A life-changing experience at Wolverhampton Business School

International student, Bruna Lanicelli who studies International Business Management blogs about how our Wolverhampton Business School has prepared her for a career in Digital Marketing.

Before I start, I would like to say that getting close to completing my course is a dream come true. I can still emphasise that time has passed quickly but provided me with many learning and changes in my life. In a moment, I received the confirmation email for the undergraduate course in International Business Management at the University of Wolverhampton Business School, and now I’m almost celebrating the end of this fantastic journey - only six months to go!

The university period gave me the chance to experience new things and the most excellent creative and intellectual freedom possible – not to mention that it allowed me to see the world and face life differently. Thus, this life-changing learning makes me fight day after day to achieve each of the professional goals I have set.

How did the university course help me?

I can say that I didn’t feel prepared to start university (besides, I felt that my English level was basic for a university student – I’m from Brazil), and now, here I am!

I also consider myself a shy person, but I have always tried to run after the opportunities offered by the university to gain professional experiences and improve my professional performance in front of people. But with the support of the university, this was possible. They offer their students many opportunities, from theoretical teaching to hands-on experiences, so I had the chance to try new things and have memorable experiences. I got out of my comfort zone – and I was amazed at the things I’ve accomplished over the years.

I cannot forget to mention that I was also able to work on my weaknesses and improve myself during this time, which is a unique way to work and strengthen personal branding – one of the main factors responsible for opening doors in the job market.

I benefited from different skills such as entrepreneurship skills, content writing skills, time management, analytics, critical thinking, teamwork, communication, organisation, writing and self-starter skills.

Not to mention that this course is designed for students who wish to engage with the many complexities of resources in today’s highly competitive global environment. It enables students to gain the skills needed for dealing with new countries and new cultures – crucial for the global marketplace – while building your expertise in three areas: Marketing, Finance and Operations.

What is the professional area that I chose?

Marketing and, more precisely, Digital Marketing.

Digital Marketing can be defined as a set of strategies used to reach consumers through online channels and thus promote a brand or product. It’s an exciting way to maintain a good relationship with the consumer – everything I’ve learned over the years.

With the support of my university tutors, Dr Imran, Dr Hajrija and Dr Emma (who were one of my biggest supporters and inspirations), I chose to follow this promising professional path – I hope so!

Moreover, I can still illustrate the incredible faculty that the Institution has and also that each learning process was important, indisputable and essential for my professional and personal life.

So, was it worth it?

Absolutely! I made great friends here! From tutors to university students.

It sounds cliché, but when surrounded by good and competent people, we become better and are encouraged to grow more and more.

In addition, from the beginning of the university journey, I was clear that I needed to have as many professional experiences as possible during that period: placements, internships, or any engaging extracurricular experiences. And I did!

I consider this step fundamental for any student. In this way, I could discover what I liked and didn’t like to do and what I would like to work with in the future.

A clear example was my participation in the CIM Pitch competition, in which my group and I, encouraged by my tutors mentioned above and by the university, helped me to apply in a practical way the learning acquired during these years and to have the experience of participating in a real marketing campaign with leading companies in the UK market.

Not to mention the opportunity I had when I got a sponsorship from the university last year to do an internship for a start-up to work as a Social Media Manager – as an extra, I learned the best marketing channels for millennials, and the internship helped me to develop my marketing positioning!

So, am I prepared to work with Digital Marketing? Content Writing Services, Product Branding, Consultant, SEO, Social Media Marketing, Design, Content Creation, Managing a quality service, business and marketing strategy, Project-management, Marketing campaigns, Project-management, etc.? I guess so!

To conclude, doing an undergraduate degree at the University of Wolverhampton was one of the most spectacular experiences I’ve ever had. During the course, I acquired a precious knowledge that I will carry with me for the rest of my personal and professional life.