Want to work in the media industry? Find out more at Media Week!

Are you thinking of working in the Media industry after your degree? Or is this simply a sector that you would like to explore further? We have put together a number events in the final week of November to enable you to take things further through a spotlight on this diverse and exciting sector.

Monday 25 November

The week kicks off  with an evening insight into Publishing, where people working in a range of roles from editing, agency and rights will take your questions. We are excited to have speakers from Bloomsbury Publishing, LBA Books, UCL Press, Rakuten Kobo and DK (Penguin Random House), working in a variety of roles.

See event details and sign up to attend on myUCLCareers.

Tuesday 26 November

We will take a look at what it’s like to work within Advertising, Marketing and PR. Professionals working in advertising agencies, consumer and corporate PR and marketing will be discussing their careers, the difference between the various areas and some of the exciting projects they have worked on. Panelists will also offer tips on how you can make your first steps into each of these areas.

See event details and sign up to attend on myUCLCareers.

Wednesday 27 November

We are delighted to have News Associates running a journalism workshop exclusively for UCL students and recent graduates. This is an interactive session aimed at those looking to pursue a career in UK based journalism.

See event details and sign up to attend on myUCLCareers.

Thursday 28 November

We finish the week on  with an incredibly exciting line-up focused on the Film, TV and Radio industries. Joining us will be BBC TV and radio presenters, a junior music manager and a film director. We expect this to be a popular event so don’t miss out!

See event details and sign up to attend on myUCLCareers.

 All the events are open to UCL students and recent graduates with an interest in the sector, regardless of your degree subject.

Did you want to explore things a bit further before the panels? Take a look at Prospects.ac.uk to see just how many roles there are within the Media industry. Prospects also breaks down the different roles within Advertising, Marketing & PR.

As part of our #UCLInspireMe series, Lornette Harley, Press Assistant at Soho Theatre, talks to us about how she got this role and shares some tips for UCL students who want to get into the sector. For more insights from recent graduates working for smaller organisations, search #SMEProfile.

How did you get into your role?
I did a degree in musical theatre and discovered that that side of theatre wasn’t really for me as much as I loved it. After my degree I got into a lot of event planning and managing which then turned into a lot PR work in the music industry and that was how I realised that I love PR. I did about 3 works on music events and PR work and then a friend of mine sent me the vacancy for the role of Press Assistant at Soho Theatre and I thought it was the perfect mixture of all the things I enjoyed doing, so here I am!

What are the best things about working in your role?
The fact that I am always learning something new and constantly meeting and interacting with new people. The people that I work with are also some of the most amazing people I’ve ever worked with. We all sit in one open plan office and the atmosphere is always great. It’s a great role that mixes my love for all things creative with the office work.

What are the biggest challenges you face in your work?
I sometimes think it can be quite difficult to plan my day at work because I never know what’s going to happen when I get there. I’ll have an idea of what I want to get done in a day and then I’ll get a string of emails all marked as high importance and my plan goes flying out of the window. It can be quite difficult to fit in everything that needs to get done.
 
What top tips would you give to a student interested in this type of work?
Get into theatres, see as much as you possibly can, really immerse yourself in all things theatre so that you know what’s going on. Be aware of the press that is around as well; read the papers and magazines, listen to radio shows and watch news programmes. Also, reach out to your local theatre wherever you might be, see if there are any part time front of house roles that you can do alongside your studies if you have time. Get into a theatre and make yourself known, you never know what possibilities for moving up there might be and if you’re already in the theatre you’re in a better position that people applying from outside. Lastly, remember everyone you speak to (the industry is small and you’re very likely to work with people more than once) and be nice to everyone you come across.
 

To find our more about working in PR, visit Careers Tagged

Interested in media? Want to hear from professionals in the industry? We have a variety of events during our Media Week, 1^st – 4^th December 2015, that will give you a great insight into this popular sector!

Panel events will involve talks from each panel member about their current role, their career path and tips on how you can progress. You will then be able to ask questions to the panel, so come prepared! The sessions will be followed by informal networking to allow you to follow up to any conversations started in the Q&A.

The schedule of events is as follows:

Tuesday 1^st December

• Panel: Get into Publishing, 17.30-19.00. Hear panel members discuss their top tips for getting into this notoriously difficult industry. Speakers include Dr. Nina Buchan, a freelance Science and Medical Editor, and representatives from Sage Publications, HarperCollins, Collins Editing and UCL Press.

Wednesday 2^nd December

• Workshop: Journalism, 13.00-15.00. Two-hour workshop run by News Associates, the top UK journalism school. This session will involve you writing an article in a mock breaking news exercise. Spaces are limited and you will need to pay a returnable deposit.
• Panel: Get into Broadcasting – TV, Film & Radio, 17.30-19.00. Speakers confirmed include a Director/Producer/Editor for Slack Alice Films, a Lead Producer for the BBC’s Digital Storytelling Team, a freelance Series Producer/Director/Cameraman, an Assistant Producer for BBC World Service and an Account Director at Precious Media.

Thursday 3^rd December

• Presentation: What is Media Analytics?30-14.30. Media is changing. Data and analytics is key to delivering successful media campaigns and growing clients’ business. Find out more about this growing part of the sector in a presentation delivered by GroupM, global media investment group, and part of WPP.
• Panel: Get into Marketing, PR & Advertising, 17.30-19.00. Panel members include Claremont Communications, Lloyds Bank, Ogilvy, Periscopix, & Gerber Communications.

Friday 4^th December

• Panel: CVs & Applications for Media Careers,00-14.00. Get top tips from industry professionals on how to make your applications stand out and what you can be doing now to increase your chances of securing a role in this industry. Panel members include Head of Commercial Marketing from The Guardian, the MD of Slingshot Sponsorship, an experienced media recruiter from SapientNitro and a guru around creative industries from CreativeSkillset.

If you are interested in attending any of the above events, please sign up via your MyUCLCareers account. We look forward to seeing you!

This guest post is from Zoe Amar, Director of Zoe Amar Communications

Earlier this summer Forbes proclaimed that arts degrees were the hottest ticket for a career in tech. It reminded me of my own journey from a BA in English Literature at Warwick to running my own digital marketing agency, working with clients such as Charities Aid Foundation, The Commonwealth War Graves Commission and The School for Social Entrepreneurs. Careers in digital and communications are popular options for undergraduates, as is eschewing the conventional graduate scheme for life as an entrepreneur. UCL have asked me to share what I’ve learned along the way.

1. Accept that any career path you choose may be circuitous and involve some risk. After graduating, I was an English teacher for a year before heading to law school then working in the City. But even though I did well in those jobs and learned a lot, there was always something missing. I quit my job as a lawyer and thought long and hard over what I wanted to do next, aided by John Lees’ invaluable book How to Get a Job You Love. It was a bit scary to walk away from a well paid job but without doing that I would never have ended up in a job I love so much. I took a placement doing marketing on a pro bono basis at a national charity which specialised in digital services.  Just a few weeks in they offered to create a new role for me as head of marketing, and after I’d been there for 5 years I left and set up my own agency. I’d say learn whatever you can from every job you have and follow your instincts about what is right for you.
2. Digital doesn’t mean that ‘soft’ skills are redundant. As the Forbes article showed, digital is evolving rapidly and requires strong technical and analytical knowledge. Yet people skills such as being able to ‘read the room’ and nurture client relationships are necessary to capitalise on the benefits of digital. Much as I love it, digital is just a set of tools. It’s how you use them that counts.
3. Being an entrepreneur is hard but rewarding. It might sound glamorous but running your own business means taking on a lot of risk and round the clock hard graft. The upside is that it stretches you and is incredibly empowering. It’s also offered me amazing experiences such as working with household names, giving a lecture on digital strategy at Cambridge,  and doing a bit of radio and TV. If you have the opportunity to work for yourself I urge you to take it. I’ve run my own business for the last couple of years and recently blogged about everything it has taught me.

I’d recommend that anyone starting out in their career is open minded and learns everything they can.  Work isn’t one linear path from university to the corner office anymore; it’s a journey. Enjoy it.

Zoe Amar is Director of Zoe Amar Communications. She also writes for The Guardian Voluntary Sector Network about how nonprofits use digital, and is a trustee of a national charity.

To discuss career options, book an appointment to see a Careers Consultant at UCL Careers.

As part of our #UCLInspireMe series, Darren Ramsay, Senior Project Manager at Market Probe  talks to us about how he decided to work in Project Management within a Market Research company and shares some tips for UCL students who may be considering this as a career.

About Me:

After 4 successful years in TV and Media, presenting, modelling and acting the work started to dry up. Whilst I was in-between presenting roles at the age of 26 I decided to look for part time paid work. I saw an ad for a Market Researcher in a call centre which paid minimum wage but paid enough money to cover my rent and cover a few bills whilst waiting for the next presenting role to come along.

I got the job and began calling respondents and carrying out surveys. I actually enjoyed this and decided to turn down presenting roles in favour for work in the call centre. (Occasionally leaving to attend the BBC building in White City for presenting work as it was near and the extra money was always welcome.

How did I get the role I am in today:

A few months passed and I plucked up the courage to ask my Director if there were any career opportunities within the company and if so, were there any vacancies? He said they were looking for a receptionist. I decided to interview for this for this position. During the interview I was told that they wanted me for a more professional role and that I would be assisting the Associate Director.

I had the encompassing job title of Operations Executive. This basically meant that I helped tidy up all the projects that were running at the time. Checking tables, coding, data entry, validating etc. Working with the Associate Director was a huge learning curve for me and helped me grow professionally, paving my way to bigger and better opportunities.

After 4 months as an Operations Exec I saw a vacant position for Project Manager in the Face-2-Face department. I once again plucked up the courage to ask my director if I could apply. I had the interview and was accepted for the position. 8 years on and I am running the Face-2-Face department in the company as a Senior Project Manager.

What I like about the role I am in today:

I love people! As a people’s person and I have the opportunity to work with so many different people every day. Not only do we have a call centre that holds 100 interviewers, I also have up to 500 staff around the UK working on Face-2-Face projects for me. I get to liaise with them on a daily basis building a good working relationship, rapport, trust and even friendships. This for me is rewarding. The interviewers enjoy what they do, they enjoy working for me and they get paid for it. Having a professional, fun, working relationship with the interviewers ensures they are  reliable, trustworthy, provide good quality interviews, with punctual work packs sent back to the office and research that my clients and I are thankful and grateful for.

I also secretively enjoy working for different brands like 3 Network. This is because I am a customer of 3 and it’s very interesting to read what thousands of other customers of 3 think about them.

What are my biggest challenges?

My biggest challenge at work is juggling the projects I am running.  This is a challenge because I have to factor in many, many stages for just one project.

My top tips:

GO-GET-EM-ATTITUDE!!! Working in Market Research is not something many study for. A lot of the people in this industry fell into their roles. Be brazen, quick thinking and have the ability to work in a pressured environment. My acting, presenting skills and most important, my ambitious personality helps me deliver all the above and more in my role.

To find out more about careers in Market Research, visit Careers Tagged. To get hand on experience of what Project Management is, sign up to the Project Management Skills4Work sessions.

As part of our #UCLInspireMe series, Charlie Wade, Menswear Marketing Manager, asos.com talks to us about how he got his role and shares some tips for UCL students who want to get into Marketing.

How did you get into your role?

I used to work in the City! However, I always had a yearning for marketing because I am truly fascinated by consumer behaviour and their interaction with brands, as well as design. I actually thought about working in marketing within a bank (and even applied for a role), yet I believe that Retail Banking would be more interesting than the Corporate side, yet it wasn’t the area that I was in.

As such I looked into other roles. One of the key decisions was whether to work in-house or agency-side. I settled upon the former as I felt I needed exposure to the creative aspects, as opposed to (what I thought would be) focusing on processes. There is correct option here, so it pays to do as much research as possible about both.

The next thing was to decide what ‘discipline’ I wanted to work in. A that point digital was exploding, and I wanted to be in the most innovative space. Once I made this choice I scoured my network and was introduced to a guy who ran his own agency. He was looking for someone with selling skills, which I had an abundance of. He believed that I could pick-up ‘the marketing bit’, so took me on. Whilst there was definitely an element of luck involved, I would urge anyone to focus on what they can do and the skills they can bring to a company; too often we look at the reasons why someone wouldn’t want us.

After a great few years I decided to move on. Having never really considered an in-house role I was introduced to one at ASOS by a friend who worked there. One of the things that attracted me to it was the entrepreneurial spirit and exciting things they were doing across digital platforms. (I was also a huge fan of the service, having bought a number of times from it.) To get the job I worked hard to research the company and its competitors, both direct and less-obvious ones. Additionally, I critiqued the site and campaigns that they had done, forming opinions and establishing aspects that I might have done differently. This process is a useful one as it helps you to learn lots about the company and provides you with a raft of ready-made questions for your interviewer, above and beyond the usual ones.

What are the best things about working in your role?

My colleagues:  Some of the people here are the most impressive that I have come across, and I would happily go for lunch with all of them.

My customer: A really engaged, yet challenging group, 20somethings are always looking to learn about trends, brands and adopt social channels. This means that we have to remain at the forefront of both retail and digital innovation.

The brand: ASOS is a fantastic company. One that places talent above age and gives genuine responsibility to its employees. It asks you to work hard, but also provides a great environment in which to do so. Also, it is arguably the biggest commercial success story to have come out of the UK over the last decade and it is exciting to see where we will go next.

What are the biggest challenges you face in your work?

Too much to do, not enough time! We have incredibly tight deadlines and I have an abundance of meetings during the day. Juggling my time can be tough.

I am also not the best planner, which I have worked hard to improve. Also, an agency generally has a less-defined hierarchy; whilst I don’t mind the importance placed on org charts, it has taken a little while to get used to.

Finally, I have had to learn a lot about retail, and quickly. However, knowledge acquisition should be one of the best aspects of any role.

What top tips would you pass on to a student interested in this type of work?

Do your homework. Marketing is everywhere. Read the abundance of publications and follow the plethora of bloggers who write about it. In terms of retail, this is even easier, go into shops and check out websites! Look, feel, touch, interact with the product. Get to know the range of a brand, and those of their competitor.

Have an opinion. Imagine that someone asks you the question ‘what brand do you admire?’ or ‘what’s the best digital campaign that has impressed you?’, have an answer! There really isn’t a right or wrong, the person opposite is looking for evidence that you care and can present an answer coherently.

Don’t pigeon-hole yourself too early. I sometimes think that people worry about becoming a specialist too early. Certainly within marketing I would look to get on either a Grad scheme or work in a full-service agency. This will offer you exposure to a range of disciplines.

Enjoy your work. Marketing is more fun than banking; so work somewhere that you like. Your company or clients and impact on that, so pick a sector that you like and target it.

Have a digital footprint. A Facebook or LinkedIn profile isn’t enough. I like to see tangible evidence of an interest in, and understanding of social networks.

Don’t give up. Some people will get their first choice at the first time of asking. But plenty more won’t. The guys who get their second or third choice are the ones who keep trying. Be amongst them.

If you’re interested in a career in Marketing, visit Careers Tagged and find over 550 resources to get you started.

As a UCL alumnus, you probably appreciate that job searching can be quite daunting. You are also most likely aware of the anxieties and importance associated with that dreaded term – ‘networking’. UCL Careers have made the process as easy, effective and enjoyable as possible, with a focus on employers and students both getting the most out of participation. I had the opportunity to see the mutual benefit in taking part during a UCL alumni panel and networking event, run during the successful Employability Summer School. With over 70 willing and eager UCL students, I joined more than 15 alumni from a range of employers including TFL, PWC and TeachFirst.

The value of networking can’t be understated. It can generate leads and openings, create worthwhile business relationships and offer up personalised information in a short space of time. Enthusiastic and talented students are aware of this and actively seek opportunities to talk to top employers, find out as much information as possible and learn more about how they can develop their skills within a specific industry or company.

As Marketing Communications Intern at UCL Careers, I was best placed to bridge the gap between encouraging students of the benefits in engaging with the alumni panel but also to offer, hopefully, useful insights about my own career path as well as answer general questions about what it’s like to work in marketing.

As per previously sent-0ut instructions, all alumni were greeted and briefed fifteen minutes prior to the event, with introductions and mini-networking in a separate room. The event then began – we were split in to two rooms and a semi-formal approach was taken with students grouped in 3’s and 4’s with one alumnus per group. Ten minutes was then allowed for discussion before we moved around and spoke to a new and eager group, with a total of an hour and six rotations.

This was a great opportunity to give a little information about myself, UCL Careers and the marketing industry and then take some well-thought out questions from motivated and genuinely interested students who appreciated the information given. Many took notes and asked articulate follow-up questions to which I was able to provide more detailed answers. A comfortable and enjoyable experience, I feel the students left with an impression employers, and UCL Careers, was engaged and approachable.

Concluding the event, we were given two drinks tokens and an opportunity to mingle in a more relaxed setting with all the students, other alumni as well as UCL Careers staff in the downstairs bar area. This was a great way to discuss topics in more detail and highlight to the students relevant aspects of our roles and companies.

Attending panel events are a great way to give back to UCL Careers if you are a past student as well as maximising your company’s profile with talented and eager UCL students from a range of disciplines. Well-organised and engaging, the events usually take a few hours of your time but offer huge and lasting personal and organisational benefits in return.

To find out more visit: www.ucl.ac.uk/careers/recruiters or email careers.events@ucl.ac.uk