Janet Benson

Digital Education graduate Janet Benson gained a new fascination for game-based learning and no shortage of funny anecdotes during her online MSc studies.

Your time at the University  

This course was the best one I had seen after conducting much research! One of the deciding factors for me was that the course was offered fully online. Although it was online, I made some great friends and had authentic interactions both with my fellow students and tutors. I’ve even visited some of my course buddies in Greece and Edinburgh!

The course was varied, stimulating, engaging and provided me with so many wonderful experiences, including funny ones. I remember in particular joining a group Skype meeting and for some reason I was upside-down on camera. I also created a fox avatar in Second Life and at the start had issues with personal space in the virtual world (yes, I sat on people).

I felt challenged but received encouragement along the way. The tutors were so accessible, friendly and encouraging. I also discovered a new fascination for game-based learning that I retain and use in my current role.

I would do this course all over again if I could (perhaps not the assessments)! 

Completing this MSc opened so many doors for me personally and professionally. While in the middle of the course I moved to a new position as Education Manager with a technology company but now have my dream job as Corporate and Adult Learning Lead at the learning technology research centre Learnovate, based at Trinity College Dublin. Without the knowledge, experience and confidence that the course provided to me, I would never have had a chance at working at such a great place and being able to share what I have learned with colleagues and clients is very rewarding.

I have continued with my love of game-based learning and often speak at conferences on the topic of game-based learning and gamification in the workplace. I even had the guys to speak at an evening User Experience Design event which was in PechaKucha format and therefore quite challenging!

I have been accepted onto the PhD program at Trinity College Dublin to further my studies on the future of learning, particularly in relation to learning technologies and game-based learning. Without my MSc I would never have had this opportunity so am extremely grateful.

If you are considering postgraduate study and it’s been a while, don’t be nervous. Just go for it. I started this course with such trepidation. Many of my fellow students were teachers and as a corporate learning designer I wondered if I would be completely out of my depth. I learned at the same pace as everyone else and with it my confidence grew. The only thing stopping you being successful is thinking that you can’t be.

Related links

MSc in Digital Education

Online Learning

Learnovate (external link)