My group project with Industry

Hello, my name is Kavya Jayaram from India and I am studying for my Environmental Management for Business MSc. I have recently finished my taught modules in the first term and also my group project, which was sponsored by an industry partner. I am currently completing my thesis project, so I will update you on this later.

My group project was sponsored by the Wildlife Trust of Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. The aim of the project was to research how to reduce the carbon dioxide emission from the Peatland. During the project we run ecological and economical modelling and at the end of the project we were able to present the best solution for the best results, to the company.

I got the chance to work with a very diverse team during the project. I was working with other students who were completing other MSc courses here at Cranfield like, Food Systems Management MSc and Future Food Sustainability MSc as well as a someone from my course, Environmental Management for Business MSc too.

It was a great experience working in a group with these students as we all had unique skills which gave us a chance to learn new things from each other. We did face some challenges during the project, as some of the concepts were new to us, but we all worked together on this and we came up with the best result for the company in the end. The supervisors and the company client were very helpful and supportive and gave us the data for the research during the project.

It was great to be able to apply the knowledge and skills that we had learnt in the taught modules term of the course, especially the Economic Evaluation module. We used the concepts of this module in the research stage of our Group Project. I have really enjoyed being able to apply my knowledge and experience to real-world problems and to solve challenges within the project.

On the weekends and in my free time I make sure that I allow time to relax, and I work this into my routine. I love cooking and sometimes I go for a walk or a bike ride, which helps to keep my mind fresh. During the weekends, I like to meet up with my friends and we will play sports and games on the sports field, which helps me to keep active and focused for the rest of the week.

I am currently completing my thesis research project in collaboration with one of the leading companies in sustainability, Unilever. This collaboration came about after I participated in the Unilever challenge earlier on in the year. For my thesis project I am working with them on a sustainable business plan for one of their branches in another country. This is all research based on the competition I did in the earlier months this year.

The project has been interesting for me so far because I’m very interested in the management and environmental focus of the project. I am also getting the full support from my supervisors and from the company sponsor who I am receiving lots of data from relevant to my research. So far this has been a great experience for me and I am really enjoying it so far.

During the taught modules and projects that I have completed this year, as well as the competitions that I participated in, has given me the chance to gain real world experience through real case studies and solving problems currently facing companies. With all of this in mind I am sure that this will help me in my future job, working within industry to solve environmental issues. Completing my Environmental Management for Business MSc and taking part in different projects has helped me to develop the skills which are required for the future working world.

When it comes to my academic life, I would say my favourite memory was when we did a podcast for one of our taught modules! This was a really great experience working with my course mates on this. Apart from that, I participated in a pumpkin carving event for Halloween at the Cranfield Students Association, and it was really fun!

A highlight from studying at Cranfield so far is when I participated in the Unilever competition, and my team got selected for the final and this was a real highlight for me! We also celebrated some of the Indian festivals here at the University and this was a delightful moment for me.

I was very new to the online teaching and learning system, but the classes were well planned, and it ended up making learning quite flexible! All of our classes were recorded so this was really helpful when it came to revising, as I could access them whenever I needed to! In addition to online classes, we also had some sessions in person when face-to-face teaching was allowed to start again. This was a great way to meet my Course Director, Professors and course mates in person, finally!

Every module was unique. But I found that the Environmental Innovation module very interesting as we had the opportunity to come up with an innovative idea, and then to present this to a Professor. I think this module gave a real insight into a real-life scenario in industry and it was really realistic and interesting.

I am currently working part-time at The Nordic Asia Impact (NAI) based in Sweden as a Sustainability Analyst. Looking to the future I would love to work in the industrial sector with their environmental departments. Throughout the course, we have been working on live and real case studies and these projects have helped me to gain an insight into the skills which will help me in my future career.

For future students if you are thinking of joining Cranfield University you are on the right path as it’s the best decision you could make! I think that Cranfield University is the best place to be and it has a great atmosphere for learning with the number of opportunities and lots of resources. Aside from academic life, you can join clubs and societies and get involved with events which allow you to showcase your talents and be a part of the extracurricular activities on campus. I would also recommend that you get involved in as many competitions and projects that you can during your studies because it will help you to build a network with students from other courses.