A member of staff at The Association of Business Schools (ABS) has herself gone back to the classroom and achieved academic success.

Vicky Robinson, who is Head of Marketing and Communications at The ABS, has been awarded a Distinction for MA in Marketing Management from Birmingham City University's Birmingham City Business School (BCBS).

Vicky, who is from Staplehurst, Kent chose to study part-time at BCBS because it was one of the few universities that offered the opportunity to top-up her existing Chartered Institute of Marketing qualifications. Although Vicky lives and works in the southeast she was able to study for a qualification from Birmingham City University because academic support was offered on-line and by phone. Her studies involved a week's block release of classroom learning at the university, followed by research on her dissertation which is titled, "How do UK business schools maintain loyalty amongst undergraduates, a relationship-based approach"

The 33 year old has always worked in education; she has been at The ABS for four years and previously she worked for the Financial Services Skills Council. Vicky was prompted to study for marketing qualifications when she first started work as she didn't want to be pigeonholed into administration. She decided to take her studies a step further by studying for a Masters because she wanted to learn more about how business schools work, which in turn has given her more confidence in her day-to-day role which involves liaising with senior academics.

Her employer has also benefitted from her studies. The work she undertook to achieve her dissertation has provided The ABS with relevant, up-to-date research about business schools. Not only does this benefit her employer but also the 118 business schools that are members of The Association of Business Schools, which represents the leading business schools of UK universities, higher education institutions and independent management colleges.

As well as receiving a distinction for her Masters, Vicky has recently achieved Chartered status which was awarded because she has achieved two years' worth of recorded continuous personal development. To retain this Vicky must continue to update her development each year. As well as achieving Chartered status and her Masters, Vicky is the County PR Officer for the Kent Army Cadet Force (KACF).

Vicky said: "I would highly recommend professional study; in this day and age with the job market not as buoyant as it has been a further qualification is an extra string to your bow and could provide an alternative career route such as teaching or research.

"I worked really hard to gain this qualification and I'm really proud of my achievement. I even got my dissertation bound and gave a copy to my parents. My dissertation is available on The ABS website and in two months 400 people have downloaded it."

Steve Mackay, Course Director and Dissertation Supervisor  said: "Vicky was a dedicated and challenging person to work with while she completed her dissertation. It is particularly rewarding when a student such as Vicky produces high calibre work which combines academic rigour and practical recommendations for performance improvement"