– I have always liked to take responsibility and I have often adopted a leadership role

I am studying for a master's degree in Business Administration at UiS Business School because:

In 2014/2015, I was very unsure about what I wanted to work with. There is a wide range of studies and professions, in addition to the fact that the world is constantly evolving. From primary school onwards, I have always liked to exercise responsibility and I have often adopted a leadership role in various situations. Therefore, after conversations with both family and friends, I found that a bachelor's degree in Business Administration was a safe choice going forward.

In an interview with the newspaper Drammens Tidende ten years ago, I said that I wanted the highest possible education. As I stated to Drammens Tidende in a follow-up interview in February this year, I said that it was probably not a PhD education I was thinking of as a 16-year-old, but a master's degree was definitely part of my ambitions at the time.

I think that my mindset as a 16-year-old, my desire to see where the road would take me and my confidence that this was a safe choice, was the reason I ended up with a master's degree in Business Administration. I also thrive very well in Stavanger. The city, the student environment and the campus are just a few of several reasons why I continued my master's degree here.

I chose to specialise in Strategic Marketing and Analytics because:

Through my bachelor’s degree, I quickly discovered that other specialisations would not be suitable for me. I thrive very well with subjects within strategy and analysis.

I originally applied for the specialisation "Strategy and Management" in 2018 and was accepted. That year I chose to work as a student leader in StOr and when it was time to start on the master’s degree again, several specialisations had been changed. The specialisation strategic marketing and analysis was the specialisation that was most similar, so I chose to go for that.

I also find that the specialisation prepares you well for working life and gives you an expanded administrative perspective that comes in useful in business.

This is what a typical day of study looks like for me:

Right now I am writing my master's thesis, so in addition to balancing a job twice a week, the majority of the days of the week have been spent writing my thesis. This past year has been a very different academic year due to the Covid pandemic and because I am writing my thesis with another student, we have only met four times on campus.

Otherwise, I have sat a lot at home writing, in addition to having digital meetings. The disadvantage is that you do not get the same collaboration dynamics or opportunities to engage socially, but the advantage is that there is convenient access to food and coffee at home.

Tell us about something you remember particularly well from your studies:

I especially remember the first year of my bachelor studies. Freshers week was a great starting point for getting to know the student environment and it gave me an opportunity to get into an enthusiastic environment. I experienced a very close-knit, inclusive and rewarding student environment at the University of Stavanger Business School, but the entire committed environment at UiS is incredibly inclusive.

From later experience, I have realized that the committed environment we have at UiS is something completely unique compared to other universities and colleges. At that time, I joined the business students society and was deputy head for a year. This definitely motivated me to continue to be involved and I really saw the benefit of engaging in another activity alongside my studies. This was probably the start of me engage in further activities and why I ended up as a student leader in 2018.

The study environment at the programme can be described as follows:

Incredibly inclusive and with a good collaborative atmosphere between the students. I also think the Business School has become very forward-looking in recent years in terms of strengthening the academic focus and working towards linking working life closely to the faculty. It is also clearly appreciated that students get involved, which gives you the opportunity to establish a good network.

Dette er min drømmejobb:

I am very envious of those who already know at an early age what they want to work with. This wasn’t the case for me and I chose to trust that my choices through my studies would lead me to a job that gives me the opportunity to develop myself, build competence and have a good working environment.

I would definitely say that I have managed to find such a job. For a year and a half, I have worked in a 40% part-time position at the Norwegian Agency for Public and Financial Management (DFØ). I will start in a full-time position this autumn and, among other things, I will work on several digitisation projects.