Anna Gatsou    Greece   EBM Graduate 2008-2009

"It’s not just learning. It’s learning to understand.”

Having already gained an MSc in Mechanical Engineering in her native Greece, Anna Gatsou found WMG’s style of teaching to be very different from anything she had experienced before.  As she soon discovered though, this brought major benefits.

Anna arrived at Warwick in September 2008 to study for an MSc in Engineering Business Management. “The main reason I chose WMG was the unique combination of business and engineering focused modules,” she explained. “I knew that this would give me a broader understanding of how today’s global industries operate.”

Anna’s first week was spent on WMG’s orientation programme. “That was really useful,” she said. “It was great to meet and get to know fellow students before the course had even begun. At first though, I was a little confused by the course structure. It wasn’t like any other that I had come across, mixing blocks of study with time off.”

But Anna soon came to understand the reasoning behind this, as she described: “It made a lot of sense once I saw how it worked in practice. It gave me time to carry out more research into each area of study, based on my own particular interests. As well as that, I had time to work on my thesis and look into the job market.”

If the way the course was planned had surprised Anna, so too did the WMG’s distinctive and innovative style of teaching. “I really enjoyed the hands-on element of the course,” she said. The visits to companies were excellent and talking to people gave me a good insight into a number of business areas. The way we worked through assignments was great too. It was like nothing I’d experienced before: ten or fifteen people taking part in a variety of group work exercises, projects and even games.

“Doing things this way helps you to learn subjects more thoroughly than you do by simply studying them,” Anna continued. “It gives you a real awareness, insight and understanding. Even subjects that I’d studied on my previous MSc course suddenly meant a whole lot more. It was also a terrific learning experience to work with people from all kinds of backgrounds and with a range of professional experience.”

Anna’s dissertation was based on a subject she is deeply passionate about: Sustainability in Product Design and Manufacture. She researched companies operating across a range of industry sectors, analysing the strategies, methodologies and practices they used to enhance their sustainability. “It was interesting to compare current thinking with real-life practice,” she said. “And to consider what more needs to be done for companies to gain the full benefits of maximising sustainability.”

During her time at Warwick, Anna planned her next step – which meant considering her career options and contacting potential employers. All of this paid off in July 2009 when she was offered a place on Coca Cola’s prestigious graduate programme. She’s now based at a major manufacturing plant near Athens that’s a centre of excellence within Europe.

“I had to leave WMG early,” Anna explained. “So that meant finishing my thesis while I was working. But it was well worth it. There’s no doubt that having the WMG name on my CV helped me win a place with such a leading global organisation. The understanding I gained through my MSc course has also helped me get to grips with my role quickly – and realise just how much I can achieve in the future.”