The key to responsible leadership with the University of St Andrews

University of St Andrews, School of Management

06 Jul 2020

The key to responsible leadership with the University of St Andrews — Source: University of St Andrews

Erin Murphy spent her undergraduate years between England, Sweden, Canada, Nigeria and her home country, the US.

Still, she felt a postgraduate management degree at the University of St Andrews in Scotland could sharpen her understanding of international issues and the key challenges facing organisations even further.

Murphy enrolled with the hopes that a master’s degree from its School of Management would provide her this. She was not disappointed.

“What I loved most about St Andrews is that my classmates were from all over the world, and everyone had his or her own unique background and experiences to share,” she said.

The School of Management welcomes students from over 50 countries and has a range of business and management degrees to suit individual interests. It is ranked first in the Complete University Guide Subject League Table 2021 for Business and Management Studies. It also ranks overall first in Scotland, and second in the UK for business, management and marketing by the Guardian University Guide 2020.

A university that values responsible enterprise

At the University of St Andrews, Murphy and her peers learned the value of responsible enterprise through the subjects studied on the Master in International Business and by attending the Master’s Extra (MX) Programme events.

The MX Programme is open to all master’s students at the School of Management and includes interactive talks, seminars and workshops led by guest speakers from a broad range of organisations and industries, as well as entrepreneurs and alumni who have gone on to successful careers.

For the International Business graduate, one MX highlight was attending a talk by a guest speaker from leading outdoor clothing company Patagonia on the company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

She found the talk inspiring and educational — the best combination to truly learn something.

“Responsible business is not, for example, understanding that a business has a carbon footprint. It is about implementing changes across the entire value chain to create a more sustainable and responsible company,” said Murphy.

Marc Mellone from Germany shares this view too.

“In my master’s courses, we touched upon equality, socially responsible supply chains and green behaviour. I also remember sustainable business practices as they were incorporated into the course content and we were frequently asked to assess them,” he said.

Now, Mellone works at Fjord in Berlin, a global design and innovation consultancy that employs future-driven developers, creative technologists, content designers and more to help businesses launch digital products.

As a forward-thinking Design Strategy Manager, Mellone applies his knowledge of responsible enterprise from St Andrews to his daily tasks.

Mellone said, “I chose this career as I wanted to help shape a sustainable future. This is also why I chose an employer that values this topic.”

In fact, the guiding principle of responsible enterprise underpins all of the postgraduate programmes at St Andrews.

Other Masters programmes are available in a range of specialisations, depending on your background. For those with a business or management background who are looking to specialise can choose from International Business, Human Resource Management or Marketing. There is also Banking and Finance, and Finance and Management for those looking to go into the financial industries.

Those with a background in another subject can change their focus with the Management Masters or Information Technology with Management.

Source: University of St Andrews

Join a diverse, multicultural community that cares for your future

It’s great when international students feel the university they attend is welcoming to them.

It’s even better when it makes them “feel at home,” as graduate Aglaya Batchvarova describes St Andrews.

“I am Bulgarian, but grew up in the US and never quite felt at home in either location. I have worked in very multicultural environments since my master’s and I think I owe my attraction to such environments to St Andrews,” she said.

Since graduating from her course, Batchvarova is the Europe, Middle East and Africa Referral Programme Manager for Zoom Video Communications, a worldwide web-based video conferencing company in Amsterdam.

Throughout her role, she carries out effective leadership by integrating the responsible management methods she learned at St Andrews.

“I don’t think many business and management schools take such a holistic approach to their teaching. Scotland, in general, is a very forward-thinking country in these regards and I love that St Andrews worked this into their curriculum,” said Batchvarova.

Dr. Agnes Sophie Roggentin from Germany also benefited from St Andrew’s diverse multicultural community.

During her International Business course, she made connections for life and experienced what living in a historic town by the sea is all about.

“I appreciated the opportunity to clear my head by the beach and to meet students from other nations and fields of study and to live academic traditions. I also greatly appreciated the lively discussions and useful essays we had to write,” said Roggentin.

On the career front, academic staff influenced her professional growth through future-focused modules and discussions about industry expectations today.

After her graduation, Roggentin landed a corporate communications and sustainability role for Hugo Boss, one of the biggest German luxury clothing companies in the world.

Now she focuses on brand strategy development through her Junior Marketing Manager role at Mont Blanc, a world-leading manufacturing company of high-end stationery and accessories that keeps track of its environmental footprint.

With graduates like Roggentin securing high-profile roles in the world of business and management, it’s clear to see St Andrews turns career goals into reality.

Need to know more? Join the University of St Andrews School of Management and the Admissions Team at one of these upcoming virtual events and begin your responsible business venture.

Global citizenship starts here.

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