Graduate Prospects - September 19, 2007 - (Page 14)

14 PROSPECTS GRADUATE Issue 51 · 19 September 2007 · Fortnightly www.prospects.ac.uk POSTGRAD OPTIONS THE STUDENTS AND THE ISSUES INVOLVED IN FURTHER STUDY The living grant wasn’t enough. I’d also worked for an investment bank in the summer to make up the difference but I still had a shortfall to fill, so I applied for a Career Development Loan. I took out a loan of about £3,500. It had quite good rates and I didn’t have to pay anything back until two months after I’d completed the course. You can decide over how many years you want to pay back. I set mine over two years and so had to pay £4,000 in total, which meant I only paid £500 interest, which I thought was a worthwhile investment. On course for employment The course was really interesting and combined research with taught elements. You come up with a business opportunity and work on developing that. The facilities at the When postgrad study pays off. Manchester Science and Enterprise Centre are excellent. You’re given a desk, a phone, printer, fax, and you have a secretary to help you. All the lecturers are specialists in various writing a business plan, and submitting that While studying enterprise areas and you receive a lot of idea to the university. economics at support from them. As well as working on My business idea was based on a Manchester University, your project, you are taught all the necessary customisation company, looking at how Alex Afosu-Adjei aspects of entrepreneurship. customisation has been used in the mobile spotted a business You also get to choose three modules which phone market. I explored how this could be opportunity that led are relevant to your work. I took him to postgrad study used in the laptop market. My idea was econometrics, to keep up with my Maths and successful and I came third in the and then on to the a management module, which I took at the competition, which I was really pleased with. University’s Business School. The dissertation Barclays’ Graduate Scheme. I really caught the bug for business working consists of a subject side, so looking at the In my second year at university I started on my plan. It also opened up my eyes to theory and business models behind your idea, looking at ways to improve my CV. I joined postgrad study. Before this I didn’t and the enterprise side, which is effectively the Interface Society, which was aimed at understand why people wanted to sacrifice your business plan – putting it into practice. equipping people from ethnic minorities with another year to study. But doing this project Some people were on the course primarily skills for employment. After that, I got changed my view and I enrolled on the Master to start their own business. My motivation, as involved in some mentoring for children in a of Enterprise. well as learning the skills to be an secondary school in Stockport, and, later on, entrepreneur later on in life, was to be more Raising capital I did some teaching. I was really keen to get as many new skills The course leaders explained to me that there successful in my applications for graduate was a scholarship for some students. I had to schemes. as possible and kept looking at different I believe my course definitely gave me the submit an application to say why I deserved activities to get involved in, which is when I edge over other candidates. I had more skills the funding but because I’d worked on the spotted the Venture Further competition. and more knowledge and was much more business project, I was able to make a good The competition encourages students and case. I was awarded funding to cover the cost confident in the interviews. I had a lot of staff at the university to get involved in of the fees and a living grant of about £3,000. examples to give to employers. enterprise, so thinking of a business idea, I am about to start work for Barclays on their finance graduate scheme. In my job I am hoping to gain accountancy qualifications and INFORMATION AND ADVICE build up my experience working for a Search the postgrad database www.prospects.ac.uk/links/pgdbase company. I want to experience working for a Postgrad funding facts www.prospects.ac.uk/links/fundstudy company before I go out on my own but I will Latest postgrad course opportunities www.prospects.ac.uk/links/latestcourses continue to work on my business plan in my spare time. BUSINESS PLAN http://www.prospects.ac.uk http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/pgdbase http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/fundstudy http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/latestcourses

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Graduate Prospects - September 19, 2007

Editorial: It's Not Too Late Editorial: Bloggers At Work BMRB Ltd Editorial: Desperate for Change National Graduate Recruitment Exhibitions London Autumn Graduate Fair Community Transport Deltatre Media Enterprise PLC Scottish Graduate Fair Hanovia Limited Perriam and Everett Berkley Homes University of Brighton ITFC Manchester Ethnic Diversity Fair Editorial: Business Plan

Graduate Prospects - September 19, 2007

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