Torris Rasmussen

Currently, I work for the Norwegian National Rail Administration as a transport analyst. My responsibilities have included steering the development of the national freight model together with representatives from the other government transport bodies (road and sea), advising investment studies on their appraisal processes and helping to develop internal appraisal tools. I have also worked a great deal with calibrating regional passenger transport models and presented on the British experience of competition in passenger rail based on my dissertation work.

My MSc Transport Economics degree played a large part in me getting this job as my first one out of university. This is both due to the qualification itself, and the wealth of literature and experience that the course, my course mates and the academics at ITS provided me with. Furthermore, the skills I gained during my studies combined with my transport interests allowed me to contribute to both methodological and practical discussions from day one of the job, with great feedback from my superiors.

As soon as I realised that ITS offered a masters course in Transport Economics I was interested in applying. The combination of two of my passions made the choice easy. I also liked the idea of staying in Yorkshire for another year after my bachelor's degree from York.

I would advise students considering a course at ITS to follow their passions and interest, as well as making sure they use their chosen ITS course to understand the basic concepts through and through. This will encourage students to contribute actively in their workplace, something which often is appreciated by employers.

I took part in the ITS Employer Visits, and I found them useful to vet employers as much for my own interest as employers found them interesting to vet applicants. This allows for more of a conversation rather than questioning sessions, and if you know your stuff that seems to be appreciated by most recruiters.

Though not related to my current job, the highlight of my career so far has been that a paper written together with my supervisor at ITS and based on my dissertation work has become part of a Competition and Markets Authority investigation on competition in passenger rail markets. Though it required a bit of extra work on top of my day job, this has been a good experience and helpful to my career.

As an international student, I would advise others to use your time in the UK to get an overview of knowledge and experiences in the British and European transport sectors. This knowledge and experience will come in handy in your work in the sector as it is a rare skill.