“That’s why I thought it would be good to get some background and some education in entrepreneurship,” he explains. “That was my main motivation to go for this program.”
Khanh Nghia studied his undergraduate degree in international business in the Czech Republic, and was looking for a master’s program in the UK that would let him explore his entrepreneurial side—that’s when he found Aston Business School.
Aston’s MSc in Entrepreneurship was ranked fifth in the UK and in the top 50 globally by Eduniversal in their best Best Master's Rankings and, for Khanh Nghia, this was a crucial factor. “I chose Aston because of its reputation," he says.
But though Khanh Nghia’s long-term dream is to be a business owner, his Entrepreneurship degree at triple-accredited Aston opened up another door for him—he’s now working in the international sales department for Škoda Auto at its headquarters in the Czech Republic.
"I was not sure I should go for it straight after university—I thought that to get some serious experience in a large corporation would be good for me,” Khanh Nghia explains.
And even in Khanh Nghia’s corporate role, he’s still applying his entrepreneurial skills from his master's degree. “Right now at Škoda I'm working in the new market team, so it’s sort of the entrepreneurship team within the big corporation,” Khanh Nghia says.
“We’re working on a market analysis of the potential markets where the company could expand—so I feel like the background I got on the Master’s in Entrepreneurship at Aston is definitely helping me now.”
In particular, Khanh Nghia says, it was the Professional Development Program (PDP) that really enabled him to grow as an entrepreneur. The PDP program at Aston enables students to acquire those all-important soft skills and is offered as a dedicated module alongside the entrepreneurship master.
“If I compare my education at Aston with the one here in the Czech Republic, it’s really different,” Khanh Nghia notes.
“During my bachelor in the Czech Republic it was more about learning and memorizing all the theory; at Aston, we also had the professional skills courses where we could develop our team working and presentation skills.”
As part of the PDP program at Aston, Khanh Nghia also got the chance to complete a semester exchange at Drexel University’s LeBow College of Business in Philadelphia, US, a school that’s also known for its strength in entrepreneurship.
Ultimately, Khanh Nghia believes the MSc in Entrepreneurship at Aston Business School isn’t just for those wanting to start their own businesses—indeed, the program includes core courses on international business and international entrepreneurship, giving students a suitably global outlook.
“To get some sort of background in entrepreneurship is good because you don’t get it if you go for other degrees like international management,” Khanh Nghia says. “But it gives you the choice of whether to start your own company or get some experience first in a big, international company.”
But Khanh Nghia isn’t letting his dream go just yet.
“In my case, I got the job at a big company with this program! But I definitely still strive for my own business in the future.”
