English, Media and History students work with industry employers at Humanities Careers Day event

As part of National Careers Week, the School of Cultural Studies and Humanities hosted its first annual Careers Day on Monday 7 March. The event was attended by local employers and industry professionals, with whom students had the invaluable opportunity to network and get advice specific to their career aspirations.

The day started off with a panel discussion of industry experts, which included a Q&A and the chance to chat and connect with the panellists afterwards. After a lunch break, students then had the chance to take part in 3 different interactive workshops with industry professionals. These workshops covered exciting areas such as finding and pitching an engaging news story, freelancing and managing your personal brand. 

As well as industry professionals, the Leeds Beckett Careers Team were also in attendance, offering bespoke careers advice. This included support such as CV workshops, Master’s stalls and information on teacher training. Students could even get a headshot taken by a professional photographer for their LinkedIn profile. 

Dr Daniel Kilvington was one of the organisers of the day, and upon reflection said “Careers and networking are so important, and engaging with the amazing Beckett Careers team we have is so important. It’s things like this event that should make a real difference for students.”

During their studies, humanities students develop key skills that employers look for. As part of the opening panel, Zach Greaves, Founder of Artus Digital Marketing, said “Humanities students have that valuable understanding of communication and empathy.” 

When it comes to applying these skills to getting a job, he added “I’d advise students to put their best foot forward and go over and above - what else can you do? Can you develop a portfolio online perhaps? Or do work experience? That extra something to help you step forward into the career of your dreams.”

Also on the panel was Fiona Gell, who runs the Northern Short Story Festival and is a partner at Leeds Lit Festival. Speaking about employability, Fiona said, “For me, when I’m looking to recruit volunteers or recruit to jobs I’ve got coming up, I’m looking for that openness, that sense of enquiry, and I think young people in humanities can really bring a lot to an employer.”

Third-year English and History student Emily Keane found the day useful, saying “I used to think that English and History might not have a wide range of career paths, but I realised that there are a lot of transferable skills we’ve learned, especially at Leeds Beckett, and I’d say that today has helped me to broaden my horizons.”

The day was designed to complement already-existing employability modules within the school; such as Career Cartographies, which facilitates student placements, and Applied Humanities, where students can work with professionals and apply their skills to real projects.

Third-year History student Mya Chandegra student said “There’s a lot more available for History or Humanities students in general than people think, it isn’t just teaching, and the skills you learn on literature-based courses are skills that you will probably use for the rest of your life.”

Dean of School Professor Andrew Cooper was also in attendance and spoke of the incredible array of opportunities available to graduates. “One of the students today said to me, ‘I thought I had to be a teacher’, and she can be a teacher if she wants but she also knows from today that she can go into digital marketing, freelancing, a whole array of different areas.

“Our students have great futures ahead of them. I’d ask them to be kind to themselves, there are so many jobs out there so they shouldn’t feel the first one they go into is a job for life, they have the ability to move around and try different career paths, and whatever they go for they should go for with confidence and with belief.”

Planning is already underway for the School’s other annual careers event, Get Involved: Get Hired, which launched in 2017. This event showcases opportunities available to students in the Leeds area.