Samanta García Muñoz

I undertook my master’s course to further understand human behaviour in relation to their attitude formation for an array of behaviours such as smoking, alcohol consumption, and nutrition.

Initially, the University of Leeds was my primary choice as it is ranked in the top 100 universities worldwide and taught the course I wanted. Looking back, I can now say that there are many reasons I am content that I studied in this remarkable university. Firstly, I found great support from every member of staff I engaged with, both for subject guidance and personal advice. My professors were all incredibly knowledgeable, not only in their subject but also infringe subjects, this motivated me greatly to improve my knowledge.

Finally, I have a great fondness for the City of Leeds, it is large enough to find something new to do every day but small enough to be able to get around it easily. The public transport is efficient to use, and I found cycling to be my favourite method of transport around the city, it showed me some beautiful hidden areas, which I would not have seen. There is a program for renting bikes at a reasonable price which helps reduce pollution in the city.

With English not being native to me, the largest challenge I faced was language. Initially it was daunting, however, the university staff were incredibly encouraging and helped me gain confidence in my ability. My tutor was so friendly and helpful, he gave great advice such as which English classes are best for international students and directed me to a useful resource for academic writing.

For me, the best part of my masters was meeting incredible people from all over the world and making great networking connections. I was part of the student’s union and assisted events where I made friends with different careers and backgrounds. I was able to attend a symposium of Mexican Studies and students in the UK, and I also joined the Mexican Society which gave me access to interesting conferences. The University has fantastic gym and library facilities which is where I met up with friends and spend a great proportion of my time.

All of these social and academic events helped me adapt quickly to a new life in the UK and I was able to be part of a wonderful group of friends.

For employability options, I had experience working in part of a team for a video games research company where I learnt how to analyse consumer perception of a brand using psychological methodology. This was a fulfilling experience and helped me spread my understanding of human cognition across a different context. This is one available path for students in this master, the options are endless. My plans are to keep my career in marketing research and if possible, I would love to do a PhD.