Farrah Yunisa

Warwick Business School

Home City and Country: Jakarta, Indonesia

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Flywheel Digital, Category Manager

How has studying business in the United Kingdom enriched your learning experience? In business school, everyone brings their own expertise and experiences, and shares it with everyone. The professors and faculty team are also encouraging students to learn more from each other through group discussions. In addition, some of the materials we learn in class are relevant to the current most talked about topics such as artificial intelligence and electric vehicles. The practicality of the knowledge itself is very helpful to tailor to any cases.

What has been the toughest transition to living in the United Kingdom so far? What have you done to overcome this difficulty? It’s mostly about learning and appreciating others’ culture. The more I socialize with my cohorts and faculty members, the more I understand them better.

What school service has been the most helpful in transitioning to living in the United Kingdom? How has it helped you adapt? The school has given us lots of tools and knowledge about this. The CareersPlus team has been very helpful with their Inter-cultural Communication and Learn to Love Networking sessions. We have this one module, LeadershipPlus, where we also learn ways to connect with others through understanding their preferences as humans and many more. Combining those with lots of socialization with everyone has been helpful to gain meaningful interactions.

What has been the most interesting cultural nuance of people living in the United Kingdom? Why has this struck you? People are direct with each other, including giving feedback on how the school could improve! It’s fascinating to hear perspectives coming from everyone who is committed to making WBS better.

Are you seeking a Visa to work in the United Kingdom after graduation? If so, what obstacles have you faced and how did you overcome them? No, but some of my friends who want to have a career in the UK have started applying for jobs since November 2023. Most of them double-checked before applying to see if the company would want to sponsor their working visa. I believe there are lots of companies out there willing to support international students to work with them.

What have you done to make it easier to make friends with people from outside your home country at business school? On the MBA, everyone wants to know each other better so I go from one get-together to another to make sure I’ve made the most of them! Food has always been a fun way to connect and understand each other too. One time, we had a get-together where everyone brought their own country’s signature dish!

What piece of advice would you give to an international student looking to study in a UK graduate business program? Business school is about unlearning and learning. There are things you might have known from previous experiences but don’t let those shape your understanding! Others out there have varying degrees of experiences where you can learn something from them, so always come with your mind half empty!

DON’T MISS: 2024 MBAS ABROAD: UNITED KINGDOM