Advanced and Strategic Marketing MSc: After you graduate

"Having gained a European marketing position at Nestle, I realised that I was getting to the point where I needed a more academic background to progress further. I'm not a 'distance learning' person, so I wanted a masters programme that would allow me to combine extensive business travel with course attendance – the MA at Kingston gave me the opportunity to do just that.

"If I had to pick two things that made the course so enjoyable, I would say that it is the people I met at Kingston, some of whom have become friends, and the fact that I could immediately apply my new knowledge to my job. Let's be clear though – the course is a challenge, especially when trying to balance study with a full-time job, an active social life and time for sports. But the supportive culture at Kingston Business School, an organised approach to handling the workloads, and sharing ideas at meetings with my study group got me through – I even managed to stick to my weekly exercise schedule, which helped to clear my head.

"My employer was very pleased with my dissertation, which looked into an area we had wanted to analyse for a long time. They felt that I had contributed to the business, and I finally got promoted four months later!"

"After 15 years in the software industry in various client-facing and business development roles, I decided to set up a company focused on my primary skills and interests, combining technology with business and market development strategy to address business challenges.

"My first project was the evaluation of an online dating start-up for a potential investor and, in the process, I became fascinated by the concept of creating online communities that bring people together for a common purpose. After developing an online community based on the loyalty concept for the travel industry, I decided to carry out academic research in the area and looked for a course that would enable me to do this.

"I chose Kingston's MA in Strategic Marketing Management, which suited my developmental needs and was flexible enough to enable me to carry on with my work and other commitments. Not only did my strategic marketing knowledge increase significantly while on the course, the primary benefits were an increase in my level of confidence and gaining a vocabulary that has enabled me to meet and discuss strategic challenges with board-level executives in global organisations.

"Since completing my masters I have worked as part of the strategy team at a large publisher, led strategic technology and business alignment projects for a top ten advertising agency, and advanced my work on small online community assignments for various organisations."

"After finishing the Strategic Marketing Management MA, I decided to go back to my native Australia for a spell. I found that I was able to put the knowledge and practical skills I'd gained on the course into immediate effect, and set up my own marketing consultancy serving the IT sector in Melbourne.

"After a busy and interesting year, my husband and I decided it was time to return to the UK and we've since settled down near the river in Oxford. The job market was pretty tough at the time, particularly within the IT sector, and I wondered how quickly I would find something that I wanted to do. I needn't have worried – in less than a month I landed a great job with a mid-size software vendor. This was pretty impressive given the competitive job market, and I am certain that the Kingston MA on my CV helped me clinch the role.

"Probably the most important thing I learned from the course was the ability to analyse real-life problems more critically. I already had lots of planning experience, but what you learn from the Kingston MA is that, although the routine techniques have their place, they are only part of the full 'marketing toolbox'. Critical analysis of the situation, questioning and thinking that is underpinned by the evidence-based marketing literature provides the surest footing for marketing professionals. I apply this way of thinking every day to help me – and my colleagues – solve problems and underpin marketing investment decisions.

"The Kingston MA is a demanding course – you have to be disciplined to get through it and that's where the study-group teamwork is so important. You'll make some good friends along the way, and learn a new way of thinking about marketing that should stand you in good stead for the rest of your career."