Ivor L.
About me
| Ivor L. | |
| Chemistry | |
| Chemistry | |
| Undergraduate | |
| Alcuin | |
| 2008 | |
| United Kingdom |
My employment
| Education Liaison Officer | |
| University of West London | |
| United Kingdom | |
| Education | |
| 2008 |
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A day in the life of a Education Liaison Officer in the United Kingdom
My career history
I was lucky enough to start in my current job (as a Widening Participation Officer at the University of West London) before the end of my final term at York (June 2008), and I've been in this role ever since.
Courses taken since graduation
CPPD Teaching and Learning
My advice to students considering work
Your time spent in academic studies whilst at York is really important. However, you'll develop so many more skills and gain really valuable experiences if you also participate in extra-curricular activities such as societies, volunteering and part-time work. There is a wealth of opportunities for this at York, so there are no excuses for missing out! It's also really important to make use of your fantastic Careers Service as soon as possible - I'd go so far as saying from the day after Freshers' Week! I started my careers research early on, which allowed me to focus on a specific career and start applying for jobs early on in my final year. This led to me having a job waiting for me days after I finished my course - a job I'm still enjoying today.
What I do
Most universities have an Education Liaison team, although some universities might call it 'Schools Liaison' or 'Widening Participation'. The work of the Education Liaison team at one university may be different from that at another. Generally, an Education Liaison team will coordinate a range of activities and events to support two goals: student recruitment and widening participation (ensuring higher education is actively promoted and accessible to students from backgrounds under-represented). In my job as Education Liaison Officer at the University of West London, I - plan, organise and manage day visits to the University by Year 7-13 school groups, taster lecturers and summer schools for school children; travel to local schools and colleges to give information, advice and guidance to students and teachers via presentations and workshops about a range of topics (e.g. student finance, how to choose a university course, how to apply to university); represent the University at higher education exhibitions across the UK; train and manage a team of student ambassadors (current students) who support my work; keep up to date with the higher education sector (to allow me to give the most up-to-date information, advice and guidance); update the Education Liaison web pages (see uwl.ac.uk/scc)
I'm also Secretary of the London branch of HELOA, a professional organisation that in part allows networking and sharing professional practice between colleagues at different universities.
Skills I use and how I developed them
I needed to be a graduate with significant experience of working with young people (those under 18 years of age). During my time at York, I was employed by the University as a Student Ambassador. I supported the work of the Widening Participation Officers and the Schools Liaison team, who organised a range of activities for school and college students, including day visits to the University, summer schools and open days. I now work as a Widening Participation Officer, which was a natural progression from being a Student Ambassador.
Degree skills:
Although my degree (Chemistry) is not related to my current job, I learned many transferable skills which are very useful. These include time-management, managing projects, report-writing, presenting, researching and working as a team.
Extracurricular skills:
Throughout my time at York, I participated in many societies. I also held positions in a couple of societies (Chair, It's a Duck's Life; Secretary, York LINKS). Being involved in managing a society has obvious benefits in terms of transferable skills for employability. I also worked on a part-time, casual basis as a Student Ambassador, which led onto some vacation work in the Schools Liaison and Widening Participation offices, which allowed me to find my dream career, gain valuable experience and develop more specialist knowledge in this area.
What I like most
Transforming young people's often-negative perceptions of higher education, and helping them to access it, is incredibly rewarding. There's a 60-40 split between desk-based work in the office and more active work such as managing events, giving presentations and representing the University at external events. I'm fairly autonomous in a lot of the work that I do, and there's a really good balance between working alone and as part of a team. Consistency of working hours is important to me: they are generally 9am-5pm, although on average I need to work evening per month and one Saturday every couple of months.
What I like least
The higher education sector has changed a lot since I started my job, which has led to many changes within my institution and the job itself.
Next steps...
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