Francesca Chambers BSc International Marketing (now BSc Marketing with Study Abroad)

Graduating 2017

There were several contributing factors that made Southampton my university of choice. Firstly, Southampton is only 40 minutes drive from home. Secondly are the degree programme and its content. Throughout past part time jobs I had a lot of contact with customers, so naturally customers and their purchasing behaviour became of interest of me. Throughout our degree we are able to analyse consumers in detail through statistical analysis and learn how to manipulate consumer behaviour through marketing strategies. I find it really fascinating, but it has definitely made me a wary consumer!

Southampton's global links allowed me to develop both personally and academically; I spent a year in Hong Kong for my third year of study. The opportunities to broaden your horizons are endless.

I am student representative for International Marketing and Marketing. As the degree programme is relatively new, as students we are constantly thinking of ways that perhaps we would like to alter the degree programme to improve it for later years. I liaise with fellow students and senior academics and staff from the Business school to discuss an array of topics. It has considerably helped with my confidence and ability to discuss matters in a professional environment. Furthermore I have been able to network with fellow students, not only from my own degree, but throughout the School. I know that most notably for Marketing, with a class of only 32 we are all very comfortable around one another and I have made it my duty to ensure creating a friendly environment for the degree programme. As such we are able to discuss and learn confidently from one another not only in seminars but also during lecture time.

The University of Southampton is renowned for being a research led university. Marketing is forever evolving to the changing environment. Developments in technology, the growth of the internet, online platforms such as social media and mobile applications mean corporations are moving away from traditional marketing and constantly adapting the way they target their consumers. In our learning at Southampton our lecturers have experiences throughout their working lives of how different marketing campaigns have been successful, or not for a diverse set of organisations. By being provided with real life examples it fuels your interest for marketing as a subject, but also allows you to engage with the content in a deeper way. Furthermore, as marketing content changes, our lecturers, as researchers, are able to provide us with up to date changes that are inaccessible elsewhere.

The University Careers Destinations, which has significantly expanded since I began at the University, is unbelievably helpful. It is one of the most vital tools. They members of staff are very supportive; they will help you with any application, looking through CV’s and cover letters. The careers office sets up many workshops around placements and I know that frequently these are attended, if not held by major corporations such as PwC, Bloomberg; Morgan Stanley… the list is endless!