Statement of Purpose
Abhinav Suri
[email protected] 30th March 2018
When I started with my undergraduate programme in mass media, I was certain I wanted to become an auto
journalist. I am extremely passionate about cars and grew up reading Indian automobile magazines religiously every
month, which led me to believe it was what I wanted as a career. I started writing for renowned online car blogs
before I even knew how to drive and continued doing so till I was in my second year of college. During these three
years I realised, while I absolutely loved reading about cars, writing about them was not as fulfilling. It involved more
rephrasing press-releases about car makers introducing new alloy wheels and paint options, rather than actually
reviewing the cars itself.
Fortunately, I had the option to pick between journalism and advertising as a major for my final year and I picked the
latter. I still followed my passion for the automotive world by doing an internship with the Marketing Department at
Volkswagen India and discovered how much I enjoy the business aspect of the auto industry. I assisted on the
marketing campaign for the launch of the New Vento sedan, and learnt a great amount about how a global brand
like Volkswagen localises their products and communication to appeal to the consumers of a diverse and
exceptionally competitive market like India. It was a fantastic experience and added fuel to my desire to pursue a
career in the auto industry at a global organization.
Post my graduation, I decided to take two years off to travel and invest some time with my family in Rishikesh.
Having spent the last twelve years away from home – first in a boarding school and then in Mumbai for college - I
had barely had any time at home with my parents. I spent the time off travelling across India with my family, and
learning about my home country, which may not have been otherwise possible. When I wasn’t travelling, I used the
time to assist my father in his business. I utilized the skills I had learnt in my three year mass media programme and
helped create an online presence for my father’s hotel and stationery businesses. My efforts were very successful
and his hotel business now attracts nearly half their bookings online, with an increase in total bookings by 40%.
The time off also helped me explore options for my further studies. After analysing all possibilities, I have decided I
would like to pursue an MSc in International Business from Warwick Business School, UK. I have chosen Warwick
especially because of its renowned association with Jaguar and Land Rover, and close proximity to another iconic
British automotive marque – Aston Martin. Warwick’s top-ranking program offers a unique chance to work at these
incredible organizations, an invaluable opportunity for someone like me, who wants to work in the auto industry
with an international brand.
WBS has a wide array of highly ranked programmes, but I have specifically picked the MSc International Business
course because it offers modules such as, ‘Marketing in an International Environment’, ‘Strategy Analysis and
Practice’, and ‘International Business Strategy’. These modules, and electives, such as ‘Design in Business’ and
‘Economics in the Global Environment’, match very well with my areas of interest and will enable me to gain further
insights about managing a business at a global scale.
As an international student who has experienced growing up both in rural and urban India, I hope to contribute to
the programme with my insights and experiences about living in an emerging economy. In turn, the MSc programme
at Warwick will also allow me to better understand the dynamics of fully developed nations and already established
markets – an arena I have no past experience with.
After graduating from the programme, I hope to use my newly acquired skills and knowledge about managing a
business in a global context, to work in product marketing and strategy at an automotive brand in my home country.
It is no secret that emerging markets are some of the most difficult to conquer for car companies. Therefore, armed
with my knowledge about international business, passion for cars, and insights about emerging economies, I hope to
offer my future employers a unique combination.
