Meet Taylor Francis
We caught up with MSc Human Resource Management graduate Taylor Francis, who talks to us about her aspirations before starting university, what she is doing now in her career and how The University of Salford helped her achieve her ambitions.
What were your ambitions before you started your Postgraduate Degree?
My career goal prior to studying my Postgraduate Degree very much aligned with Human Resources however, I was mainly focused on business in which I studied at an undergraduate level. I thoroughly enjoyed studying business and all its aspects. It was through my undergraduate degree I came across human resources and my interest for it began.
Why did you choose Salford Business School to help achieve your goals?
I chose to study at Salford Business School as the opportunities they offered for my chosen course aligned very well with my future career aspirations. Salford Business School particularly caught my attention as my course was accredited by the CIPD in which is very resourceful to have as a HR professional.
Tell us a bit about your course
My course covered all aspects of the Human Resource industry. For example, my first module was Employment Relations and Law which I thoroughly enjoyed. It gave us the opportunity to not only learn about each sector, but it gave us the opportunity to work with one another in the course as our first assessment was a group presentation. It is quite important to note that the ways in which all modules are assessed have been tailored to prepare you for human resource roles. The course gives room for a lot of development and growth in which is exercised in your final module Developing Strategic Leadership Skills.
As well as allowing you to become well equipped for the working environment, the final ICP module gives you room to either take on industry work experience or complete a research piece in which you would tackle a real-world business problem.
Salford Business School equipped me for the Human Resources industry through my modules and different assessment processes. As mentioned, I already had an interest in pursuing my HR career and studying at Salford Business School confirmed that this is a career that I was to succeed in. The support given from tutors and lecturers really helped towards my growth and it was an advantage that they were all HR professionals themselves therefore, they were best to push me in the right direction.
How did Salford Business School support you in your studies?
All my tutors were very supportive but, also allowed me to be realistic about my goals and aspirations. Due to the climate of the economy and the competitiveness of the industry my tutors helped me to set goals and gave me an outline of how to achieve them.
In addition, all of the modules studied were applicable to your real life so all feedback given was very useful in order to grow as a HR professional. My tutor that helped me alongside my ICP Dissertation project was key to my success and achieving a distinction grade as completing this through a pandemic was a very difficult task.
Where are you now? What has your career path looked like?
Currently, I am going through a transition from a HR Advisor to a ER Advisor. Initially, once finishing my MSc HR management and development degree we were in a national lockdown in which made it very difficult to find my first role. However, I managed to find a role as a HR advisor at a national company in which was successful due to studying this course. After 10 months in my role, I am now moving onto a global company who once again was impressed by the course and the CIPD Level 7 that is associated with the degree. I am looking forward to embarking on this new journey and a massive proportion of it is due to this course and the Salford Business School.
How did studying at Salford Business School prepare you for your career?
Salford Business School helped me to achieve my ambitions by providing me with this degree as well as being charted by the CIPD at a Level 7 (Associate member). Having this on your CV allows you to stand out amongst other candidates and the course details give you real life scenarios that help you break into the industry. The school equip you with great lecturers and tutors to guide you through the entire process, so you are never alone, and they also push you to your limit and help you to think outside the box in relation to the HR industry.
The course gives you a real life insight into the HR industry and as mentioned, the modules are all assessed based on real life HR scenarios. It prepares you to have those difficult conversations, to think about well-being, how employment law plays a massive part of your future roles and also gives you a change to tackle a real life industry problem that you can explore and research in which is very useful to employers.
What advice would you give to someone considering studying at Salford Business School?
I would 100% recommend studying at Salford Business School. I would advise to be ready to work hard and be pushed to your best ability but also note that it is all very much worth it in the end. My life has changed massively since studying at Salford Business School and I am very happy that I chose to study at this institution.
What are your ambitions for the future?
My ambitions for the next 10 years are to continue progressing within my company in HR and to learn as much as I can as HR is an ever-changing industry where you are always learning something new. I do wish to also complete a PHD whilst working in the future as I aspire to become a HR Business Partner at some point.