The EP team recently caught-up with Maxine Hart (School of History) to discuss her journey through the Employability Points Scheme, which started back in 2013!
Maxine started her time at the University of Kent undertaking a degree in German and History, where she earned 345 points, completing Study Plus courses, working as Academic Peer Mentor and assisting with a World War I project.
During her year abroad, Maxine applied for archival work experience offered by Chatham Historic Dockyard via the EP Scheme. During this reward, Maxine gained the chance to work in the business archives, cataloguing documents and assisting with the installation of a new exhibition.
Reflecting on her two week placement, Maxine admitted at first she didn’t know whether she wanted a career in heritage but once started at the Dockyard, she immediately ‘fell in love with the conservation aspect…it was the perfect blend of both science and history’.
As a result of this experience, Maxine continued to volunteer at the Dockyard throughout her undergraduate degree, where she gained experience in cleaning historical objects, rearranging the archive and humidity monitoring – valuable experience in the heritage sector.
Maxine continued to benefit from EP rewards, attending the Royal Engineers Museum’s behind the scenes tour, where she gained an insight into their vast collection of military, cultural, art and ethnographic items.
Maxine was to be rewarded a third time – during her Masters degree – gaining work experience with the National Trust at both Bodiam Castle and Bateman’s. Here, Maxine gained a range of experiences from assisting visitors to documenting all paintings for the National Trust’s Salvage Plan!
Maxine continued to volunteer for the Dockyard for the first year of her Masters and soon secured a role as a Learning Assistant, where she is responsible for assisting school groups as they visit the site. As a part of this role, Maxine has delivered both workshops and tours, notably in the Ocelot Submarine and the Victorian Ropery, where she has been able to share her love and enthusiasm of history with school children across Kent!
As Maxine comes to the end of her time at the University of Kent, she commented:
“As a result of my experiences at the Historic Dockyard Chatham and the National Trust, I now have a real passion for heritage and conservation. I now know what I want to do for my career and have the experience to do so, and this was only possible due to the Employability Points Scheme.”
Upon the completion of her Masters degree later this year, Maxine plans to undertake heritage based work experience in Germany.
The EP team wishes Maxine all the very best with her future career in archives and collections.