My life as an online BSc Marketing student: 'Focus on your timing and push as much as you can'
Personal trainer Battsirai Mudzivare divides his time between sessions with clients and his degree.
Working as a personal trainer in Dubai, BSc Marketing student Battsirai Mudzivare hopes to break into a career in entrepreneurship or the corporate sector.
Previously, Battsirai worked in the hospitality industry, but changed sectors during the pandemic, and the career change helped expose him to new areas of interest and personal strengths.
“That’s when I realised ‘okay, I did not attend university before, why not try it now?’”
His current role, he says, is “all about marketing”, so when browsing degrees, it was a no-brainer.
"Whatever you do, even when training clients, you need to market yourself,” he says, adding he hopes the degree will help advance his career in the fitness industry.
After graduation, Battsirai has ambitions to secure a role as a marketing director or brand ambassador for a fitness brand, or potentially even run his own business.
“With the experience and the knowledge that I'm gaining from the degree programme, I will need to utilise it by joining the corporate world or working for myself.”
Battsirai, who is currently in his first semester and hopes to graduate after three years, spends at least three hours each day on his studies, poring over course material in between sessions with clients.
He enjoys the flexibility the online degree offers, the support on offer and exchanging ideas with other students. “With classmates, you get to discuss and share information.
“If you have a passion for the degree programme, it’s easy to do because you don’t just rely on the material, you’re also digging for information.”
When researching degrees, he was drawn to the flexibility the programme offers, which allows him to continue earning a living while studying.
Another draw has been the degree’s online learning platform, which he discovered through word of mouth.
Having completed several fitness certificates via Coursera before, he felt confident about the study experience and format. He was also drawn to the University of London name.
I recommend the University of London and the Coursera platform. It’s the best way and a safe and secure platform to learn in this modern world. There’s so much information out there, you don’t know which is real and which you can rely on, but so far Coursera has been the best learning platform I’ve come across.
Any advice for potential students? Search and read beyond the assigned material and “focus on your timing and push as much as you can.”
Find out more about the University of London’s BSc in Marketing.
