My First Steps into Working Life

BA (Hons) Business and Management and Media Communications student Max Brown talks about his placement experience

My background

Hello I’m Max! I’m a second-year student here at Bath Spa University studying a combined degree of BA (Hons) Business and Management and Media Communications.

I originally applied for university with no real idea about where my interests lie. I knew that I would like to be involved with some sort of creative sphere. However, I never truly knew what this would involve, or what opportunities are available.

My course is broad, providing me with great insight into business operations, content creation and teaching me the importance of pitching projects correctly to their target audience. I have worked on various briefs and participated in presentations which have varied in topic greatly. From activism work to event promotion material, I have had the opportunity to explore the topics which interest me the most, leading to my curiosity towards marketing - more specifically, content marketing. I’ve enjoyed the modules which have required me to produce materials against industry briefs, and wanted to see what this would be like whilst working for a company.

The Work Placement Module

After taking a couple of gap years due to the pandemic, I personally didn’t want to undertake a professional placement year. However, this doesn’t stunt your opportunities.

As a second-year student you have the flexibility to choose some of your own modules. One of these options is the ‘Work Placement Open Module’, which is available to students from all courses. You are required to partake in 70-120 hours of work experience between October and May, boosting your skillset and future employability. The best thing about it is that you are well supported by the university.

I joined the module halfway through my second year after realising that industry experience would be invaluable towards my career development. From enquiring right through to completion of the module, both the course leader and careers team were helpful and supportive towards my placement journey.

My Placement: Forward Space

After applying and interviewing for many placements advertised on the BSU Careers page, I landed a role as a Marketing Intern at Forward Space - a coworking company with various locations across the Southwest.

At first, I thought that being part of a real workplace would be daunting. However, the team at Forward Space were nothing short of supportive and encouraging towards my journey. I worked under the head of brand and marketing who steadily introduced me to the fundamental purposes of the company and guided me through a range of tasks, boosting my confidence week upon week.

Before I knew it, I was gaining great competence in the work that goes into copywriting, proof reading and even was involved in running a competition for the company! The types of tasks that I was involved in whilst on placement were endless.

I really enjoyed the fact that I could use my pre-existing skills to my advantage, which quickly led to the development of new abilities. For example, I am naturally an analytical and literary-competent person which proved beneficial during tasks such as proofreading and editing monthly newsletters. This skill was built upon, where I was later supported in writing blog posts for the company website and became heavily involved in email campaigning and press releases.

Reflection

The main thing that I learnt whilst on placement is to not doubt yourself. Your employer will not expect you to know everything and are willing to help you!

Upon completion of my placement, it was surprising to look back at my CV and realise just how much could be updated. I am grateful for the skills that I’ve learnt and the industry-standard practices that I’ve been introduced to. My placement experience has provided real-life application to the topics explored during lectures, enhancing my understanding of how they are relevant in the workplace.

Undertaking a placement not only developed my professional identity, but boosted my personal development. I now feel more self-assured in my own abilities and know that I will approach my next role with greater confidence.

To any student considering a work placement, my advice would be to do it! The skills that I have learnt are invaluable and my confidence has flourished since my time at Forward Space.