Before I came to study at the University of Manchester, I have been working in the Earth science and sustainability field in California, my home state. After surrounding myself with sustainability experts and climate scientists with master’s and PhD’s to their name, I wanted to advance my education and grow my career prospects. With my previous background in environmental communications and marketing and remote sensing research, I felt that I needed some more tools on my academic belt. I selected my degree program, Environmental Impact Assessment & Management (EIA&M) because it has broad applications in both the environmental and professional sphere. I wanted to join a program that would open more opportunities for my future career. Oftentimes this degree program provides a pathway towards working in environmental consultancy. Many students are directly after graduating from this program (some are even recruited during the school year!).

After researching into environmental consultancy careers, I found that they usually are seeking dynamic individuals who have both technical and soft skills to work with different organizations. Environmental consultancy work can cover things from greenhouse gas emissions calculations and reporting to forming predictions on a development’s environmental impact to engaging with stakeholders to find and address environmental issues. I am particularly interested in consulting with media entertainment, food and beverage, and fashion companies. From working behind the scenes in sustainable film production to going to factories where goods are produced, I would like to have opportunities to address and assess things like material waste generated within these industries, create life-cycle analysis reports, and layout a pathway for more sustainable, environmental practices.

Outside of private industry, I also think that heading into environmental consultancy to support local government work would be just as fulfilling. I have seen the ways in which consultants can consolidate and provide useful data to cities, notifying them on their potential environmental impact in years to come and guiding them on measures that can be taken to address these impacts. Additionally, working with local governments would allow me to connect on a smaller scale to a community and receive a return on an investment of time by seeing actions taken and changes made on environmental concerns. Being able to build connections between local government leaders and supporting their work towards a more sustainable future for their community is something I know would be incredibly rewarding. Even if I do not decide to head into consultancy, I can still apply the education from this program into any profession. There are opportunities to bring the “Management” portion of my degree to support the foundation of sustainability and environmental work through other roles ranging from data science management to sustainability management. With a degree like EIA&M, many of the topics and skills overlap which I am certain will make for a long list of possibilities and pathways in my future career.

Having the opportunity to study in another country has widened my perspectives on the type of environmental work available and its perceived value within the culture and society. Studying at the University of Manchester and meeting other students pursuing this degree makes me hopeful to see the progress towards driving sustainable change.

Written by Katera Lee. 

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