
My name is Maryana Semenyuk and I am in my final year of Business Management – Marketing BA degree at Westminster Business School. I was born and raised in Ukraine, but about 8 years ago I moved to London.
Recently, I returned to the University of Westminster as I have been away on Erasmus and Placement programs. In my second semester of my second year I decided to go on an Erasmus exchange program to Copenhagen, Denmark and straight after that I completed a one-year placement in Brussels, Belgium. I believe that this 18-month period was a life changing time for me, as I had the possibility to travel, meet new people from different cultures and develop skills for the future.
I am quite an active person, so you could see me around university at least 4 days a week. This year I had an amazing opportunity to be involved in Great Start Project where I become a FAN (a friend of arrival new student) for first year students. I had a chance to pass my knowledge to them as well as share my experiences of student life. For me it was a great experience, not only I share my best tips with new students, but it also provided me with a chance to meet new people from across all university campuses.
How did you decide to study at Westminster Business School?
I always was studying business modules, starting from GCSE to my A levels and I knew, that it is what I would like to continue studying it in the University. As all students, I did fill in my UCAS form and registered for open days to have a better idea where and what exactly I would like to study.
As I entered the school, I had a feeling that I belong here. I think that it was both people and location that attracted me so much. Since that day, I have known that Westminster would be my first choice and to be honest, I do not regret it.
What is the best piece of advice given to you by a teacher?
It was in my first month of being at the university and one of the teachers mentioned: “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm” and I have to agree with it. I believe, even if you don’t like your task/project/module you just have to put as much effort and enthusiasm into it as you can in order to achieve the best possible result. We all have been in the situation when we are not satisfied with your piece of work or group, but if we will not motivate ourselves, who will? At the end of the day we all want to obtain the best possible grade.
What is the strangest thing you have ever done while studying?
You will be laughing, but the strangest thing happened to me in January when I had to carry a Bible at Westminster Abbey during 175th Anniversary of Westminster! When I volunteered to do it, I never expected for it to be so big! On the day of the event, I have been told that they expect around 2,000 people attending the ceremony and I could not even explain how scary it was, but at the same time it was really memorable moment.
What is the worst job you have ever had?
I do not consider I ever had a bad job. I always try to learn something new from every job I am doing. Sometimes you might not be satisfied with the role you were given at this point of time, however, maybe in a longer period you of time you learn something.
How do you deal with pressure?
Honestly, I like being under pressure. If I know that I have too much time, I will procrastinate a lot and I will leave my work until the last minute to finish.
This year, I decided to take on a part time job to my studies, which means that if I will not plan my week or month correctly, I will be falling behind with my studying and work. Having a mobile app does help me a lot with planning. I am currently using Countdown+ (IOS) app, which is free, that reminds me every day of upcoming deadlines and my calendar which helps me to have an overlook on my schedule. I would definitely recommend everyone to have it and use it, as it helps you to be more organized.
What is the last book you read?
Unfortunately, lately I do not have enough time to read books, as the university workload is very heavy. However, the last book I read was “Anna Karenina” by Leo Tolstoy. I would definitely recommend reading it, as it portrays the moving story of people whose emotions conflict with the dominant social mores of the 19th century in Russia.
What academic achievement are you most proud of to date?
I would like to discuss three achievements that I am proud of:
My first achievement was being elected as part of the Executive Board of JADE that represents 280 Junior Enterprises (a student run consultancy businesses around Europe) and encourage entrepreneurship among students in Higher Education though this concept. Being responsible for a couple of countries around Europe and try to develop more Junior Enterprises in other countries helped me to develop a different range of skills as well as providing a chance to meet high profile people.
Presenting JADE to Mr. Mindaugas Danys, The Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Lithuania.
My second achievement I am proud of was when I was in my placement year. During one year, I had the possibility to attend a couple of two day master class workshops with high experienced managers who been working in their field for the past 15-20 years. Through these classes we had to do four interviews with different experienced managers in different areas of business and the outcome of these interviews we were publishing the best practices for companies that anyone in the area of business could implement it. Each time I attended these workshops, I had to prove everyone in the room that even if I am so young (at that time I was 21), I still do have experience working together and prepare best practices paper. It was hard to be on the same level with them, however, due to my past experience, they understood that I could contribute a lot toward these master classes.
My third achievement, happened this year, where I was invited to participate in Faculty Learning, Teaching and Assessment Committee as well as “VISION 2020”: A Creative Conversation On Enhancing Graduate Employability. I am really grateful to have this opportunity to share my experience with teachers and module leaders in order to improve our University.
Which classes have you found most useful?
In my final year I started studying my core module: Strategic Perspective. I never thought that I would be so interested in strategy, but the business simulation game makes you think about strategic moves, competitor analysis, etc. You could also see the results from the beginning, which shows the clear outcome of your decision. The teachers in that module are really supportive, which means that you are more eager to learn and perform well.
What would you do if you were dean of a business school for the day?
I believe I would try and talk to every student of the Westminster Business School in order to find out where we could improve our school.
I also would like to make students think about different perspectives they have within the university. I would love to put a wall, where students could finish a sentence: “Before I graduate, I would like to…..”. Later on I would provide students with the information on how they could achieve these goals.
What are your future plans?
My plans are to take 3-4 years out in order to work in different areas of business, such as events, HR or consultancy in order to gain more knowledge and do my masters degree in the area I most enjoy working at.
What did you enjoy most about your last job?
That it is never ending!!! Since September, I have had the possibility to join Student Ambassador and Talent Bank scheme, which provided me with a great chance to work at the university during my studies. Personally, I am really happy to work here, as not only you do not have to travel long distance for the job, but also most of the stuff you do you could actually put on your CV.
Currently I am finishing my second market research for Marketing Team, as well as doing administrative work for the Business Development Team of our university. I believe I was quite lucky to meet so many staff members and teachers of our university through this job.
What is your favourite memory of school?
I think it would be my time at Westminster Business Consultants (WBC). It is a student run consultancy company based at our university. I started as a Business Consultant in 2010, and in 2011 I become an International Manager. During this time, I had amazing opportunities to travel for business conferences, undertake two placements in France and Austria (and it was in my first year of university) and work on business projects (marketing, events, etc.) with small and big companies. Thorough that time, I manage to learn a lot about myself, business and gain valued experience.
I would definitely advise everyone to apply there!
Who are your business influences?
I believe people at my work and at the university are people who are influencing me the most. I do enjoy talking to everyone to find out information in terms of their career, achievement and steps to get in order to be where they are now.
I think that people who are around you could support you the most in terms of advice or support in the future. So, keep in contact with them.
What inspires you?
Most of the time we reject some opportunities, as we do not see the outcome straight away. However, I would definitely advise to take every opportunity along your way as it might benefit you in the future.
So try to get involved with the university as much as possible; join the society; become part of FANS, Talent Bank or Student Ambassadors team, do some volunteer work. Take the most out of the opportunities you have.
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This is an inspirational story. I know Maryana and she is a highly motivated individual. She shows clearly how much added value can be gained from University experience. Maryana has made excellent use of her time at Westminster. She has grabbed opportunities with enthusiasm and consequently has achieved and gained much from her time with us.