Soccer AM placement for PE student

The three year Physical Education BA(Hons) degree offers the opportunity to pursue a bespoke modular pathway designed to help students meet their individual career goals.

In the final year of study students undertake a work-based placement in order to garner experience and forge connections in a workplace of their choice. As a customisable degree the opportunities in this area of study are incredibly diverse with students undertaking placements in varied contexts that include education, sports coaching, the military and the police.

Student Kurt Selvaraja took advantage of the diverse opportunities and spent his placement with Sky Sports Soccer AM; the long running comedy/talk show, focused on Premier League football and groups of celebrity guests, footballers and a mix of musicians, TV personalities, and other sportsmen.

We caught up with Kurt (pictured above on the set) to talk about his placement:

How did you come across this placement? I had many options for my placement in my third year, including a PGCE, and wanted to try an alternative to teaching. I first contacted Sky Sports with the aim of working in sports media and then was directed to Soccer AM.

How has the placement benefitted you? What have you learned? The placement gave me an amazing insight into the organisation, time management and communication needed to be successful in a sports media career from behind the scenes. I was given plenty of responsibility and given the chance to contribute directly to the content of the show; I was responsible for the ‘showboat’ clip; a clip of footballers showing skills and tricks. I created interview questions for the Arsenal first team and produced a profile of Leicester City winger Marc Albrighton. I also worked closely with the main presenters John Fenley, Helen Chamberlain, Tubes and Rocket. I learned many research skills and got a much deeper understanding of the workings of such a popular TV show and the hard work needed to make it successful.

Did you get to meet any celebrities? Yes I was asked to look after loads of sports stars and celebrities. I got to meet and work with the amateur heavyweight Olympic gold medal winner 2012, Anthony Crolla the current WBA lightweight champion and soap stars Perry Fenwick (Billy Mitchell) and Jamie Brothwick (Jay) from Eastenders.

I will also meet Anthony Joshua the current WBC International and Commonwealth heavyweight champion later this week!

Has this placement given you chance for employment in the future? Yes! I have already been offered two opportunities of paid work and I haven’t even finished my degree! I have been asked to provide coverage of the Anthony Joshua vs Dillian Whyte boxing match at the O2 Arena and also the World Darts Championship in 2016. I also have the prospect of permanent employment at the end of my degree.

Would you recommend this placement to prospective students? Yes, definitely. I thoroughly enjoyed the placement and learned so much. It was amazing to be involved in such a popular TV show, it just shows what you can achieve from this degree and the many career paths it can open up. It’s also a great addition to my CV and will definitely help me in my future career aspirations.