Tom Worville

How did you hear about Leeds University Business School and why did you choose to study here? 
I found out about Leeds University Business School through searching for economics courses online. I really liked the look of the syllabus and once I visited the city, I didn’t want to go anywhere else!

Tell us about your course – why did you choose it? What elements of the course inspired you to study here? 
From A-Levels I was never really interested in anything but economics. I liked how economics was a useful tool in solving resource allocation problems, of which there are many we face globally. The biggest pull for me to go to Leeds was the ability to spend a sandwich year either studying abroad or on a placement. 

What has been the best part of your studies – what have you enjoyed the most?
I’ve enjoyed my studies a lot, but there have been a few key parts I’ve found most rewarding:

• First of all, I’ve enjoyed the flexibility of being able to choose modules outside of the Business School – the ‘Company Law’ module I did in second year was particularly interesting. 
• Secondly, I enjoyed my placement year. It was a nice break from my studies and allowed me to get a flavour of what graduate life is going to be like. 
• Thirdly, I was privileged to be one of the last students to take the ‘Football Business’ module run by Professor Bill Gerrard. This introduced me to the world of sports analytics and gave me a great insight into how football clubs are run from an accounting perspective.
• Finally, I’ve enjoyed my dissertation purely as it’s allowed me to devote my time to an area I’m very interested in. This may seem shocking for a student to enjoy their dissertation but the Business School give you a lot of freedom when choosing a topic and methodology, so I doubt I’m the only one!

What are your career aspirations? Do you think the experience and skills you’ve gained here so far have helped you in your career plans? In what way?
In the short term I’d like to work within the sports analytics field – using data to inform decisions within sports. From studying economics I’ve become very analytically minded, which is a useful asset in the field I want to go into. I’d love to work in the US at some point too.

Longer term I’m undecided. Whether I work in football or move back to the corporate side of things I really don’t know. I’m lucky to be graduating with a skillset and CV that ensure I’ll have many opportunities going forward, so I have Leeds University Business School to thank for that! 

How has your career progressed since joining the Business School? Have there been any notable highlights?
The biggest highlight would be starting my own business, something that the skills I’ve gained throughout my time at the Business School have had a great effect on. Also I was able to secure an industrial placement thanks to the Careers Centre. They helped me tweak my CV multiple times and gave some useful tips on assessment centres and interviews too. 

Where are you currently working, and what is your role? 
Alongside my studies I’ve started up my own football analytics consultancy called Analytics FC. We advise teams in the different professional divisions of English football in areas such as scouting and match planning. Analytics has grown from a blog to a podcast and now a consultancy during my time at Leeds, so I’m grateful to have the flexibility with my studies to work on both. 

Do you have any noteworthy achievements from your study at the Business School that you can tell us about? e.g. prizes, highest scores etc.
I was fortunate to win the Aspire Impact Award in my final year of study for my work with Analytics FC. The prize is awarded to “a student who has executed an exceptional business idea demonstrating creative and entrepreneurial skills” – something I’m proud to have won. Upon joining Leeds I was inspired by all of the 2nd/3rd year students who were working on interesting projects or had their own businesses too, and never thought that I’d be capable of doing something similar. It just goes to show that if you have an idea and are willing to put the hours in building on that idea, anyone can do it! 

What has been your experience of the facilities, the staff, your peers, the city of Leeds and the Yorkshire region? 
I’ve loved my time at Leeds. The city is great and has everything you’ll need as a student. The staff are very passionate about their respective areas of research and this shines through in their teaching. Finally, I’ve made a lot of life-long friends in Leeds. 

Would you recommend the Business School to others who are considering studying here? 
Absolutely. Leeds is a great Business School as there are so many opportunities to take part in various projects or societies.