{"id":20360,"date":"2023-04-25T11:16:41","date_gmt":"2023-04-25T10:16:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/?p=20360"},"modified":"2023-04-25T11:16:41","modified_gmt":"2023-04-25T10:16:41","slug":"year-in-industry-i-am-just-so-much-more-confident-i-always-speak-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/2023\/04\/year-in-industry-i-am-just-so-much-more-confident-i-always-speak-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Year in Industry: \u2018I am just so much more confident. I always speak up!\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

R<\/strong><\/span>ebecca Dan is studying BSc Finance and Investment and took a Year in Industry at tech company, <\/span><\/b>Oracle.<\/span><\/b><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018I was only 13 when I got work experience with Barclays. It was two weeks of being amazed by the operational activity that goes into a working Retail Street bank,\u2019 says Rebecca, who grew up in East London.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018There was just so much going on behind the scenes – small things that you wouldn’t recognise if you were just a client strolling in. I was fascinated by the mechanics and all the cogs working together. I decided I wanted to work in finance.\u2019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After sixth form, Rebecca knew she needed a course that helped realise her aspirations. The University of Kent was ideal, just a short train ride away from her home city but different enough for a new experience.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018The BSc in Finance and Investment looked right for taking me in the direction I was then hoping to go in \u2013 to get into the major banks.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018But it was being able to take a Year in Industry between study that swung it for me. I have no family connections to the corporate world\u00a0 \u2013 it fell upon me to get the experience.\u2019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rebecca loved campus life and threw herself into extracurricular activity like working as a Student Ambassador.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018In the first year we crossed over with other courses like Business and Management so I was able to expand my network.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Rebecca with her team of Student Ambassadors last year<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I really enjoyed modules like<\/span>\u00a0Introduction to Data Analysis and Statistics as well as the Quantitative Methods for Finance. Both offered me the analytical and data-centric perspective.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

Enthusiastic about work experience, she relished the opportunity to apply for a placement during her second year.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018The Employability Team are so useful. They took me step-by-step through my CV and cover letter.\u00a0 I found out that the first rounds of the selection process are AI based so you have to include key words. That alone made a big difference.\u2019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Going through what she calls \u2018the rejection phase\u2019 (\u2018you have to just pick yourself up and keep applying\u2019 she says) Rebecca was relieved to secure a Year in Industry at tech giant Oracle, at their London offices as Sales Development for Finance Intern.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018Oracle is a cloud software provider. My role was to work with their sales managers to progress their pipelines, participate in demand generating activities, and manage the sales stories depository platform. It wasn\u2019t as financial as I expected, but it was intriguing.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2018It was daunting at first, I thought everyone would hate me because I didn\u2019t know anything. But everyone was supportive and there were around 40 interns sharing the same experience.\u2019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rebecca saw her confidence and ability grow immensely over the year and made lifelong friends.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018At university, we learned the practices and theories of the business world, I was able to take this and apply it.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018I even suggested an analytical activity that I thought the team should use to standardise their case studies in a data-driven way \u2013 my manager asked me to present it to the Senior Vice President of EMEA\u00a0 and it was implemented!\u2019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

By the end of the year, Rebecca went back to her studies with fresh perspective and a new desire to work in tech.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Rebecca has secured a graduate role with sustainable waste management company, Veolia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2018I am just so much more confident. I will always speak up and share my opinion on things. I also understand how a business operates and things like communication within a busy corporate environment.\u2019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Having secured a graduate role at sustainable giant Veolia as a Finance Systems Analyst, Rebecca strongly believes her Year in Industry paved the way to this next exciting step.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018The knowledge I gained from the process for my placement year meant I took these applications in my stride, I knew what to do and expect. It didn\u2019t stress me out.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018This, coupled with all the things I\u2019ve developed during my final year of study, helped me secure a role at a business that is tech and sustainability focused \u2013 I couldn\u2019t ask for more.\u2019<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Our Finance and Investment degree is designed to make sure that key financial principles and techniques, and the confidence necessary to succeed. Find out more<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rebecca Dan is studying BSc Finance and Investment and took a Year in Industry at tech company, Oracle.\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018I was only 13 when I got … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74553,"featured_media":19803,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[263886,124],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20360"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/74553"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20360"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20360\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20372,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20360\/revisions\/20372"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20360"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20360"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kbs-news-events\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20360"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}