Why UA&P?
I was fortunate to study in UA&P on a scholarship since my father worked there as an associate professor. Personally, I have always held UA&P in high regard due to its unique offering of Liberal Arts training to complement one’s chosen specialization. In my opinion, this strongly differentiates the quality of UA&P’s education. By allowing students to build a strong foundation on the liberal arts and humanities, it allows for the development of one’s critical thinking skills. This is invaluable for any profession, as the modern workplace requires employees to quickly learn new skills in line with evolving business models and technologies. More importantly, UA&P’s brand of education is also underpinned by a strong moral and ethical culture, which is key in forming upright professionals across different fields.
Why IEP?
I initially chose the Industrial Economics Program because it was my father’s specialization during his time in the University (formerly the Center for Research and Communication). Basically, I just wanted to follow his footsteps. However, this immediately changed when I started studying the fundamentals of Industrial Economics. Thinking in frameworks and economic models helped me develop structured thought processes that strengthened my core analytical skills. Moreover, frequent presentations of academic papers developed my communication skills, distilling the most complex economic theories to layman’s terms.
In today’s corporate landscape, IEP-related skills are in high demand. With the technological innovations and amount of data available to companies, they are now looking for professionals with the skills to categorize, analyze, and extract insights from large data sets. More importantly, companies are looking for people who can clearly articulate these insights to support effective management decisions. IEP provides the opportunity to develop these skills through its core subjects (e.g. Macroeconomics, Mathematical Economics, Econometrics, etc.).
What do I do?
I am currently a Finance Auditor in Shell’s Internal Audit organization. My job is to provide assurance that Shell’s various business entities globally have the right processes and controls in place to manage risks and deliver their defined business objectives. Outcomes of these audits are then reported to the respective business leadership teams and ultimately to Shell’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee.
The skills I gained from IEP has helped me in this role, as the job requires me to analyze control frameworks and business processes. Moreover, the thinking processes I developed through IEP helps me effectively analyze these processes and controls in line with our audit products and requirements. The critical thinking skills I gained through the liberal arts have been very essential as well.
This role also gives me the opportunity to travel the world, engage with Shell’s most senior leaders, and work with a global team across different locations and nationalities. Over the past year, I have been to the Netherlands, Germany, London, and Qatar, to name a few. This job provides me great opportunities to develop my leadership and management skills by learning from top management on how to run such an enormous multinational company.#
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