Second semester has started and this semester I am doing the modules of International HRM, Employment Law, HRM Context and Organisation, Equality and Practice and CIPD (which runs throughout both semesters).
My favourite module of this semester is Employment Law. The employment law module gives a chance for students to visit an employment tribunal in Manchester. This tribunal could be considering various issues (e.g. unfair dismissal) and then we have to write a report based on what we see at the tribunal. This is very exciting as it offers students a practical way of learning by putting the theory on employment law into practice.
This semester will also be spent preparing for the dissertation. We have just been allocated a dissertation supervisor who is given based on the topics that we choose. AMBS try and allocate a supervisor who has matching interests in the topic that you choose for your dissertation. The topic that I have chosen to base my dissertation on is emotional labour as I have always been interested in this topic throughout my undergraduate and masters degree. The next few months I will be meeting with my supervisor to narrow down my topic and start preparing research questions for my dissertation.
Apart from academic studies, I spent a weekend in February visiting Krakow in Poland. Krakow is a beautiful place that is appreciated for its history and architecture. On the Friday that I arrived, I did the walking tour which was very interesting as I learnt a lot of things that I didn't know. On the Saturday, I visited Auschwitz concentration camp which was a very eye opening experience. The horrors of Auschwitz is something that you will never forget. Although it is not somewhere that you would 'want to visit' but it is somewhere that you should visit and guaranteed to have an affect on you. Auschwitz-Birkenau is the site of one of the greatest mass murders in history. 1.1 million people were killed and this consisted mainly of Jewish and polish people and also gypsies. Although I had studied the horrors of the Holocaust throughout my life, you quickly realise when you go through the gates of the concentration camp that you know nothing. Being there in real life tells you a story that you will never forget. Anyone who visits Krakow should visit Auschwitz.
On a more positive note, I have enjoyed going to Dunham Massey on the weekend just to be able to go for a walk and relax. Dunham Massey is a National Trust Park in Manchester. There is also Tatton Park which is a nice place to visit and often has car shows and interesting stuff going on. I would recommend anyone to buy a National Trust membership card as if you like nature then there are many national trust parks you can visit across England.
That is all for now. I look forward to writing again in March and letting you know how the semester is going!
