What to do with your Classics degree?

Transcription

1 What to do with your Classics degree? University of Warwick Classics Alumni Evening Physics Lecture Theatre 6pm- 8pm

2 Schedule: 6.00 Welcome 6.15 Alex Peck PhD student 6.30 Abigael Flack Museum Assistant 6.45 Claire Gibbings Teach First 7.00 Jonno Walker Teaching 7.15 Adrian Barnett-Thoung-Holland Barrister 7.30 Owen Evans Recruitment Networking and refreshments In the booklet there are also profiles from other alumni with Classics backgrounds. With thanks to our speakers, the Department of Classics for providing the refreshments, Fiona Kent and the students who helped organise the evening: Molly Learoyd-Hurst, Maciej Jaszczynski and Harriet Addy. Thank you for attending and we hope you find the speakers helpful and the information beneficial. Please help yourself to refreshments during the networking period.

3 Speaker Profiles: Adrian Barnett-Thoung-Holland Family and Criminal Law Classics: Graduated 2009 Adrian Barnett-Thoung-Holland graduated from the University of Warwick in 2009 with a 1st Class Degree in Classics. During his time at Warwick, he held the dubious honour of Classics Society President for two years. He subsequently completed the Graduate Entry (Senior Status) LLB at City University, London, obtaining a 1st Class and finishing first in his year before attending the prestigious Bachelor of Civil Laws at Brasenose College, University of Oxford and completed the Bar Professional Training Course at City University, London. He is currently working as Family Duty Advisor before commencing his pupillage in Adrian's main practice areas are in Family and Criminal law and he has represented in County Courts and Social Security Tribunals as a Member of the Free Representation Unit. He still (tries to) maintain a keen interest in Classics, including the works of Callimachus, Theocritus and Herodas.

4 Claire Gibbings Teach First Classics: Graduated 2012 Having graduated from Warwick in 2012 with a 2.1 degree in Ancient History and Classical Archaeology, I was selected as a Participant on the Teach First Leadership Development Programme. In the Summer of 2012 I attended Teach First's Summer Institute for six weeks and that September I was placed as a full-time English Teacher in a disadvantaged academy in North London. During my first year at the school, I taught five different year groups and completed my PGCE alongside my full teaching timetable. I am currently in my second year at the same school and pursuing a Masters in Educational Leadership, for which I attend weekend lectures. I am looking forward to becoming a Teach First Ambassador at the end of this school year. This year I have also taken on the role of Student Council Link Teacher; I am running a debating club in partnership with two other teachers and I am undertaking a project with one of my classes to enable our school to be eligible for the International Schools Award. I will be speaking about: Reasons for applying to Teach First Opportunities inside and outside of schools My experiences The impact you can have

5 Abigael Flack Museum Assistant Abi has worked as a museum assistant since April 2013, she works across two museum sites in Warwick Market Hall museum and St John s house. The main part of her job role is as Front of House, which means being the first point of contact for museum visitors as well as ensuring the security of the buildings and collections on a day-to-day basis. Much of her time is spent in direct contact with visitors, answering general enquiries about the museum and local area, processing shop purchases and taking bookings for museum events. Abi completed both her BA and MA in Classics at Warwick University and has wanted to be a museum curator since childhood. This demonstrable interest in history was very useful in attaining her current job, however of equal (if not more) importance were her previous years of retail experience, having worked as a part-time admin manager for H&M. Due to the fact that much of the role of museum assistant involves visitor interaction, health and safety, as well as salesmanship, having good experience of all these was key to her getting the job. As she is eager to progress her career in museums, Abi also takes on many extra tasks and projects: for example, assisting with the organisation of documents and paperwork; also, drawing on her retail experience to find ways that both museums can better utilise their shops. She also volunteers one day a week to assist the curators with the collections and exhibitions, which will help her gain the experience she needs to progress. Since this is such a challenging time, financially, for the cultural sector, Abi has found that her willingness to go above and beyond and take on extra challenges has stood her in good stead.

6 A final tip from Abi for anyone looking to start a career working in heritage is perseverance. Museums do not have much money and even entry level jobs are competitive, but determination can help keep looking and applying for jobs and consider that you may need to gain the necessary experience through voluntary work.

7 Jonno Walker Teaching Classics: Graduated 2012 I graduated from Warwick in 2012 with a 2:1. I then went on to complete my PGCE in Classics at the University of Cambridge. During my PGCE I worked in both a state comprehensive and an independent boarding school, and will be speaking about my experiences of working in these two contrasting environments. Having finished the PGCE in June 2013, I am now completing my NQT year working as the Head of Classics at South Wilts Grammar School in Salisbury one of the highest achieving state schools in the country. I will be speaking about: The different avenues you can take into Classics teaching The KCL and Cambridge PGCE Courses Life as a Newly Qualified Teacher How Classics teaching varies from teaching other subjects Alex Peck PhD in Classics Classics: Graduated 2012 (University of Glasgow) Alex is currently a second year PhD student in the Department of Classics and Ancient History at the University of Warwick. He is not himself an Alumnus of Warwick. He graduated in 2012 from the University of Glasgow with an MA (Hons) degree in Classics and Italian. His current research area is Roman conceptions of collective identity and communal organisation.

8 Is there an area of your studies you wished you could explore in more detail? Are independent research skills something you would like to develop? Is academia a career path you wish to take? Do you thrive on intellectual challenges? Do you want to hone professional skills that will make you more attractive to an employer? If your answer to any of these questions is yes, then maybe postgraduate study is for you Alex s presentation this evening is not meant to be like those of postgraduate open days, where departments are there to sell a masters course to you, but to give you some food for thought to help you decide if it is an avenue that is really for you. Alex will, therefore, offer you an insight into postgraduate study based on his experiences, and those of some of his colleagues. He shall talk to you about: The motivations for doing postgraduate study. The fears and doubts both before and during. The process of applying for postgraduate study. The routes of postgraduate study available. The financial considerations of deciding to do a postgraduate course. What you can do with a postgraduate degree. What postgraduate life is REALLY like. Why a postgraduate degree can be helpful in today's tough careers market.

9 Owen Evans Recruitment Classics: Graduated 2013 After being Social Sec of Warwick Classics Society in my final year of study, I graduated last summer with a 2:2 in Classics. Since then, I have begun working for Hays in the City of London and currently manage an international recruitment desk specialising in Geophysicists within the Oil & Gas industry. At present, I am nearing the end of my six month probation period and will soon become a fully qualified recruitment consultant. I will begin my presentation tonight by explaining exactly how the recruitment process works, what makes a good consultant and why it is a rewarding choice of career, before speaking about how I got my job at Hays, my experience to-date and why it is the best company to work for, should you wish to follow me into the world of recruitment. If you can t make it tonight but are considering recruitment as a career path, please feel free to send me an at: owen.evans@hays.com and I will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

10 Alumni Profiles: Kate Beats University of Warwick, Department of Classics Teaching Fellow Classics: Graduated 2005 I arrived at the Classics Department at the University of Warwick in 2002 as an Undergraduate in Classical Civilisation. With some support from the Department and by working in the University Bookshop I managed to complete an MA in Ancient Visual and Material Culture at Warwick, achieving a distinction. The leap from BA to MA was wide, but it led me towards my research specialism, and significantly improved my academic skills and confidence. This promoted me to start a PhD in 2007 on a part-time basis, completing in It's been a long journey (and it sure felt like it at times), but now I'm beginning by career by working as a Teaching Fellow at Warwick, it seems worthwhile. Warwick offers enthusiastic students the opportunity to explore areas of research that interest them on a wide variety of subjects. My advice to students considering Postgraduate study at Warwick is to go for it. You will develop research, writing and communication skills, in addition to subject specific knowledge. Just make sure you follow something that really interests you.

11 Amy Elizabeth Diamond Business Owner, Writer, Editor and Proof-reader My advice to anyone still studying and looking into where you want to go with your career when university ends is: FIND OUT FIRST! I cannot stress enough how priceless an internship or a gap-year- just to work- is. For one thing, it helps you appreciate those 8-9 contact hours a weekand the freedom to decide the rest of your timetable- a whole lot more. It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do, but now I do, it is fantastic! I have the freedom to set my own hours and a fair few industries to draw experience and memories from. After trying my hand at Archaeology and Language Teaching, I went into business for myself. It was the best thing I ever did! So many people are too scared to try, but believe me it is worth it. It is a lot easier to make something out of nothing than you would think, and there is nothing quite as rewarding as making money for yourself rather than an employer. The one caution I would give is that a lot of people have the same idea and the competition is fierce! I had to swot up on business, marketing, I.T, and all kinds of other things to give my business the edge. It is really hard work, but like the lottery you have to be in it to win it. Luckily the government (at the moment anyway) provide quite a lot of support for people starting out in self-employment. There are lots of free workshops on how to do your accounts, how to patent a product/logo, or even how to plan an advertising strategy. But, if you have a great idea and want to work with something you love; I would definitely recommend starting up your own business.

12 Dr Michael Scott University of Warwick, Department of Classics Teaching Fellow I had never intended to read Classics, but was convinced that it was a good idea following a trip to Greece when I was 17. During the Classics degree, I also participated in the British School at Rome summer school, which was fundamental in getting me to apply for a Masters. And when on the Masters, I was lucky enough to participate in the British School at Athens post-graduate 2.5 month course. Following that, I was hooked and decided to pursue a PhD. It was directly after the PhD that I decided that I wanted, as part of an academic career, to speak to as wider an audience as possible through books, lectures and TV. I started with book writing, taking a book proposal to different publishers until I found one who liked the idea. Getting into TV was facilitated by an that went round asking if anyone knew anything about ancient spying to do an interview for a History Channel documentary. Given that it s a relatively small number of people working in TV documentaries, who often move round companies depending on where the projects are, directors and producers will often come back to you to ask for your help on other projects. For me, that built from an expert interview to writing and presenting documentaries for the BBC and National Geographic. For me, a Classics degree was absolutely essential: it opened my eyes to what I wanted to think about, and gave me the tools I needed to pursue that goal.

13 Check MyAdvantage for latest graduate roles, work experience and other career opportunities Current vacancies include.. Save the Children-Voluntary Research Officer internship Centrica Summer Placements-HR, marketing The Challenge Network - Mentors & Community Facilitators Four Communications Group-Marketing Westminster Food and Nutrition Forum-Researcher Diageo European graduate programme IntoUniversity-Charity Fundraising Officer Involve, public participation charity-researcher Hotwire PR graduate programme TVF Media-Web Developer Teach First-Leadership Development Programme Carriers of Hope charity-voluntary internship The Institute of Art and Ideas- Film Production Volunteer/ Media production intern Council for Assisting Refugee Academics-Student Ambassador Chester Zoo-Educational Impact Research Internship Compton Verney House Trust-Gallery & Events Assistants

14 Upcoming events Advice and Practice for Employer Assessment Centres by Teach First Monday 20 th January, 12-2pm-, R1.15, Ramphal Successful Interviews Tuesday 21 st January, pm - Careers seminar room, University House Numerical testing drop-in for Arts and Humanities students Wednesday 22 nd January, 2-3pm - R3.41, Ramphal Careers in Charities, Campaigning & Volunteering Thursday 23rd January pm HO.51, Humanities, Main Campus Careers in Publishing & Journalism Tuesday 4 th February pm Physics Lecture Theatre, Science Concourse Careers in Radio, TV & Film Tuesday 18 th February pm- MS.02, Zeeman Building (Maths and Stats) Careers in Arts, Culture and Heritage Thursday 20 th February pm HO.51, Humanities, Main Campus Student Careers & Skills also offers a number of Effective Applications workshops covering applications, CVs and covering letters. To book a place on any of these workshops go to my Advantage on the Student Careers & Skills website The Careers Consultant for Classics is Fiona Kent. She runs career guidance appointments during the term in H2.37 or in University House. You can also have your applications, covering letters and CV checked by a Job search Adviser in University House. Book these appointments via the View Available Appointments section in my Advantage

15 Useful Websites Information and opinion on a range of careers related issues, from graduate recruitment to job sector information and further study Find and book skills workshops, career events and search for current vacancies. www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/scs/appointments onsultant_should_i_see.pdf Book an appointment to see the Classics Careers Consultant, Fiona Kent, or consult the table of consultants to see which one specialises in your career interest. Find work experience and information on the work experience bursary Good websites to look at for career and graduate job information.

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