As part of our #UCLInspireMe series, Lucia Weinber, Brilliant Club tutor and PhD student in Experimental Psychology, talks to us about how she got this role and shares some tips for UCL students who want to get into the academic sector.

How did you get into your role?

I am a Brilliant Club tutor and a first year PhD student at the Experimental Psychology Department. I found out about the Brilliant Club via an email of the UCL Graduate School. The relevance and suitability of the Brilliant Club as a part-time position specially tailored for PhD students motivated me to learn more, which I did through their website. I sent my application and was invited to the assessment centre to do a mini-lesson. I have just finished my first placement working with KS4 students, an enriching and exhilarating experience.

What are the best things about working in your role?

My PhD revolves around understanding teenage brain development. However, I deal with this in a laboratory setting. Having first-hand experience with adolescents in a real life setting has positively informed my research questions and procedures. I aim to do research that has applications beyond theoretical inquiries, and I believe this experience has helped me to better orient my research.

Working with students is stimulating and very fun! These interactions can be incredibly rewarding. Also, going into schools can be a welcomed break and change of setting once in a while. The programme is specially designed for PhD students and provides a flexible schedule and much of the work can be done from home or from the lab (i.e. planning the tutorials or marking). The Brilliant club is a meaningful way of engaging with the public and spreading the word about your research.

What are the biggest challenges you face in your work?

I had little experience as a teacher for young students before starting. Designing my course and materials, specially tailored for a 15 year old audience, was a big challenge. Delivering lessons and making sure students understood and followed along was sometimes tricky. Extra work on top of a time-consuming PhD is also a challenge, and you need to develop time managing skills. Fortunately, the Brilliant Club really supports and trains the tutors, and they are always willing to help.

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

In academia, most of us will find ourselves in front of a classroom at some point or other. I think the PhD is a perfect time to start developing teaching skills and didactic strategies. Don’t underestimate the challenge of teaching. There is widespread belief that being a research student automatically gives you the ability to talk about your research or teach. Even if we have been students for very long, there is a lot to learn in order to become an effective teacher. It is a good idea to explore teaching assistant roles to work with undergraduate students. Structured programmes such as the Brilliant Club provide a very useful scaffold to go beyond university students and reach different audiences.

To talk to a Careers Consultant for further information on applying for a PhD, visit: www.ucl.ac.uk/careers

As part of our #UCLInspireMe series, Kirsty MacDonald, Shopper Marketing Executive for Personal Care at Unilever talks to us about how she got this role and shares some tips for UCL students who want to get into the Marketing sector.

How did you get into your role?

I’m Kirsty and I am on the Unilever graduate scheme in the marketing stream. My current placement is within shopper marketing personal care so I look after all in-store activity within our customers for Unilever’s male grooming brands including Lynx, Dove Men+Care and Sure. This is a local market placement where you concentrate on running brands as if they were an almost self-contained business. The next role will be more long term and strategic looking at the global direction of Unilever’s brands.

I studied Economics and Management at Oxford University before doing an MSc in Global Politics at LSE. Throughout my degrees, I became very interested in global businesses run in a sustainable way and Unilever came up time and time again as an example. I also wanted broad business exposure that taught solid principles that could be applied across industries and cultures. The FMCG industry particularly appealed as the end user you are aiming to reach is one of us, not another company like in banking or consulting, and there are numerous functions you work incredibly closely with such as marketing, sales, finance and supply chain. It was a real chance to learn ‘business’ (if you can be that broad) in a solid and varied way.

What are the best things about working in your role?

My role, as with any job, has its positives and negatives and they are often linked. I love having real responsibility – as soon as I joined I was given a very important project where I was the lead. I looked after all the budgets, forecasting, implementation, coordination of different parties, external communication to customers and much more. Although responsibility is fantastic it does come with some slightly stressful times. However you are given support and training throughout and the company’s culture is fantastic. We are one of the main advocates of agile working so I work from home at least once a week – as long as you get your work done and to a high standard you are given the freedom to work how you want. Other benefits include a salary raise every six months you are on the graduate scheme, a fantastic and industry-renowned training programme and the chance of a management position after you finish. The rotational nature is great for gaining experience especially within the marketing stream as you have a local and global market placement looking at more short term P&L management in the former and more long-term strategic decisions in the latter.

What are the biggest challenges you face in your work?

As I said, there are positives and negatives to every job. My most serious challenge would be coordinating all the different parties to reach an end goal. As mentioned before Unilever is incredibly cross-functional and everyone needs to contribute to drive our brands forward – you cannot isolate yourself and perform individually as you can when doing an essay or problem sheet at university. Often what is top of your list is at the bottom of someone else’s so it can be a struggle to manage even small projects and deadlines. Secondly, as the name suggests, the industry is incredibly fast moving and sales, plans, projects can change extremely quickly so you have to be willing to adapt, come up with solutions and leave sunk costs rapidly. Finally, at times it can be stressful however this is only really within working hours. As you depend so much on other people and functions for your work there is no real advantage of working late and this is not in our culture. My working hours are typically 830-6pm but within that time your brain works hard.

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

Unilever, and many of the other industrial or retail companies, put huge weight on their competencies and it is always about demonstrating them in your applications, interviews and assessment centres. Do make sure that you tailor your application to each company however if I was to summarise what they all seemed to be looking for it would be ‘doers’. That is, people that don’t just concentrate on their studies but have interests outside of this, from sport to music to debating – it doesn’t really matter exactly what it is as long as you have a variety of passions. Relevant work experience is a plus but it is not a deal breaker so don’t get too hung up on this.

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

Careers in the Creative Industries Webinar: Wednesday 03^rd June, 1-2pm

Ever considered working in film, gaming, editing, motion graphics, design, scriptwriting or presenting? Or setting up your own company?

When? Wednesday, 03^rd June, 1-2pm

How? Register using this link:

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3860209767852398594

Join our webinar to listen and contribute to a Q&A session with Ash Denton, Creative Director of Explosive Alan Productions.

More about Ash…

Since graduating from the New York Film Academy, where he produced 16 shorts and worked on well over 100 others, Ash has worked in technology and gaming media for some of the biggest brands in the field, including CNET, Gamespot and Xbox.

At Gamespot, Ash was pivotal in the creation of Start/Select, a light-hearted videogames news digest show. It rapidly became the site’s flagship sub-brand, hitting the number one spot in the iTunes gaming podcast charts.

During this time, Ash kept his toes in filmmaking waters, writing and directing mind-bending short The Hollow Men which was bought by Shorts International and went on to be screened worldwide.

In 2010 he was recruited by Xbox, and picked up a Games Media Award in 2011 for the mailbag-show-with-a-difference SentUAMessage. In 2012, he co-founded Explosive Alan Productions with former Inside Xbox members Dan Maher and Gareth Wild.

Organised by the Careers in the Creative Industries team for students from across the University of London, this webinar will give you the chance to learn about careers in film, gaming, editing, motion graphics, design, scriptwriting and presenting and will give you insight into the world of work in the creative industries.

As part of University of London’s Careers in the Creative Industries webinar series, we invited Jethro Compton – a writer, director and independent theatre producer – to come in and answer your questions. 

Jethro had five top tips to share with aspiring theatre professionals:

 

1. Don’t talk about doing it – just do it!

When you’re networking with people in the industry, it helps if you can talk about work you have actually done, rather than saying you ‘haven’t got started yet’.  Jethro pointed out that lots of people starting out are too scared of failure to take their first steps into the industry – but he stressed how important it was to start doing something, and not to be put off by the few people who find success in the industry with little struggle.  For example, whilst Jethro was an undergraduate at the University of York, he started his network at the Drama Society.  Your college may have one, and maybe even a separate society for technical theatre folk!

 

2. Let your work speak for itself (and you).

Jethro is an advocate for concentrating more on making good work that makes an impact, rather than worrying too much about promoting your professional self.  But he recognises it’s also important to build contacts and network – even if this doesn’t come naturally to you.

 

3. Aim high – don’t be afraid of failure.

Tied into the above points, don’t be afraid to have goals that push you outside of your comfort zone.  The important thing is not to get disheartened if things don’t go to plan immediately!  Measuring yourself against others is a waste of time – set your own realistic goals and use them to evaluate your progress – that might just mean asking yourself at the end of a long week: am I happy?  Have I made it through the week?  A positive mental attitude is extremely important – it shows…

 

4. Always be nice!  Never feel entitled.

The theatre industry is a small world and word gets around if you have a bad attitude, making you difficult to work with.  Like any industry, it is important to nurture positive relationships by being enthusiastic, willing and happy to help.  Recognise that everyone in the industry is struggling, and remember that you never know when you might need this person on side.  Obviously you should never be so willing as to be exploited – but use your judgement and avoid sounding like the world owes you a favour.  This means making your own opportunities rather than wondering why the phone isn’t ringing with offers of work.

 

5. Be patient – it’s all about the long-game. 

When you’re networking (and networking can happen by email or even Twitter – it’s not all about schmoozing at drinks receptions), try to treat it more like a connection between two like-minded people, rather than immediately assessing who is going to ‘get something out of it’.  Jethro told us about cups of coffee he’s had with people in the industry that are initially just about sharing what you do – and then, a few months down the line, these connections can turn into them helping you out with last minute props, them coming to see your show, or more.  Try to see the long-game when you’re making these connections and nurture them over time.

The financial struggles of the industry

Although he now runs his own independent production company, Jethro has worked with a lot of freelancers.  His tip for those of you who are considering freelancing, particularly if you are looking at acting or writing, where it can be difficult to get longer-term freelance jobs, is try to supplement these by using your skills in the technical aspects of theatre.  Lighting technicians and stage managers etc are always in short supply in the industry, so if you can develop skills in this area you can diversify your offering.

On the flip side, Jethro has also had a salaried role working for a West End producer – in some areas like production, one year salaried posts are more common.  Obviously whilst this was more financially secure, Jethro didn’t have so much time or freedom to pursue his own creative agenda.

 

Jethro’s pick of resources:

For aspiring producers: Stage One awarded Jethro his first bursary and, if you’re interested in the technical side of theatre, they offer paid apprenticeships , workshops and seminars.

The Stage

Twitter – Producers, directors, agents and casting directors will put out the majority of their calls for actors and other staff on Twitter.  Twitter is a legitimate networking tool in the theatre industry, so use it well (and wisely)!

 

Look out for Jethro’s productions, as well as his workshops and seminars, at the Edinburgh Festival 2015.  More webinars from the Careers in Creative Industries group are coming soon.

 

See also: Wannabe Creatives – Have You Considered the ‘Passion’ vs ‘Security’ Trade-off?

 

Ever considered going freelance?  Getting a job in the arts?  Working in theatre?

Join our webinar to listen and contribute to a Q&A session with Jethro Compton, Writer, Director, Independent Theatre Producer and co-Artistic Director.  Jethro will be taking your career questions.

When? Wednesday, 22^nd April, 1-2pm

How? Register using this link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3226718446927832322

More about Jethro…

Jethro Compton is a writer, director and independent theatre producer. His most notable productions to date have been the world premiere of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance in London and the internationally acclaimed WWI triptych, The Bunker Trilogy.

As the Producer and co-Artistic Director of Belt Up Theatre, Jethro has worked on The Boy James, Outland, A Little Princess, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Metamorphosis, The Tartuffe and The Trial.

In 2010 Jethro received a bursary from Stage One to support his development as a commercial producer. He was Associate Producer of Southwark Playhouse for three years from the start of 2011.

Organised by the Careers in the Creative Industries team for students from across the University of London, this webinar will give you the chance to learn about careers in theatre, including advice for writers and actors, and will give you insight into the world of work in the creative industries.

 

This post originally appeared on the Develop your Career blog

This blog originally appeared on the Develop your Career blog

Whether you’re a medical student or a foundation trainee, the prospect of divorcing yourself from a world you’ve (heavily) invested in is a huge one.

In order to be sure of making the right decision in the first place, Year 11 and 12 students spend time finding and completing work experience to test their assumptions about becoming a doctor. Once at medical school, the question of which specialty they see themselves in begins to loom. Then in Foundation training, the pressure is really on to decide which of the 60+ specialties is the right one.

So, after all this intense decision-making in the direction of Doctor, Doctor, Doctor, what should you do if you begin to think, as a student or as a trainee, that it might not be for you?

Know yourself, know your reasons for leaving

Be clear on the specific reasons for leaving, is it stress, working hours, the pull of
another profession? If you’re finding it hard to specify what your reasons are, perhaps try writing a reflective journal including the highs and lows of each day. Write down questions that occur to you about your uncertainties. Try the reflective exercises in this resource on Jobs.ac.uk: Career Change Toolkit (this will be more helpful to trainees).

Talk to someone

• in the profession – a supportive tutor, a friendly peer in the year above (at medical school or in Foundation training) or a more senior doctor. Their insights might help you establish what it is you’re unsure about, and what you need to do to confirm or allay your fears. This is all about selecting the right person, if you feel someone might frown upon your thinking then they may not be the best counsellor.
• in your family – this is a difficult one. Often the biggest investors in our futures are our families, especially parents or guardians. This may put you under extra pressure if they’re following your studies/career excitedly. However if you have really thought about your options and are certain about leaving medicine then try to be brave and talk with them; show them you’ve researched your options and explain your reasons for moving on.
• neutral – speaking with a careers consultant will bring you an impartial, neutral space to house your discussions. Careers professionals are trained in helping people establish what’s important to them and making decisions that are right for them as an individual. Check your university’s careers service if you’re studying or check the services from your Local Education and Training Board (LETB) if you’re an F1/2.

Test your reasons for leaving

If you are interested in another profession, then could you arrange to do some work shadowing? If you’re concerned with the idea of taking exams until you’re 30+ then (as above) talk to people further down the line than you in different specialties;
find out how onerous it is and how they cope with it.

Research your options

If you’re an F1/F2, firstly remember to explore specialties that might minimise or even avoid the areas of medicine you aren’t enjoying (for example consider public health if the clinical work isn’t for you). If you’re not already familiar with them, visit the NHS Medical Careers specialty pages.
Beyond that, being trained medically is a huge asset to a number of jobs. The skills and knowledge lend themselves to a wide variety of roles: medical journalism, publishing, medical law, NHS management to name a few. Additionally, think beyond the medical sphere; management consultancy, civil service etc.

Resources, career ideas and case studies

NHS Medical Careers – Alternative career options for doctors. Great list of options with descriptions.

BMJ Careers – Moving on from Clinical Practice. Article about why people leave medicine and a diverse set of case studies of doctors who have left practice.

Medical Success – Alternative medical careers. Information on medical careers beyond the hospital and GP settings.

Medical Success – When can I leave medicine? An interesting case study about an F1 trainee who embarked on a new career path.

Careers Tagged – Options and Career Choice. Resources on choosing careers, employers, and options with your degree.

Emma House, Director of Publisher Relations at The Publisher’s Association tells us why Publishing is an important sector.

Book and Journal Publishing: one of the UK’s largest creative industries. It generates almost £5 billion for the UK economy; it brought us book-to-screen phenomena such as Harry Potter, Game of Thrones and Paddington Bear. If you have ever considered a career in publishing, you would likely have been attracted to the glitz and glamour of trade publishing and working with famous authors – or the delights of working in children’s publishing. You would likely have considered bringing your skills in marketing, publicity and editing to a career in publishing. Yet this is only a small insight into an innovative, forward-thinking, global, and creative industry with a strong and exciting present – and future.

The UK’s publishing sector can be divided into 5 sectors: trade/consumer (fiction and non-fiction including children’s); education (school books); higher education textbook; English Language Teaching and dictionaries; and academic journals. All aspects of publishing have been and are going through considerable change. The internet, Amazon, government policy and changing consumer tastes and needs have all driven change in the way we consume content and publishing is building its own pathway through these changes.

Publishing will always require the traditional roles that it takes to run a business in this sector. A good eye for writing talent, strong editorial acumen, and knowledge of the various ways to take content, to curate and market it and finally deliver it to the consumer, are key skills that the industry values. The industry prides itself on having the very best these roles in order to add value to the author and the consumer. Non-traditional “publishing” process roles such as Legal, HR, Finance and IT are all essential to the industry and anyone studying these disciplines could do far worse than consider bringing their skills and qualifications to publishing.

What is little known however is the range of new roles and new skills that publishers now seek to bring to the industry. Over the last 5 years, digital has become fully embedded in publishing and we are now seeing a need for people with strong skills in data analytics, digital marketing, digital production and design. Consumer insight teams have grown, as have departments looking to transform book IP into other multimedia. The industry has never been more international and “sales” roles encapsulate the need for export sales, translation rights sales and skills in building global partnerships. The academic book and journal industry is crying out for scientists, researchers and engineers to bring their knowledge and talent to the industry and the education publishing industry values those with a strong background in the education sector – especially teachers. Entrepreneurism, imagination and a passion for content are attributes which are attractive to employers and a demonstration of innovation and flair long way.

So if you thought you knew publishing, or thought it was only for English literature graduates…….think again! Our industry needs YOU.

Hear more from the Publishers Association in a free webinar available to all University of London students on Wednesday 25^th March, 1-2pm.  Register here.

This blog post originally appeared on the Develop your Career blog

Paul Kilbey, Editorial Assistant at the Royal Opera House, shares his experiences in Arts publishing.

How did you get into your role?

I’ve wanted to work in publishing for a long time.  I studied music at university but was always more interested in writing about it than performing or composing, so I gravitated towards jobs where I used language.  After a while teaching English as a Foreign Language abroad, I moved to London and was lucky to be able to do a couple of internships, building up my professional experience.  There were then a few years working in and around classical music for startups, and I got my current job in the Royal Opera House’s Publishing and Interpretation team a couple of months ago.  I am also a freelance writer specializing in classical music; I write for a few magazines.

Over the last few years I have written a lot of articles for a number of predominantly online publications.  This has been really important for developing my writing skills, although it hasn’t always been the same as a conventional grounding in journalism or publishing – it has all been fairly off the cuff, and online is totally different from print, both in terms of how it works and also the standard expected.  All the writing made me well qualified for my current role – I’m an Editorial Assistant – but I still have plenty to learn.

What do you do day to day?

It’s very varied, and the workload changes depending on what projects are coming up.  There is always work to do preparing for future productions, although of course it gets busier in the immediate run-up to a show.  I have work to do in a number of areas including writing, proofreading, liaising with advertising clients and also working with publishing software.

What are the best things about working in your role?

My colleagues are very nice, and it’s an exciting place to work, with the rehearsals and performances happening all around us backstage.  And after a few years with very small companies, I am still hugely enjoying the perks of working for a major employer – cafeteria, IT support, payroll department, etc. Most of all, the job is an ideal mixture of my interests – classical music and publishing.  I’m lucky to be able to work in both at the same time.

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

Firstly, it’s worth remembering that any sort of office experience is good.  Employers want to know that you can be trusted to correspond with people in a professional manner.  I had done very little office work on graduation, and this probably set me back a bit.

As for writing online – there can be huge benefits to doing this, but only if you’re serious and sensible about it, and aware of its limitations.  Blogging can lead to all sorts of interesting things, and so can writing for the many websites out there that will take your content, publish it, and not pay you.  But, unsurprisingly, doing this can also be very unrewarding, both financially and professionally.  You shouldn’t confuse success in these media with professional experience in journalism or publishing per se.  My advice is that if you’re considering writing for a blog or another website, it’s crucial to remember the value of what you’re doing.  This means two things: firstly, that you know what you stand to gain from your writing, even if you’re not being paid (are you gaining useful experience? Exposure? Nothing at all?); and secondly, that you only write things that you’re confident are good enough to merit publication.

As part of our #UCLInspireMe series, Matt Pelly, Documentary Producer/Director talks to us about how he got started in the Documentary Production  sector.

I’m a documentary producer/director for BBC and Channel Four, making things like 999: What’s Your Emergency and Routemasters. I always wanted to work in TV/Film, and made lots of rubbish films as a kid with my brothers. I studied Drama & French and university and got my first job as a runner on Bargain Hunt at the BBC a year after leaving University.

How do I get in to a role like this?

There are two ways in. One is to make your own films until someone realises how brilliant you are, but they are difficult to fund, it can take years, and you’ll need to get lucky or have rich parents.

The other, and more common way, is to start at the bottom as a runner making tea. As they say, the cream will rise, and it generally does. Apply to everyone and anyone, but more importantly meet people, get work experience and keep going til someone gives you a job.

You need to have passion to make films/tv programmes professionally. Its hard work and long hours, and you won’t survive if you don’t really care about it. Don’t do it for the glamour. It is fun but it takes a toll on your social life, and there’s more than a few single 30 & 40-somethings out there in TV world. Make student films, and learn how to make them better. Make it your business to know the sector, and meet people making the kinds of films you love. Keep moving and keep learning. Don’t be too proud to work hard and make the tea. Be nice to people, have a ready smile, and show passion and interest. People will remember you and help you if you’re good to have around.

What are the pros/cons of your role?

Best things are I get to be self-employed, be creative, work with creative people, musicians and sometimes actors, meet/interview famous people, and travel the world. But that’s all gloss on the whole; the best thing is I get to make films which i love.

Getting in is hard, but it’s hard all the way if you don’t want to be pigeonholed, so you have to be focussed on what you want to do. It’s hard and not for everyone, but it beats the 9-5 in my book.

And one thing I read in a magazine once: the hardest thing is knowing what you want, the easy thing is doing it.

Good luck and enjoy.

Visit Careers Tagged to find out more information about Documentary careers