●School Profile ●
School: Cranfield University
Motto: Post Nubes Lux "Out of darkness, light"
Establishment Time: 1946
School Type: A top 5 research-intensive university in the UK
Location: England UK
Business School Ranking: Ranked 2nd among all business schools in the UK
World Business School Ranking: Among the top 10 best international business schools
Notable Alumni: Sir Warren East, Andy Palmer, John McFarlane, Sir Charlie Mayfield, Ralph Spenser Hooper
Author's Tips
If you are currently applying to overseas schools, as someone who has been through it, I might be able to give you some useful tips. No beating around the bush, these are worth reading.
Let me briefly introduce myself. I graduated from Soochow University, a 211 university whose comprehensive ranking has been rising year by year. My major was Logistics Management. I never checked my major ranking because Logistics Management in China can be traced back to around 2008. It's a young but promising major. Especially in recent years, after integrating with e-commerce, marketing, statistics, international trade and other majors, many schools have offered more diverse courses.
Undergraduate Studies
I have to say that undergraduate studies are systematic, but my deeper feeling is that they lack practical application. Textbooks, PPTs, and even internships before graduation don't really allow you to understand the changes and development of the industry. Therefore, if you still plan to delve deep into your undergraduate major after graduation, you must pay attention to knowledge accumulation on a daily basis.
Take the supply chain major as an example. The underlying logic of the supply chain is basically the same across different industries, which can be learned in undergraduate professional courses. However, depending on your interests and areas of confusion, for specific industries (automobile manufacturing, medical, fast-moving consumer goods, fresh cold chain, supply chain finance, etc.), you need to maintain curiosity and keep up with the latest industry news. Why? Because if you don't understand the operating rules of an industry, the supply chain is more about solving problems. It's like being asked to dissect an onion without any tools.
So, my first piece of advice is that if you're lucky enough to find that your undergraduate major is exactly what you like, then start by learning about various information sources such as Zhihu topics, industry official accounts, offline industry events, and even industry research reports. If your undergraduate major isn't to your liking, if possible, you might consider changing your major. If that's not feasible, you can switch careers through employment or change your major by pursuing a postgraduate degree.
Postgraduate Studies
I might be one of the lucky ones, loving my undergraduate major. On the one hand, I wasn't in a hurry to start working after graduation. On the other hand, I felt that my current knowledge reserve was insufficient, and I was eager to experience Western teaching models and learn about the development of the supply chain major.
The academic system in the UK is 1.5 years, but students can complete their studies in 1 year, and the graduation ceremony is held half a year later. Cranfield University, which has long ranked first in the Non-U.S. supply chain major rankings, became my top choice. It turns out that my choice was correct.
During my short one-year study at Cranfield, with 14 professional courses, 5 group assignments, countless business case analyses, exams, and papers, not only did my critical thinking ability improve, but I was also influenced by classmates from various cultural, academic, and work backgrounds. Every time we had a class discussion or chatted in the library, we would talk about why we chose the supply chain major, why we came to Cranfield University, and where we wanted to work after graduation. Every conversation helped me sort out my thoughts, absorb others' suggestions, and better plan for the future.
Changing Majors
If you want to change your major, perhaps the first thing you need to do is self-exploration and inventory. Here are three key points that you must consider before changing your major.
First, what professional knowledge and skills do you currently possess?
Second, what kind of career do you want to pursue in the future, and what is the relevance between your current major, the major you want to study, and your future career?
Third, what benefits can the major you want to study bring to you? Is there any conflict with the first point? Is it completely relevant to the second point? If you find that the first and second points are highly relevant, then you probably still like your undergraduate major. If the second and third points are highly relevant, then you can choose the major you are passionate about.
People are always more motivated and happier in fields they are interested in. As we can see, industries, occupations, and majors are closely related. Therefore, when choosing a school, we should focus more on the major rather than just aiming for a school with a big name. Once you've decided to study abroad, it's time to take action.
Researching Majors
First, determine the country. Generally, the academic systems and admission requirements in the US, UK, Europe, Australia, Hong Kong, and Singapore are quite different. Let's assume we choose the UK.
The next step is to search for major rankings. Check the top 1 - 10 schools one by one:
Admission requirements (requirements for undergraduate schools, language requirements, tuition fees)
Curriculum settings (number of courses, graduation thesis, graduation internship)
Alumni feedback (articles on Zhihu, Douban groups, WeChat groups)
Make your own comparisons. Last but not least, the geographical location of the city is also important. Speaking of my alma mater, Cranfield University, although it's in a remote location, it's only half an hour's drive from Luton Airport and London.
Starting the Application
Once you've determined your target school, it's time to evaluate yourself. Here comes another round of self-reflection. This time, look at it from the perspective of the applying school: Why should they choose you?
First, the hard requirements: Whether your undergraduate school is a 985, 211, or a non-key university, your GPA (3.0/3.3/3.5), and your IELTS score (7, with a requirement of 6.5 in speaking and writing). (As we can see, academic performance is still very important!)
Second, the soft requirements: Academic competitions, experience in club organizations, and internship projects are all plus points. However, the key is the relevance of these experiences to the major you're applying for. These soft plus points not only show who you are and what you've been doing, allowing the applying school to get to know and remember you, but also demonstrate your competitiveness. The passion for the major, leadership skills, etc. shown in these experiences should be in line with the school's expectations for its target students, and you should stand out. This means you need to be able to tell a good story about your growth over the past twenty-some years, especially your four years in college, a story that will interest the applying school.
Finally...
There's no doubt that a study abroad background can add value to your job search.
But more importantly, putting aside the "returnee" label and academic qualifications, the level of your understanding of the major, your communication style, your problem-solving methods, and your decision-making ability in the face of changes, these aspects that have no fixed standards but can always be improved, are often what set you apart from others.
I hope that before you decide to study abroad, you can look back and think about the past, and figure out: What are your strengths and weaknesses? What is the purpose and significance of studying abroad? Or, more broadly, what kind of person do you want to be after graduation?
Perhaps these questions can help you better think about what you need to do now and how to do it well.
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