Olivia Terry: the Careers team helped me get work experience.
Olivia Terry, a Fashion and Dress History student, tells us about her work placement opportunities in Brighton and how the university’s volunteering service was vital in opening doors to help shape the direction of her career.
“I’m from the US, so my first year was a big change and I was pretty homesick. In second year, I decided to try new things and take every opportunity that came my way. I saw The Old Police Cells museum were advertising a volunteering role through the university’s volunteering service, so I made an appointment with a member of the team called Kat and she set up them placement for me.
Kat took note of my broader interests like sewing, which was great because she was then able to assign me a further work placement at the conservation company Zenzie Tinker. I’ve also completed a volunteering placement at the Brighton Museum in preparation for the Queer the Pier exhibition. It’s been great to know one of the benefits of using the volunteering service is that if there were a problem, the university would be able to directly support me.
From undertaking work placements and volunteering I have gained so much. I know have real work experience on my CV and knowledge that I can apply to future jobs when I am finished with university. But more than that, I made so many new friends and connections that I feel a lot more tied to the Brighton community. I was learning so many different things, beyond technical skills, like more people skills that you can really apply to not just your future job but to everyday life too – and that is what is great about it.
I now have a much clearer idea of what I want my future to look like – and I realise everything that teachers say about volunteering is actually very true!”
Catherine Johnson • 07/09/2020