Studying at a postgraduate level to keep an edge in my career

10 years after my undergraduate degree in Communications, and with almost my entire career spent in Marketing following that, I decided to embark on the Master of Marketing at the University of Sydney.

With some trepidation about studying again I thought to evaluate exactly what I wanted to gain out of my experience at the university and postgraduate study, and I realised what it came down to was gaining further credibility within the industry in Australia.

With a competitive job market, and high expectations for myself of where I wanted to take my career, studying at a post-graduate level was the best way forward to cement my understanding of relevant Marketing theories and keep an edge in my career.

Given the pace that technology has developed since my initial studies, I found learning about the latest theories in the units Consumer Behaviour and Evaluating Marketing Performance, to be some of the most valuable days spent in the course to date. So much has changed as far as consumers making purchase decisions with the ability to quickly check a price, or find another retailer and product advice online. The way marketers work alongside finance, sales, strategy and the C-Suite has become even more important than before as we look to show the value of our campaigns, not just from a brand awareness perspective, but aligned to long term company objectives and revenues.

The best thing about the Master of Marketing course? The networks created, and friends from all different career backgrounds and countries around the world, and the confidence gained by having an additional layer of credibility to take an opportunity at a promotion, new career, engage in a higher level of strategic planning and conversation, or to try something new.

Lana Montgomery

Current Master of Marketing student at the University of Sydney Business School