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Intern of the Year

Posted on 30 November 2018

Poppy Aston, a final year English and History student, has been awarded Intern of the Year for her work over the summer with Global market leader TSYS.

Following her 10-Week Internship, Poppy has been recognised for her outstanding achievements and impact during her internship as a ‘Copywriter and Video Content Creator’ at TSYS. During the project, Poppy created a suite of sales videos for TSYS products and services, that are now being used to target both new and existing clients across Europe.

Poppy was awarded the accolade at a special celebratory event at Heslington Hall which was attended by local businesses, University staff and students. The judging panel for the competition consisted of Tom Banham (Director of Careers and Employability, University of York), Susie Cawood (York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce) and Jack Wilson (Santander Universities).

TSYS is a recognised market leader in the payments industry providing solutions for issuers, merchants and consumers across the globe. By partnering with the Student Internship Bureau; they were able to offer this unique opportunity to our students. The Student Internship Bureau: SIB works with local businesses to set up project-based, paid work experience for University of York students.

How the Internship has impacted Poppy.

“This summer, I spent two months working at TSYS. If you haven't heard of the company, you probably use their services every day. As a recognised market leader in the payment industry providing solutions for card issuers, merchants and consumers across the globe - they are the action behind your card transactions.

“As ‘Copywriter and Video Content Creator’, it was my job to create a set of 90-second sales videos on TSYS services and products, with the aim of targeting both current and potentially new clients within the European market. This required me to generate unique ideas quickly, develop concepts, storyboards, and write creative content for a breadth of different video topics, from the new fraud security software to robotic process automation.”

“Before embarking on this journey, I felt like I was about to walk through the wilderness without any of the necessary survival skills, as an English and History student, I had never done anything like this before. Not knowing where to start, I surprised myself with how quickly I was able to adapt to very jargon-heavy and industry-specific content. There isn’t an in-house team in the UK producing this type of marketing resource. It was me who was entrusted to manage an external videographer as well as reach out to major clients and ensure that the multiple-projects were kept to deadline and budget. This was exciting as I was given both creative freedom, authority and a voice in a global company.”

“The skills I’ve developed are endless and the experience is invaluable but the key thing I’ve gained is confidence. I have been surprised at how eager I was to continually push myself and jump outside my comfort zone, be it joining the TSYS weekly volleyball team, managing the external videographers, presenting to senior colleagues or successfully reaching out to new people to work with. By having a team that believed in my abilities, I was able to learn how to believe in myself.”

“After initially struggling to find work experience, this internship opened doors to me that would have been otherwise closed. The whole experience was extremely valuable in giving me an insight into a sector I would not have thought to try. If it had not been for the constant and unwavering support from the Careers and Placements team and my colleagues at TSYS, I would not have been able to reach these milestones. I now feel that I have a competitive edge, know myself better and have much greater career aspirations."

The Student Internship Bureau has opportunities for internships all year round that are advertised as exclusive opportunities on Careers Gateway. Contact Careers and Placements if you have any queries.