Sharon Burns - Discovery Internship Case Study
2022 Education and Early Years graduate Sharon Burns tells us about the Discovery Internship she completed whilst studying at LJMU as a Business Development Officer for Compass Counselling.
Why did you want to do a Discovery Internship?
To get some work experience and support a local cause and community.
Where did you find out about the internship?
I found the role through Unitemps.
Describe the role and the main duties:
Business Development – To look at the existing funding model and provide a new structure and development opportunities across the business.
Main duties: to rebuild a tracker to obtain relevant details and contacts to obtain funding from old and new funders. I introduced the priority measures, looking at how organisations supported particular causes in regional and national geographical areas. Looking at the opportunity to obtain a pathway for government funding.
What did the application / selection process involve, and how did you prepare for each stage?
I research the company and looked at the history and recent news. I also tried to anticipate possible interview questions and prepared answers, for example:
- Why do you want this job?
- What can you bring to this role?
- What is your best achievement?
- What mistake have you made in a role, and how did you respond?
What help and support did you access from the Student Futures Team?
I arranged an appointment with a Careers and Employability Adviser to discuss potential job roles with my degree.
What relevant work experience / skills / volunteering / Student Union activities did you use during the selection process?
Previous experience I had in IAPT services for a social enterprise, this provided transferable skills relevant to this role.
What advice would you give to other students to improve their employability?
Research companies, reflect on previous roles and how you can apply skills and transfer them to new opportunities.
Would you do anything differently if you were a first-year student again?
Read my LJMU emails more to be more aware of the services available at LJMU, take notes and save everything.
What aspects of your degree were particularly useful in the selection process?
Projects and research was a great transferable skill for this role in particular. Exploring new ways of working and delivery of the structure was a smooth transition in terms of delivery to the business-backed up with robust data and recognising the changing landscape of funding,
What advice would you give to students starting a degree now?
Check out the LJMU Start-up Hub if starting a business or freelancing is of interest to you, watch out for Discovery Internships and keep regular contact with Student Futures. Look at voluntary work one day a week from September to build up a professional network of possible potential employers.
Support from the Student Futures team
If you want to talk about potential careers options with your degree, need help finding opportunities or want support with your CV, application forms or preparing for an interview, you can get advice and guidance by booking a 30-minute 1-2-1 careers meeting with a Careers and Employability Adviser from the LJMU Student Futures Team. You can also come along to a Careers drop-in or CV Café which take place weekly at the Careers Zones for quick careers queries.
If you are thinking about starting a business, freelancing, pursuing a side-hustle or have an idea that you want to explore further, email the Start-up Hub and a member of the team will be back in touch. For more information about the Bathgate Boost Award, visit the Start-up Hub website.
For help finding part-time, temporary or casual you can fit around your studies, email the Unitemps team or visit their website.