The teaching facilities are so advanced: the stock trading room makes me feel like a real fund manager!

Xiaoyu Guo stood in the Management School's glass corridor.
Xiaoyu Guo
Postgraduate student
Accounting, Governance and Financial Management MSc
2022
Xiaoyu finished her bachelor’s degree in Accounting before starting her masters. She is interested in the commerce field and financial market and her future plan is to work in the finance and investment industry as a fund manager.
Xiaoyu Guo stood in the Management School's glass corridor.

The course covers a wide range of topics

The programme’s structure is very suitable for my future career plan. In the first semester, the compulsory modules provide the fundamental skills for accounting and financial field workers whilst the optional modules allow you to tailor the course to your interests. In the second semester, most classes are focused on sustainability and global environmental issues which have become extremely important in recent years; research methods in this semester also serve as preparation work for your dissertation. There are modules focusing on quantitative methods available for those who prefer technical or statistical knowledge, as well as modules focused more on qualitative methods. The business mindset taught throughout the course will also benefit students who want to start their own business.

University life is so enjoyable

Being far away from home and families made studying abroad quite difficult at the beginning. However, when the semester started, I met a lot of lovely friends from different countries in lectures and student societies. Attending classes, reviewing exams together, enjoying new food, hanging out for drinks, having a picnic in Weston Park and travelling to other cities all made wonderful memories. 

All the lecturers I have met in the Management School are so helpful. Outside the classroom, they have office hours when you can arrange appointments with them. Each student also has a personal tutor who can help with difficulties in life, confusion about study or future plans. 

Some preparation work would help adjust to masters study better

I was travelling and enjoying my summer vacation before starting my master's degree, however I wish I had done some preparation before term started. I was not familiar with finance before and learning in a new environment in a second language is really difficult. There are a lot of readings every week too. If you could read some related books or articles beforehand, it would definitely help you to adapt to masters study. The whole program only takes one year, which is very quick; preparing for a PhD application or looking for jobs needs to be considered in advance as well so that you can move on to the next steps smoothly.

Masters study at the Management School will boost my career

Sheffield University Management School is among the global elite of business and management schools as it is triple-crown accredited and the University ranks highly. This will certainly prosper my CV and future career. The knowledge I gained throughout the whole programme is very technical, comprehensive and closely connected with the real workplace. The teaching facilities are so advanced with touch screens in each classroom. In the stock trading room, we study with professional software like Bloomberg, Eikon and other databases which always makes me feel like a real fund manager. All these are desirable skills in the workplace. 

I’ve recently applied for auditing and consulting graduate schemes in the Big Four companies (Deloitte, Ernst & Young, PwC, and KPMG). I believe the work and training provided by these firms will be very beneficial for entry-level jobs. When I gain more experience and strong business insights, I aim to work in the investment consulting industry as a fund manager.

Four students laughing while sat at a bench, outside the Students' Union

International Merit Scholarships

We offer a generous package of financial support for international students including 75 undergraduate scholarships worth £10,000 towards the annual tuition fee and 125 postgraduate taught scholarships worth £5,000 towards the tuition fee. Applications are now open for existing offer holders.