Kuba graduated in 2014 with a BA (Hons) in Comparative Literature and is now a commissioning editor on The Independent\u2019s Voices desk. As well as commissioning articles on news, politics, pop culture and social justice, she writes a weekly opinion column.<\/p>\n
Describe your career path since leaving Kent?<\/strong><\/p>\n Getting into the journalism industry only really became a priority of mine during my third year, after I\u2019d spent a summer shadowing a freelance journalist who encouraged me to go for the one career option I\u2019d always convinced myself was out of reach for someone like me.<\/p>\n It took a while but after securing some free work experience at some local London papers and blogging as often as I could, I decided that applying to do a Master\u2019s degree in journalism was the right decision for me. I just about got a place on the course, which was incredibly daunting at first \u2013 I wasn\u2019t as comfortable with covering news and politics as I\u2019d been comparing and analysing novels \u2013 but the competition did help to push me. After the year-long course and hundreds of applications later, I was lucky enough to land a job at the now-defunct Financial Times<\/em> Money Management <\/em>magazine as an editorial assistant and I\u2019ve been working in journalism ever since.<\/p>\n What are you doing now?<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019m a commissioning editor at The Independent<\/em>, specifically on their opinion desk: Voices, which, to put it simply, just means I approach writers, experts and public figures to write about a specific subject and then edit their work and publish on The Independent\u2019s <\/em>website when it\u2019s ready. I\u2019ve been working here for nearly two years now but I also try to keep up with creative writing whenever I get the chance.<\/p>\n What do you enjoy about your work?<\/strong><\/p>\n I absolutely adore the editing and commissioning process. Coming up with and shaping people\u2019s ideas is half the fun but helping to flesh out their arguments is perhaps even more rewarding, even if you don\u2019t happen to agree with the opinions you\u2019re confronted with. You get to really understand what makes a piece of writing truly great. And that means giving new writers the opportunity to showcase their talents too. I have quickly learned that you don\u2019t have to be an industry darling to produce something incredible.<\/p>\n Working on campaigns and series about the issues the daily news agenda often fails to highlight has also been really fun, as is writing for other sections of the website when I can. You\u2019re pretty much free to flex your creative muscles, which is really rewarding.<\/p>\n Do you have a typical working day?<\/strong><\/p>\n I do! I don\u2019t do much reporting unless I\u2019m writing for another desk (which is rare) so depending on who\u2019s in on the day, it tends to be a mixture of going through pitches in my inbox (and occasionally on the phone); discussing column topics with our columnists; forward planning; going to the morning stand-up meeting or conference to discuss what we plan on publishing that day; writing columns; editing articles and working as a team to figure out what works for us and what doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n How do you think your degree helped you to find work?<\/strong><\/p>\n Doing Comparative Literature at Kent forced me to step up my writing and analytical skills immediately. I\u2019d always been good at English at school and college but being surrounded by people who were just as passionate and skilled really pushed me, which I appreciate.<\/p>\n I was exposed to literature I never would have picked up, ideas that shape the modern world we now live in and new ways of looking at things I thought I already knew a lot about.<\/p>\n I really did enjoy every optional and compulsory module I took but I\u2019d say Writing In The Media was particularly helpful in terms of starting to think about how to break into journalism. Heidi Colthup was so encouraging and learning to pitch and structure an article was invaluable.<\/p>\n Did you take part in any volunteering activities?<\/strong><\/p>\n If societies count, I was the Publishing Society\u2019s social secretary, which my coursemate Farah Chowdhury founded. I also wrote for Inquire<\/em> every once in a while (but not nearly as much as I should have!)<\/p>\n How has your time at Kent helped you in your career?<\/strong><\/p>\n I think my time at Kent really helped to transform my hobbies (creative writing, reading and discussing literature) into something more tangible. I can now speak with authority about certain types of literature \u2013 which comes in handy in this industry \u2013 as well as socio-political ideas that I previously only had surface knowledge about.<\/p>\n When Toni Morrison died, for example, I was asked to quickly write up an opinion piece about her legacy. Though I\u2019m a huge fan of her work, I\u2019ve never read her more frequently as I did at undergrad, having written my dissertation (in part) on The Bluest Eye<\/em>. And when I was asked to review Michelle Obama\u2019s Becoming<\/em>, with about a day to read the book and write up the article, it\u2019s safe to say learning to devour a number of titles per week at Kent was incredibly helpful. My general experience at Kent also helped to burst the comfort of my London bubble, which is really important when you\u2019re working with different types of people.<\/p>\n What are your plans for the future?<\/strong><\/p>\n I love what I do now, but one of the many beauties of writing is the fact that it lends itself to so many professions and hobbies alike. I hope to return to the world of literature one day in the near future, whether that\u2019s through journalism or writing novels. But I\u2019d also like to do another post-graduate degree in the future. I\u2019m in no rush though.<\/p>\n What careers advice did you receive at Kent?<\/strong><\/p>\n I think the best advice I got was to put yourself out there. I knew networking was important before, but I had no idea how important connecting with others and sharing ideas with other people would be for shaping my own career. Being encouraged to get involved with the uni newspaper and reach out to editors and papers for work experience was also really helpful.<\/p>\n What would you recommend about studying at Kent?<\/strong><\/p>\n Choose your modules wisely. This is your education, you should study the things you either already love or have always wanted to know more about. Oh, and try to enjoy what you\u2019re studying too. Yes, it\u2019s work but that doesn\u2019t mean it has to be boring.<\/p>\n Any favourite memories of Kent you\u2019d like to share?<\/strong><\/p>\n Oh so many. Meeting lifelong friends, living off campus for the first time\u2026the parties\u2026the naps. But aside from that, as traumatic as it felt then, memories of pulling all-nighters in the library make me smile these days. I still remember the tang of those energy drinks from essentials (the campus shop). And the thought of looking at the view on campus whenever I was on it, or enjoying a slice of cake in the Gulbenkian caf\u00e9 if I had time to kill before a seminar or lecture, makes me smile too.<\/p>\n I had no idea what I really wanted or how I was going to get there for a while, and as daunting as it felt at the time, having the privilege to figure it out in such a nurturing environment was incredible.<\/p>\n Any advice for prospective students?<\/strong><\/p>\n Embrace what you love as well as the things that make you nervous. Join societies, challenge ideas, savour your free time (you will never have this much again), talk to everyone and remember, most people on your course are as clueless as you are.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"