BSc Economics Personal Statement

Why do you want to study this course or subject?

Inequality; the perfect word to describe the problematic world that we live in, the world we have made our own. The government takes huge responsibility for the reason why some countries are poor and some are rich. We have all had an impact on the less fortunate countries, from wasting food to having a long, hot shower. If we switched places with those living in poor conditions, we would not know how to cope. We have been brought up in a selfish society, where we do not think about others. This is why I have a keen interest in economics as I am able to apply my mathematical knowledge to economic issues. My main interest in economics stems from my love of numeric-based learning. With all the business knowledge I have acquired, I am looking forward to gaining an even greater understanding of the daily changes that occur within our economy. I particularly look forward to further educating myself about the various aspects of economics and the doors that this will open for me in the foreseeable future. Although I understand that this degree will by no means be easy and will undoubtedly present me with a multitude of challenges, I know that my strong will and passion towards learning about the future of the world’s economy will spur me on to achieving this degree.

How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare for this course or subject?

Whilst studying towards my Business qualification, I was given the opportunity to partake in a Young Enterprise programme, which involved the creation of an innovative business. I and other sixth form students came together after looking at several business ideas and we decided upon the name “Tech-Ex”. The slogan for the business is “The place for all your tech needs.” I was given the role of Finance Manager, which involved keeping track of the business’s financial position. This included thorough research of various possible products and considering the cost of resources, development and advertising. Using an online database, I recorded the business’s cash flow, which entailed keeping a record of all purchases and sales. The business worked a success and we got given the opportunity to visit Lithuania to compete against other businesses within the EU. At the North Wales competition, we won “the best company” award and “the best use of IT and marketing”. This enabled us to compete in Cardiff for the Wales award. The whole team worked together to make Tech-Ex successful, whilst breaking-even within 6 months and making a profit of over £900 within a year. Through recent years I have noticed the growing changes in the exchange rate and have taken a keen interest in learning about how this affects a country's economy. To educate myself further, I have taken part in online webinars, open day lectures and have read through numerous online articles regarding the subject.

What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

To further my knowledge of the financial sector, I volunteered my services to two financial sector-based organisations, one was HSBC. During my week of work experience at HSBC, they allowed me to spectate and gather information on the daily activities of a high street bank. This provided me with a great deal of further insight into how banks protect and help their clients, whether they are a business or personal customer they are treated with the same level of respect and provided with the same information regardless of wealth or status. The other work experience placement that I was involved with was at Sailsbury’s accountancy firm where I was given the task of conducting a tax return for a local business client of theirs. To carry out this task I needed to look across all the businesses invoices over the past financial year and sus out which invoices they could claim against. This involved looking at their recent purchase orders and daily/weekly cashflows. Whilst working at Sainsburys I was placed under the supervision of a fully chartered accountant who delegated some of her tasks onto me, these tasks gave me further insight into the economic difficulties that businesses face such as paying VAT, taxes, employee pension schemes, etc. Outside of my academic life, I have a keen interest in helping others. I have been a volunteer for The Alzheimer’s Society since 2015, within a year I have gained the title of a support services volunteer. Once a month I visit a surgery and set up a stand with information about Dementia, formally known as Dementia RED. This has been a success and has allowed me to help people with their questions and concerns about their memory or someone else's memory. Being the eldest of all 8 of my siblings I have to set the example and I feel by helping the community I am doing that. Within school, I am a prefect and during November I am going to run assemblies to all of the years about bullying, discrimination, racism, etc.