What is your current role at LUU and what are you studying?
I’m LUU’s Copywriter, working across the communications and marketing teams, and I’m in the second year of a part-time Masters in Political Communication. I was actually a full-time staff member before I started my course, so my story’s a little bit different to my colleagues who have been interviewed.
How do you find the flexibility in working for LUU?
LUU have been great. They let me drop down to four days a week to ensure I had enough time to work on essays and reading, and when I had more contact hours they were really flexible with allowing me to attend my classes during working hours and then make up the time around the rest of the day. I definitely wouldn’t have been able to effectively participate in my course without their flexibility, so I’m really grateful to the Union for that. I don’t think I’d have been given the same level of flexibility working elsewhere, and I certainly wouldn’t be able to just walk across campus to get to class!
How has your role at LUU contributed to your career ambitions?
Where I’m a little bit older at 25, I already had a few years of experience under my belt before joining LUU. I’d worked in corporate communications and public affairs, as well as in the marketing team at a uni in London before, so a copywriting job at a students’ union was a brilliant combination of my previous experience. The role has shown me that copywriting is absolutely the area of marketing and comms for me, and where my strengths predominantly lie (as opposed to calling up journalists and so on). Whenever I eventually move on from LUU, I know it’ll be copywriting jobs that I go for, and that’s all down to working here.
What drew you in to apply for a role at LUU?
As I mentioned before, the role really felt like the perfect combination of my previous career experience, so there was no way I wasn’t going to apply! I’d been a bit involved with the SU at the uni where I did my undergraduate through sitting on the committees of the politics society and student newspaper, so I was aware of the values of students’ unions in general. I thought it would be a fun and supportive place to work, and I was definitely right on that front. I was also drawn to the student advocacy side of what LUU does. Having lobbied for big companies in the past, I was excited at the prospect of supporting the same activity but for a cause I could really get behind.
What’s it like balancing a Masters alongside your job role at LUU?
It’s definitely a challenge sometimes – particularly when I have assignments due or a particularly heavy load of reading – but with my part-time work hours it’s mostly manageable and rewarding. You definitely need to be organised to keep on top of everything, and a flexible and understanding employer like LUU is really helpful too, but I know people who’ve managed to pull off a part-time MA while still working five days a week! Just be prepared to use a few days of annual leave to work on an essay every now and again…
What is your favourite part of your role?
I love the variety of it. In one day I can be writing on everything from coffee deals and club nights to the invasion of Ukraine, so it doesn’t get much more varied than that. It’s impossible to get bored, and I’ve been able to develop my skills on a really broad basis, which has set me up well for whatever my next move will be. I also love it when I’m walking through Hyde Park or the city centre and see my words on a billboard or poster. It’s a great feeling that doesn’t get old!
