Below are a handful of testimonials from business representatives and students who have participated in previous years of the CDRC Masters Research Dissertation Programme.
Testimonials – Businesses
“I had a good time working with the student. He was particularly good at taking on board not only the overall research objective, but also my specific requirement that he deliver us a working algorithm that we could use and develop further (which he has done). He kept in regular communication throughout, and was confident to question and challenge when necessary”.
Boots: Senior Portfolio Analyst, Space and Location Planning
“I would definitely say the relationship has been very useful. For my own project, it was very productive to have a dedicated researcher to bring academic rigour and investigative ability to the knotty and overwritten realm of making a business case for green. The partnership also had the benefits of educating the student in the corporate world and the different needs and drivers within that arena. A win-win for both sides.”
Tesco: Community Plan Manager, Tesco.com
Movement Strategies
“We’re huge supporters of the CDRC MSc Dissertation Programme; it’s an opportunity for us to tackle strategically important challenges in a really efficient and exciting way. The opportunity of getting to know potential recruits is also a key advantage of the scheme. The quality of MSc students we have attracted over the last 3 years has been outstanding.”
Simon Babes
Managing Director
“Working with the UCL student was a great experience. The student took responsibility for the project and required minimal supervision. The project was completed to a high standard and clearly illustrated the capabilities of the LDC datasets. The work covered a variety of key business issues and the recommendations and results will be valuable pieces of insight.”
Local Data Company: Director
“We had a great experience working with our student, who had a fantastically professional approach and achieved a huge amount in a few short months, with an instantly useable Classification that we have implemented in many of our tools and analysis, and came to present the work to the team. The other great aspect of the project was that she taught us a lot too!”
Sainsbury’s: Senior GIS Analyst, Property Insight & Analysis
“For me personally it was a great experience to get to work with such a strong candidate with clear direction on what they wished to do and the drive to own and deliver it. A clear and well delivered piece of work. The work undertaken covered a number of key issues and the insight produced will be valuable to the organisation.”
E.ON Energy: Senior CRM marketing analyst, Customer insight and Experience
Testimonials Students
Millie Corless
“Undertaking a project with real word impact with the Registry Trust was a great opportunity. It allowed me to concentrate on the project rather than needing to come up with a topic. I also knew I was interested in health, so the flexibility within the project allowed me to include that in my research questions and analysis which was great. I applied and was interviewed with a number of other candidates, but having taken part in the Masters Dissertation Scheme, I already knew the data sets they were working with and the type of analyses they were interested in which gave me an advantage.”
Millie Corless
University of Liverpool, MSc Geographic Data Science
“Undertaking a CDRC Masters Dissertation Research Project gave me the opportunity to apply the skills and methods learnt during my Master’s course in a real-world context; making use of commercial data that would have otherwise been unavailable to me. Having the chance to work closely with an industry partner also helped to develop my understanding of how spatial analysis methods can be utilised for commercial research.”
University of Liverpool, MSc Geographic Data Science
“I found a very interesting dissertation project with a major retail company. The project not only allowed me to challenge my analytical and programming skills but also connected me with both industry and academia.”
UCL, MSc Business Analytics (Computer Science)
“The CDRC Masters Dissertation Research Programme provided me with a great opportunity to showcase the skills learnt during my masters through the use of real-world business data. Working with an industry partner enabled me to gain an insight into how location analysis methods are used in business, which was very insightful.”
University of Leeds, MSc Geographic Information Science (GIS)
“The CDRC Masters Dissertation Research Programme provided me with a great opportunity to showcase the skills learnt during my masters through the use of real-world business data. Working with an industry partner enabled me to gain an insight into how location analysis methods are used in business, which was very insightful.”
University of Leeds, MSc Geographic Information Science (GIS)
“As a student I greatly appreciated the opportunity offered by CDRC. I was shown not just how retail analysis can contribute to social science research but also had a great chance to get an insight into operational research due to the support offered by my sponsor company.”
UCL, MSc Public Policy
“Not only did I have access to data which would otherwise be either unavailable or costly, but I also had the opportunity to see how academic and professional worlds function and collaborate. I would suggest this opportunity to any MSc student interested in the retail and demography topics – it is definitely rewarding.”
UCL, MSc Geospatial Analysis
“Through the CDRC Master’s Dissertation program, I experienced the beneficial relationship between academia and industry. While using Big Data, I was able to apply the theories and skills learned through my MSc to a ‘real-world’ problem, bringing my graduate experience full circle. Ultimately, the industry partnership has lead to an offer of employment and I couldn’t be more excited! I highly recommend this program to all MSc students in a related field.”