How my placement led to employment

I chose to study Mathematics with Economics BSc(Hons) as I found throughout school that I was good at mathematics. The economics came about after I took it as an A-Level, based on a recommendation by one of my GCSE teachers, and found I was able to understand the basic concepts easily. Because of this it seemed natural for me to continuing doing this at University. I was also very aware that doing this degree would open up a wide range of doors for future careers.

One of the main things I was looking for from University was to be able to experience living away from home (Hemel Hempstead), but be close enough so that I could get home within a couple of hours. Because of this I applied to Universities such as Southampton and Leicester as well as Brighton. What made my decision simple was the level of care I was given on the Open Day when I visited. My mother requires the use of a wheelchair for day to day activities, which meant that it took her longer to get around the University. However, Will, my course leader, took the time to take my parents around on a personal tour of the University. This made my decision simple as not only did it show that Brighton cares about their students but also about the families behind them, something I hadn’t experienced at other Universities.

The staff have been the main highlight of studying here. All of them have been incredibly supportive and have always been available whenever I have needed them, allowing me to do the best I can in all my studies. Even though some of the content proved challenging, the support of the lecturers has made it manageable. The course has also opened more doors to me than I was aware of. And I have been allowed the ability to explore the concepts of Mathematics and Economics that interest me the most, allowing me to enjoy my studying more than I have before.

On my placement, I went to Bourne Leisure Head Office in Hemel Hempstead, where I worked as an Assistant Accountant for the Haven brand. My main responsibility whilst I was there was to update many of the weekly and monthly reports highlighting many of the different areas of the performance of the business.

I was also able to get involved in a number of projects, such as working on the Pitch Analysis, trying to optimise the allocation of the pitches to maximise the amount of money that could be made. I was also able to get heavily involved in the organisation of the major repairs that were made on all the different sites.

If I’m honest not a great deal of what I was taught in my first 2 years was used during my placement, as there wasn’t a high level of Mathematics that was needed in this role. However, my modules in my final year were impacted based on the experiences I had in my placement. In my final year I took Mathematics of Finance and Financial and Capital Markets as I felt I would be able to use some of the financial knowledge I had learnt over my placement.

The main thing that I will take from this experience is the fact that I have been offered a full-time job in the same department at Bourne Leisure! I am looking forward to going back to work at Bourne Leisure following my final exams as I enjoyed my time immensely. It really has shown how important that a placement can be in helping you decide what you want to do in the future. Prior to my placement I had no idea what I wanted to do for my future career, however I now have a clear sight of where I want to go for the next couple of years. Also the social side of the placement is always good fun.

My next personal goals are to get myself established within my role before I then work on completing an ACA qualification. Hopefully doing this will allow me to progress into higher roles, either within Bourne or elsewhere.

Beyond that I don’t have any major plans, I’m just going to see where the next 5 or so years takes me.

For anyone wanting to apply to this University, I would say to go for it as it is a fantastic University that will give you so many options for your future. My experience has shown me that all of the staff are extremely helpful and want you to achieve your potential.

It has been a great 4 years and definitely wouldn’t have changed it for the world!