Bryn Windsor MSc Student 2020-2021

Eight months after finishing my MSc at REES, I’m genuinely surprised how explicitly the course has influenced my life.

bryn windsor

 

Not only am I applying the knowledge I acquired on the course daily at my new job, but I also rely on the genuine critical understanding of the region that REES gave me every day in my personal life too. 

 

I am now living in Russia, working full-time as an Analyst at the Moscow office of a British Corporate Intelligence firm. Every day I’m tasked with researching businesses and individuals throughout Russia, the Caucasus, Central Asia and Eastern Europe – relying on an assortment of open and human sources to identify potential risks and help Western clients make sense of this intricate and captivating region.

 

The comprehensive foundation that REES provided me with into the political, economic and societal dynamics of this region has proved invaluable. While condensed into just nine months, the REES MSc offers an unbeatable opportunity to engage with the depth and breadth of Russian and Eastern European affairs. I really enjoyed working with the highly talented yet extremely approachable teaching staff.

 

What I liked most of all was that beyond endowing students with an almost encyclopedic knowledge of the names and faces of Russian politics, the course encourages students to engage critically with why Russia is always making the news. The expertise that REES brings is the ability to go beyond the broad-brush narratives that often haunt coverage of Eurasian affairs and instead situate arguments in the context of scholarly theories and regional trends, revealing what is, as ever, a more nuanced picture. Equipped with such an education, analysing, explaining and living in Russia is a much more fruitful and enjoyable experience.  

 

Moreover, the sustained workload of essays, presentations and dissertations almost unwittingly sharpens your writing skills and critical ability to such an extent that you only really notice the change after leaving Oxford.

 

I would wholeheartedly recommend the REES MSc to anyone interested in the region. You not only get to spend a year in the wonderful city of dreaming spires but open yourself up to a whole world of everything from Vienna to Vladivostok.