Kieran's Social Media Internship with UEA -- First Week

How did you feel about the internship leading up to the start?

I felt a mixture of emotions. I was excited, optimistic, nervous – but mainly excited. I’m a Film graduate from UEA, and I was just so happy to be given an opportunity to break into a field that is somewhat relevant to my degree (I could tie the communicative aspect of my course to my new role – I am acting as a social media intern in the university’s Digital Marketing Team). I was, and still am, hoping that by spending time under the wider umbrella of “the media” it will help me to get where I eventually want to be: writing about and working with film.

What was your first day like?

My first day went really quickly! It was nice to meet everyone in the office (and others from A LOT of other departments). This is my first office-based, 9-5 job, so I was pretty content with just getting to work on time, learning about office etiquette and dynamics, and learning how the university operates! Of course, I was actually given proper duties. I was thrown in, relatively, at the deep end, and had to investigate the use and viewership of the university’s YouTube account (interesting to me, given my film background). I had to use YouTube analytics to create a report (made up of word documents and excel spreadsheets) of how successful or unsuccessful the university’s videos had been with users. I was also introduced to Meltwater (a system that manages all of the university’s correspondence through its main social media channels) and taught how to deal with the interaction coming in from around the globe.

What have you been up to each day in your first week?

Under the guidance of my boss (Jono Read, the university’s social media coordinator), I’ve been getting involved in, what I’d like to term as, PR tasks. I’ve been creating, monitoring and replying to content on the university’s media platforms. This is while using industry standard applications (like Meltwater), and understanding the intricate planning and the necessary reaction and evaluation that goes into a tweet, a Facebook message et al. I’ve had to create reports and statistics through research, and investigate whether the university is being portrayed in a negative or positive manner by people (students, parents, employees alike) on various outlets.

Using the university’s Facebook and Twitter is not as simple as how you’d treat a personal account, there are rules to go by and responses to understand; how and why have people responded to that particular piece of media in that way? How many people have actually responded? And so on and so forth. In the end everything you do, and everything you see others do, contributes to the overall image of the university – such is the importance of the virtual world nowadays.

What have you enjoyed the most about your first week?

Well, there’s so much you’re unaware of as a nonchalant student. Working here, you quickly begin to appreciate all the hard work of the thousands of staff that goes into making the “student experience”, and the university a great place to study and socialise. It really is one big ecosystem. That’s been a pleasant revelation.

Mostly, though, I’ve really enjoyed reading student opinions about the university. Seeing as I’m no longer a student (that wound is still fresh), there’s a slight sense of catharsis and melancholy in seeing a lot of people discovering things or going through the same experiences that I did. Sat at a desk and staring at a screen, you’re strangely exposed to it all. It’s great to see so many people caring and being positive about a place you have a great connection to. Understanding where the communication is coming from has also proved a source of enjoyment (Meltwater can show geographically where people have messaged from). One person tweeted the university from North Korea, which I found absolutely fascinating and slightly demystifying of that entire country. I hope that person comes to UEA one day!

How do you think the next few weeks will be?

I’m looking forward to them. It’s an exciting time to be working at UEA in any capacity, with the influx of new students, the term starting up again, and the university’s 50th anniversary all on the horizon (it means plenty of activity for the social media team). Personally, I’m really eager to start using photography and filmmaking based social media (we’re thinking of starting up a Vine account). I also get to provide my own recommendations for a new strategy on how the university can improve its social media output, so I’ll be analysing all the latest and best media tools, from Google+ to LinkedIn. By the end of my 12 weeks I think I will have a far greater knowledge of the online market than when I came into the internship, and that can only be useful when applying for other jobs in the future.

Fernanda's Research and Marketing Internship with Norfolk Network

On the road: the Norfolk Network

My journey to and with the Norfolk Network (NN) was filled with learning and excitement. At the first event, I felt catapulted into a world I knew little about: the world of business and business relationships. Nevertheless, I had a warm welcome to the Network and as soon as I had realized the immensity of the opportunity I was being offered, I felt really privileged to work within such a stimulating and entrepreneurial environment and to have access to ambitious and talented business people from all sectors.

 

The internship involved taking forward two projects. The first was to research the finer profile of the membership of the NN while the second was to evaluate the UEA sponsorship of the NN. As a result, I gained so much insight and knowledge of the SME culture and witnessed how education and enterprises play a vital role in generating wealth and prosperity in the local economy. One of the most important “eureka moments”, was the realization that a specific degree does not limit one’s career path. It was as though my visual field had suddenly amplified in relation to employment and careers. I know now that there are a myriad of different professions that are available, I only need to look closely.

During the fast course of 12 weeks, I was able to apply some of the skills learnt whilst studying for my degree as well as sharpening and developing new employability skills. Little by little, I started to see that other experiences (which I had mistakenly taken for granted) were also helping me along the way – organizing a youth event and performing at the local church, living amidst different cultures, traditions and industries – all of these had taught me something invaluable.

 

The NN taught me how relationships, quality and brand are important but, most importantly, how all encapsulate one vital element: hard work. To quote Edison, "Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration”, in other words, without a lot of hard work, a great business idea can almost mean nothing at all.  I see this reflected in the NN, in its members and sponsors; all the partnerships that were established and continue to thrive through a great vision and lots of concentrated effort.

 

Finally, I would like to thank the UEA careers and graduate internship team who gave me support applying and during the internship; many thanks the NN team for giving me this opportunity and leading me through my personal development; and, thanks to the member base of the NN for inspiring me. Finally, my journey in the role of a ‘graduate research and marketing intern’ has reached its end, but to quote one great band, “all ends with beginnings”!

Lucy's Marketing Internship with UEA Writers' Service -- One Month In

After one month on the Graduate Internship programme, I have settled into the swing of things and begun to make real progress with the establishment of the University Writers Service.

After the initial introductions in Week One, I quickly got stuck in and started to develop a plan of action for the following few weeks. Before our launch, our team alongside Fountain Partnership had to develop an effective marketing strategy which showed both our professional and corporate side, whilst attracting students to apply for the training programme.

During weeks two and three, I was able to attend meetings with both the UEA marketing team and local designers, Creative Sponge, which allowed the team to oversee the development of the logo and branding from the beginning drafts to the final end product. In these meetings, we had to consider where the publicity would be most effective and my first-hand knowledge, as a former UEA student, meant that I could help identify the best places to distribute our posters, find suitable lectures for talks and bring attention to the scheme via social media websites.

Throughout the internship, I have dealt with several different external companies and departments within the university and it has been a great experience to talk to such a wide variety of people on a daily basis. I’ve also had the opportunity to craft presentation and seminar talks and experience the ins and outs of event management, from room bookings to tracking down elusive cables!

So far the internship has really helped to develop my confidence in the workplace and will hopefully continue to improve my communication and marketing skills. I’m really looking forward to discovering what the next few weeks will bring.  

Amy's STAR experiences during her Campaign Communications and Marketing Internship with Norwich for Jobs

Competencies. One of the only near certainties at job interviews but one of my biggest fears. For some reason I find it difficult to clearly explain my ability to manage my own work load,   work in a team or overcome a challenge to interviewers. I’ve been told time and time again that the STAR technique is fool-proof but I still find it can be tricky to tell a coherent story to demonstrate every possible competency that an interviewer desires.  

I felt as though I had quite a wide range of experiences to draw on before I started my UEA graduate internship; from teaching English in Chile, studying for my degree, working as a Student Ambassador, being Treasurer of the International Students Society and various holiday jobs. Yet I would still find myself hard-pressed to tell the best stories to clearly exhibit my competencies during an interview. In a couple of interviews I felt as though I was asked for evidence to prove the same competency more than once which left me stumbling to give varied, rather than my best answers. When I started my internship I was therefore keen to ensure that I developed the competencies I felt I had little solid experience of as well as broadening my existing experience so that by the next time I am quizzed on my competencies I will have a wealth of examples to draw upon.

I’m pleased to say that my Campaign Communications and Marketing Internship has certainly helped me develop some STAR examples. Apparently something I was lacking experience of before my internship was managing internal and external stakeholder relationships. I found this frustrating because all my work experience had been very people-facing but it’s difficult to gain experience of managing relationships if no-one will give you the chance. I’m therefore particularly pleased that during my internship I’ve gained tangible experience of working with internal and external stakeholders, which pretty much sums up my day-to-day role with Norwich For Jobs.

STAR example #1: Managing relationships with internal stakeholders

*Situation:
I am working with Chloe Smith MP, Jobcentre Plus and local business leaders to halve youth unemployment in Norwich by January 2015 from just over 2000 18-24 year olds in January 2013.

*Task:
Ensure that the Norwich For Jobs steering group members are informed of the campaign’s progress.

*Action:
I record new employer details and commitments on the marketing and Management Information spread sheets.
I record the latest nomis labour market statistics representing the number of unemployed 18-24 year olds in Norwich on a monthly basis on the progress spread sheet.
I evaluate changes in the number of unemployed 18-24 year olds in Norwich in the context of regional, national and seasonal figures, and in relation to the number of young people going in to work opportunities committed through Norwich For Jobs.
I send a copy of the weekly progress statistics to key members of the steering group.
I report on the monthly progress of the campaign at steering group meetings.

*Result: 
I monitor and review the progress of the campaign on a weekly and monthly basis.
I inform the members of the steering group about how the campaign is proceeding so that we can evaluate our action.

STAR example #2: Managing relationships with external stakeholders

*Situation:
I am working on a campaign to halve youth unemployment in Norwich by January 2015 from just over 2000 18-24 year olds in January 2013.

*Task:
Encourage and help local employers to commit employment and training opportunities for young people.

*Action:
I respond to employers who express an interest in supporting the campaign through our website.
I aim to get in contact within 48 hours of receiving an email with the contact details of an interested employer.
Ideally I make an initial phone call to discuss what opportunities might be best for the company.
I sell the financial and social benefits of employing a young person to the employer.
I email Norwich For Jobs documentation.
If the employer hasn’t sent the pledge document within a week of the discussion, I contact them again.
Once the employer has committed an opportunity I ask for their logo to put on our website and arrange publicity for their efforts to support young people into work.
I maintain contact with the employer and where necessary arrange support to help them recruit a young person.  
  
*Result: 
10 new employers have committed 153 jobs and apprenticeships since I started working on the campaign.
7 new employers have pledged to support young people in finding work.