The main motivation behind my decision to study at Lancaster University Management School was because I wanted to fast-track my career in finance. During my A levels, I was looking for opportunities and found out that LUMS had a degree in partnership with one of the big four accounting firms in the world, EY. The promotional videos were very well done, and I could already visualise myself at LUMS. Once I saw how unique this degree was, and after finding out that LUMS is globally respected as an elite business school, in my mind there was no other place to study.

Thanks to my degree I lived like a prince in a hotel for about eight months, and now I have a gold Marriott card. What I liked most about LUMS was the helpfulness of staff members. The personal interactions are second to none, and they treat you like the unique individual that you are. Whenever you have an issue, they provide you with tailored solutions that best help you in your situation; you are never alone at LUMS.

Lancaster is a campus university, populated with over 12,000 students who come from all over the world, therefore you are in your own student bubble. Coming from a small country, I have greatly enjoyed the varied interactions with people from different cultures, backgrounds and upbringings. In this global economy, immersing yourself in the cultural melting pot that is LUMS is a great way to prepare yourself for your future career.

Initially I came to LUMS to study the EY degree. What this entailed was that I worked at EY for 15 months as part of my course, doing my first placement in my second year, and a twelve-month placement in my third year. I gained significant professional exposure in one of the world’s largest companies. My responsibilities consisted of working for banking and capital market clients, asset management clients, pension funds and insurance firms. I feel like I was transformed during my placements at EY, as they helped me to crystallise what I want out of my future career, and made me more focused on how to pursue my goals. The experience was emotionally, professionally and financially rewarding, and I would wholeheartedly recommend this degree to anyone.

In one word, I would summarise my overall Lancaster University experience as being fun! I was part of a caring community at Lancaster. People are very open-minded, polite, friendly and very welcoming. The town itself has its own charm and I can look back fondly at my Lancaster experience.

With regard to the support I received from the LUMS Careers team, this consisted of me attending careers fairs that they hosted and attending 1:1 sessions with careers coaches, where they helped me to revamp my CV.

Presently, I am an Analyst at Barclays in their Wealth and Investment Management division. My time at LUMS has imparted a distinguishable work ethic, which will help me with all of life’s challenges. Focus, unwavering self-belief, persistence and unrelenting drive – these qualities will take me to the top, and I can honestly say that most of these qualities were nurtured and developed during my studies at LUMS. It’s for these qualities that I am most grateful for my time at Lancaster University.