Victoria Lupascu is a final year Journalism student on the Medway campus, and started the ambassador role this year.
“Final year of university”, these words sound so scary for a student, especially one who is currently in that situation. I know that, well, because I am in my third and final year here at the University of Kent, where I study Journalism. It probably sounds like such a cliché but time does fly by, you wake up one day and you have to face a dissertation, finding a job in the real world, and supporting yourself now that you are a grown adult.
One month ago I found myself in this situation, and I started to feel this weight on my shoulders. Panic mode was on and I knew I had to start doing something – be that a new job, a new hobby, anything that would help me get over this moment and also help me enter the workforce.
In my desperate lookout for jobs, my friend told me I should try to become an ambassador. She is also an ambassador and talked very highly about the role. She told me many things that made me apply for this opportunity. Firstly, the fact that ambassadors are employed by the university and everyone is very understanding and friendly. Secondly, you get to meet new people: students who come to campus or participate in outreach activities, as well as your fellow ambassadors who become new friends. Thirdly, the fact that ambassadors go into schools and conduct activities with youngsters; this really made me excited as I have always liked working with young people.
I applied online, and found the questions I had to answer so interesting. They made me think outside the box and helped me consider how important outreach is, in a community or in any university. A few days later, I found out that I had to go for an induction/interview. I was a bit nervous when I got there but once we broke the ice, I was happily pleased with the whole process.
Even though it was a really long day and it was a real job interview, I learned so much by the end of it. We did some really cool activities with the other candidates, and I discovered so many new facts that will help me not only while working as an ambassador but also with the work that I do at uni. During the induction, I learned how important teamwork is, as well as how to listen and respect other people’s opinions, whilst at the same time explaining why your point of view should be taken into consideration. I believe this aspect will help me with my group work at university, as I learned how valuable it is to listen to others before you speak your mind or contradict anyone.
I believe that the induction and interview helped me get over any fears that I had about speaking up or debating topics with other students. As a student coming from another country, I always found that a bit intimidating, but I think that this session really helped. The reason behind this is that even though the induction was a learning process, it was also a job interview and I knew that I had to argument my decisions during the activities in order to be heard. The fact that I really wanted the job motivated me to overcome my fears.
When I got the email confirming that I was now an ambassador I was really happy, and from what I know so far, I would recommend this job to any student here at the University as I believe it can help you evolve and grow as a person.