Petra Bauer

Former Economic & Consumer Psychology student

It may sound strange, but the only thing I regret is that the Master took only 1 year. I would’ve found it very interesting to have done this much longer, to learn more about interesting facts/research! The fun thing is that this Master stays close to yourself and you can relate the content to your everyday behavior (how do I behave as a consumer, where does each color stand for, how does my subconscious work when watching a commercial etc.). When people ask if I would advise them to do this Master I always answer: definitely!! Or at least give it a try by going to an Open Day or introduction course, you won’t regret it!

Before starting my Bachelor in Psychology, I always had the idea to graduate as a Clinical Psychologist. Getting closer to graduation, I became less sure of that idea. A lot of changes were announced in the Dutch medical health care and besides, I wasn’t sure how well I would cope with all the (psychological) problems of my clients.

During the 3rd year of my Bachelor I followed an introduction course in Consumer Psychology, and this immediately caught my mind. Very interesting examples were shared, such as hearing French music in a supermarket would enhance the customer to buy more French wine. Or that placing toilet paper next to foods in a supermarket causes a customer to associate these two products with each other –decreasing the chances of the customer buying the food (because they automatically associate toilet paper with filth). A lot more interesting research and facts were shared, which attracted me.

Furthermore, I found it very useful to do a mandatory internship during my Master. Nowadays it’s very difficult to get a job, without any work experience. Because I didn’t plan to do this Master I also didn’t know which direction I wanted to take after graduating. My supervisor took the time to sit with me and talk about my interests and the type of company or place I would like to work at. Some of his previous students did an internship at Unilever and recommended Unilever as a company, so my supervisor advised me to try and apply there. I got an internship there and they even offered me a job afterwards.

I work here since 2013 and since 1.5 years in the role of Channel Marketeer Ice Cream, which is a really interesting and versatile job. I am responsible for the marketing strategy, campaigns and execution of Unilever Ice Cream (OLA, Ben & Jerry’s, Carte d’Or) that isn’t sold at the supermarket (f.e. leisure parks, petrol, snack bars etc.).