Can you please tell me a little bit about yourself? (Briefly about what you are studying )
My name is Aurelia Brun, I am a 23 year old second year student, currently studying International Business at Westminster Business School – 4 years course. I spent most of my life in the South of France then I moved to Brighton for a couple of years before moving to London for Higher Education.
I am very passionate about traveling; last year I spent a month working in Thailand, a few weeks studying in Russia and a few days enjoying the amazing city of Singapore as a tourist.
I am looking forward to my year abroad because I will study in Russia and will work in Spain, Thailand, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. I love meeting new people from all around the world and learn about their culture and tradition.
Apart from travelling I am also passionate about languages, I speak fluently French and English, I have some knowledge of Spanish and Russian language and I have recently started learning Thai. I also enjoy going to big festivals and concerts – I could not live without music, especially Reggae music.
How did you decide to study at Westminster Business School?
I’ve always known I wanted to work internationally, so to me it just made sense to learn more than one or two languages. So when I looked at Universities on UCAS website, I only targeted universities that would provide me with Russian courses – I am crazy in love for that language – and universities that have a 4 year course with a partnership in Russia.
Also I knew I wanted to be in London as it is much easier for me to go to France and Belgium to visit my mother and brothers. If I remember well, there are only a few universities with such program and partnership. So then I looked at their campuses and when I saw Westminster Business School was investing in new facilities and how it will look like for my first year of university, I knew I had to go for that particular university. So far I don’t have any regrets!
Can you please tell us a bit about the society that you are involved with?
Project Management is an exciting field; it’s about dealing with numbers but also with people, about meeting deadlines on budget, about making decisions, negotiating, managing risk, introducing change, etc. This society wants to bring part of this world closer to students from all academic backgrounds, as probably at some point many of us will end up working on a project in one way or another in our professional path.
It is also about organising and networking, and to apply some of the principles we learn in a more practical way.
This semester our society plans on organising two more events, in March and April. You can find us on Facebook (Project Management Society – WBS) and on Twitter (@PM_Soc_WBS)
Everyone is talking about employability skills what do you think is the best way to increase your employability skills during your academic studies?
The Career Development Centre is an excellent resource we have as students, it helps us to improve our CV, prepare us for interviews but also it gives us some employability’s opportunities. I am talking about the Talent Bank and its jobs like Student Ambassador and other jobs within the University.
From a personal experience, I highly recommend volunteering jobs. They would enable you to get very good and interesting working experience at the same time as doing something positive for a good cause.
As a fellow student what would you recommend other students in the Westminster Business School?
To make the most of all that the University offers us in terms of facilities and services. We are very lucky to have such great library facilities! But there is so much more than just attending class. In effect the University of Westminster offers many useful Workshops (about CVs, Microsoft packages, Academic Writing Support…), just check out the university’s website for updates!
What is the best piece of advice given to you by a teacher?
I believe it is the most recent advice I was given about how to contact potential employers. I have made some very good contacts within the industry I am interested in and I did not want to miss out on opportunities by sending bad emails and resumes. She advised me on how to approach the employees, but also she encouraged me to add my achievements from my work experience rather than some sort of ‘listing’ my job description – I know it might sound obvious for some people but still, I needed that advice.
What is the strangest thing you have ever done while studying?
I have never done anything strange while studying, however, I was told during my third year, one of my assessment would be to play a virtual game.
What is the worst job you have ever had?
What do you define as ‘worst’? So far I have always enjoyed my jobs, even the ones that might be qualified as ‘bad’ jobs for most people. I believe we always learn something out of any jobs. We just need to turn our job experience into positive ones!
What academic achievement are you most proud of to date?
It would be my Foundation Degree which I passed in one year with Merit (69.3% – so close from the Distinction), while I was studying a few others Diplomas at the same time – which I all passed with good grades too.
Which classes have you found most useful?
The module ‘Global Markets’, examines the impact of globalisation on business activity, consumer markets, and political-economic developments. As a student in International Business wishing to work internationally, this module has been the most useful for me so far.
What would you do if you were dean of a business school for the day?
I would probably get direct contact with students and would assist some seminar leaders and lecturers just to have a look on how my staff teaches students.
What does the future hold for you after graduation? What are your plans?
I plan on doing an Executive MBA in Hospitality Administration in Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne – Switzerland. But as one requirement I need to have two years of previous experience in the field so I would probably spend one year working in Russia at the same time as continuing studying Russian Language, then I would work one more year in Australia.
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