Annelijne Brouwer
I am Annelijne Brouwer, 24 years old and from the Netherlands. I moved to China at quite a young age and because I loved my experience there I decided to move abroad for my studies as well! I moved to Barcelona and completed my bachelors in business administration at ESADE. During this time I completed a few smaller internships and through that and other class projects I noticed that not only did I just have a passion for marketing, I had a passion for the research behind it. This led me to my decisions to study the Masters in Market Research and Consumer Behaviour. After this I was not ready to start working just yet, so instead I traveled for a few months. However, since last April, I have moved back to Amsterdam and I started working at Mediabrands (now in the department Kinesso) as an Insights and Effectiveness Consultant.
“I loved my time at IE. The one tip that I would give to future students is to focus on enjoying your time there and focus on your own learning and not get too caught up in the competitive side of things.”
DEFINE YOUR EXPERIENCE IN IN ONE WORD.
Amazing.
IN WHAT WAYS DO YOU THINK PROGRAM HAS CHANGED YOUR LIFE PROFESSIONALLY AND PERSONALLY?
Professionally I can quite easily say that it has not only helped me get my current job, it has also made me feel quite prepared for it. As if I came in with at least a year's worth of experience. And actually, both of these I have to thank for our capstone projects. Within the span of one year we worked with three different market research (and media) agencies on research projects. The last of these was with Mediabrands Spain! Not only did I thoroughly enjoy and learn so much during each of these projects, the last one my team and I actually won. In the first call with my current manager he mentioned that this stood out to him and he therefore wanted to invite me for an interview. A few weeks later I was hired! :) Again, I would like to reiterate that not only did it look good on my CV, these projects (along with all the other projects in each class) made me truly feel that I had obtained work experience in this industry. Personally, I could talk forever about how much fun I had during this time, but the most important take away is simply put: I have made friends for life.
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVORITE MEMORY OF YOUR EXPERIENCE?
This one is more difficult, picking one favorite memory. I think one of my favorite experiences was Global Immersion Day. This (to my knowledge) was the first edition of such an event for the MARCOM masters. I was lucky enough to attend it. Within these few days in London I got a good sense of the opportunities that are out there, and got an opportunity to talk to more people within my, and other marcom, masters, and professionals in our fields. Besides that, the few days in London with one of my closest friends was a nice getaway and a great deal of fun as well!
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO STUDY THIS PROGRAM AT IE?
Before choosing to study business, I was also considering psychology. My horrible grades in biology gave me the push to start with business, but I always told myself I would find a way back and connect the two. During my studies I quickly noticed I really liked marketing, and through more projects and internships I realized I loved researching and understanding target audiences / customers. Why do they make the decisions that they make? I started taking electives related to this and following online courses myself (cause I simply had too much time on my hands during COVID)... but I really enjoyed them and it spiked my interest even more, therefore leading me to look for a masters in market research. Some I found I felt were too marketing oriented and some too psychology oriented and therefore I kept coming back to this one at IE, that to me seemed to have the perfect mix of the two.
WHAT WERE SOME OF THE MAIN CHALLENGES THAT YOU ENCOUNTERED ON YOUR WAY? HOW DID YOUR MASTER PROGRAM AND IE HELP YOU THROUGH THESE CHALLENGES?
As I did my masters right after my bachelors, I don't know if I have faced many challenges along the way. So I guess I have been quite fortunate. Of course finding a job doesn't happen in a blink of an eye, but as mentioned before, my masters definitely helped me with that. While at IE the support of the careers department was extraordinary as well! In general, I also feel I could still get in touch with IE (different departments or specific people) in case I need help at any point.
WHAT IS NETWORKING LIKE IN THE PROGRAM?
Super well organized. I know many universities like to give their students fun and educational opportunities to network with professionals in their future fields. My experience of this at IE was exceptional. There were many interesting talks and events organized for us, and my friends and I attended almost every single one of them I think, just in case we would meet someone interesting and hear something that appeals to us! And again, some of us started working at these companies. So I would highly recommend for anyone to take advantage of these events and talks, but who knows who you might meet and what you might learn! :)