Our student blogger Elizabeth Black has reached her final year of her undergraduate course. Here, she offers her insight on why while your degree will inspire you, it doesn’t have to define you – as she proved landing a job in marketing… <\/p>\n
I think it is fair to say the presumption you will pursue a career based on your university degree is slowly fading into a myth. And this isn\u2019t totally a bad thing.<\/p>\n
University is a time for you to discover more about yourself, your interests and experiment by placing yourself outside of your comfort zone to start your exciting journey of your future career, which will inevitably change along the way \u2013 and that\u2019s okay too!<\/p>\n
Your career may not be totally related to your degree, which is something I discovered by saying yes<\/em> to more experiences, opportunities and meeting new people<\/p>\n Does this mean I regret studying Management? Was it a waste of time? Absolutely not.<\/p>\n These past 4 years have been a complete whirlwind, from being cooped up in my room in first year crying and phoning my family that I wanted to quit, to building resilience and overcoming challenges to find what I truly enjoy, whilst creating meaningful relationships with friends, students, placement colleagues and the KBS team.<\/p>\n Many come to university to study a specific subject, believing they will follow a set path, but it isn\u2019t uncommon to discover a different passion you didn\u2019t know you had: for me, that was Marketing.<\/p>\n Despite studying Management, I knew I have always possessed a creative mindset. This instinct was confirmed in my placement year (which was not a positive experience) yet I used it as a \u2018guinea pig year\u2019 to find out what I truly enjoyed (and didn\u2019t).<\/p>\n Now out of the other side, I wouldn\u2019t have it any other way. My responsibilities on placement were not overly challenging, however I soon learned my degree was not something I wanted to pursue as a career, possessing a burning desire to demonstrate my creative flair, resulting in birth of my blog which has saved my mental health and helped my employability!<\/p>\n My key advice is to be more open to more opportunities and learn from your experiences to influence the stage of your journey \u2013 which you should enjoy. Treat it as an adventure: tackle the challenges as they will make you stronger; embrace feedback; and celebrate your successes.<\/p>\n I increased my confidence and portfolio of blogs posts, which ultimately led to me connecting with more people and writing for the KBS blog! I couldn\u2019t believe my luck.<\/p>\n Placement influenced my choice of module options, which made it the most enjoyable year of my university experience, including Digital Marketing Applications which I continue to learn from in my current graduate role.<\/p>\n A graduate role?! How did I secure that? I\u2019m a firm believer that you can create your own luck, where hard work is soon rewarded. It also helps knowing people; for me, that was my housemate who recommended me for a Marketing role at ProcureTech<\/a>.<\/p>\n From there, the team were able to view my blog which confirmed their confidence that I am a hard worker and can produce compelling copy for the company. Nearly 2 months later, I can confirm I am still enjoying the journey and am so grateful for where I am and look forward to what happens next.<\/p>\n Had I not said yes<\/em> or made myself more open to opportunities, I am certain I wouldn\u2019t be as fortunate as to where I am now: your career may happen when you\u2019re least expecting it. Push your boundaries and embrace the change that will help propel you on an exciting journey and future career.<\/p>\n Good luck!<\/p>\n“Treat it as an adventure”<\/strong><\/h3>\n