I’m Leyla Mohammed, and I’m in my final year of studying BA English at the University of Exeter. This summer I completed a four-week SBP in Marketing and Talent Administration. My biggest career aspirations involve writing and journalism, as well as social media work and marketing.
I recently undertook a four-week SBP (Student Business Partnership) as a Marketing and Talent Intern with Creative Access, which I found through My Career Zone. Creative Access is a not-for-profit recruitment organisation who aim to provide more underrepresented individuals with opportunities within the creative industries. Though this internship was supposed to be based in offices in London, due to the nature of current circumstances it was entirely remote. It was an incredibly fast turnaround and was quite an unexpected start, which meant that I had to quickly adjust and adapt.
WHY I APPLIED
I chose to explore working in marketing because while I have many different passions, interests and personal endeavours, I’m still in the process of figuring out which direction I’d like to progress and develop my career in. My primary focus has always been writing, and after completing an internship last year as an Editorial Assistant with The Daily Mirror (through My Career Zone too) I found it to be very valuable experience. However, as well as writing and journalism, I am interested in many other industries – one of which being that of marketing. Therefore, I chose to apply for this internship, hoping to gain a first-hand insight into the ins and outs of the marketing sector.
“The team and I recognised my strengths and weaknesses, allowing me to excel in things I had a natural flare for, and work on things I didn’t.”
HOW THE ROLE STARTED
As I was working from home, to start off with the work involved me familiarising myself with the various system software, running meetings via Zoom or MS Teams, and just the general gist of the WFH lifestyle. Getting used to working entirely online was somewhat challenging. I found it difficult adjusting to a lifestyle that involved sitting at home all day and staring at screens for extended periods of time. However, I gradually learned ways to make it more manageable for myself – (which I ended up writing about for the Creative Access blog, which you can read here!)
HOW THE ROLE DEVELOPED
My days followed a loose structure – I would start at 10am, finish at 6pm, and have a daily Teams meeting at midday to check in with everyone. This was ideal as it meant that everyone was aware of what was going on, and what work to complete going forward with the day. The Creative Access team was small (when I joined, there were only six others) so it was easy to communicate through our group chat and on our video calls.
Over the course of the four weeks, I naturally became more confident in my role. Very quickly, I found that I became comfortable with the tasks I was set and consequently took on more and more each day. The team and I recognised my strengths and weaknesses, allowing me to excel in things I had a natural flare for, and work on things I didn’t. Generally, my day-to-day tasks included: managing and updating the system database; organising, scheduling and hosting meetings via Zoom; writing articles for the Creative Access blog; and creating content for all Creative Access social media platforms.
By the end of the four weeks, I was lucky enough to be offered permanent employment with Creative Access, meaning that I will be able to continue to work on a part-time, freelance basis throughout the course of the next academic year.
“Moving forward, this SBP has taught me not only about the marketing and social media industries, but also about my working style.”
GREATEST SUCCESS
As an aspiring writer, I would say my greatest success of this internship was being able to write articles for the Creative Access blog. Not only did I find this most enjoyable, but I was able to share my passion for writing with this new market of people, and have my work published on their platforms.
One of the best things about working within a small team was that they really listened and considered my personal endeavours and interests, tailoring my internship in a way that was most beneficial and rewarding for me.
NEXT STEP IN MY CAREER
Moving forward, this SBP has taught me not only about the marketing and social media industries, but also about my working style, strengths and weaknesses. I’ve discovered that I really enjoy working in all aspects of marketing, and I’d love to progress my career in this industry alongside my other interests. Furthermore, as with any work experience or internship, this SBP allowed me to network with professionals and make new connections, many of whom I’m sure I’ll be in touch with throughout the coming years.
I would definitely recommend taking on an internship of some sort. As a student intern you will gain unique and truly valuable experience that is difficult to gain elsewhere.