Ji Yoon

What motivated you to study for the Online Engineering Management MSc?

As an engineer, I am quite a technical person, and throughout my undergraduate degree and career so far, I have spent a lot of time building my technical knowledge. At some point, engineers hit a point where you realise that you need other skills, not just your technical speciality. You need to think about learning how to manage; this is not just managing people but managing projects as well. I started to notice that I was lacking knowledge in the business strategy areas of engineering, as I had focused a lot on technical skills, and therefore I wanted to develop it further.

Why did you choose the University of Leeds?

The reason I chose this course was based on the relevance, the time commitment for me, the University ranking and reputation. I wanted people to notice me as having a recognised qualification on my CV. I knew that the University of Leeds would present the course in a structured way compared with less familiar institutions.

Whilst studying my first module, I realised that the case studies specific to engineering management really helped me to develop my understanding of management. If I had pursued the MBA, the case studies might not have been as engineering focused.

Why does online learning suit you better?

This is my first time completing an online course, so it was a bit of a nervous and unknown decision. However, I was not able to leave my job role to complete a full-time Masters programme, so I didn’t have a choice but to combine the two.

In my previous studies, I have felt nervous to contribute to class discussions as there are a lot of people present. Online, I feel more confident I have seen good participation from my colleagues in the class as well. I have had a good experience so far as I feel that everyone respects each other’s comments, all ideas are welcome and you do not feel like you will be judged for what you say during the discussions.

What are you hoping to get out of the Engineering Management MSc course and what is your end goal?

My end goal is to gain broader understanding. Before the course, I would look at something from a narrow perspective, but as the course is progressing and I am learning more, I am able to look at problems from wider angles. Even from the first module, I have learned so much from the class interactions and reading tasks set by the academic tutors.

What I want to gain from the course is to be able to learn more and apply that to my job role and wider knowledge of the industry. Not only this, I can see if there are other areas where I can progress my career, if I am interested in another specialisation of engineering that I have not yet explored. The Chartered Manager qualification that you gain as part of the course is also attractive and recognised by employers so that is one of the things, I wanted to make sure that I will gain after finishing the course.

Tell us about your Enrolment Advisor. How did you find the application process?

My Enrolment Advisor was very committed and efficient and clearly communicated with me what I needed to prepare on a week by week basis. He helped me through the process and ensured that I was completing all the requirements for my application. He made the process very easy for me.

What are you most excited about with starting your course over the next few months?

I think the whole course will be interesting. As part of my next module assessment I am required to submit a presentation via video recording. This is not something that I have done before so I’m looking forward to this.

Also, I just signed up to be the Student Representative for my cohort and I am keen to understand students’ perspectives about the course and learning experience and any concerns that they may have. I can then take these to the academic staff to find solutions to take back to my colleagues. This is an extracurricular activity that I have signed up for, not something I thought would be available as an online student, but it will be a valuable experience for me.