Your Future, Start Now: Ellie Watts
Ellie Watts shares her experiences of participating in the Your Future, Start Now Internship Programme.
My story – Ellie Watts
- Course: MBiochem (with Industry Placement)
- Year of study when you completed this internship: 2nd year
- Employer: Fife County Agricultural Show
Why did you sign up for Your Future, Start Now?
The primary reason I enrolled onto the YSFN programme was to develop the employability skills I felt I was lacking due to the impacts of COVID-19 on both my education and employment. I was hoping to consolidate the existing skills I had as well as developing others to make me an ideal candidate in the employment market. It is all well and good having a degree, but I quickly realised that the my education could only take me so far, and that it was up to me to perfect the rest of my skillset so that I could be more successful.
How did you find the 5-week workshop programme?
The 5-week YFSN programme encompassed so much it is difficult to narrow down the vast array of things that I learnt. Despite this, the CV workshop did stand out as particularly useful and allowed me to critically evaluate my own CV writing skills. By the end of that week I had drafted a CV which I now use as a template for all my applications. This was facilitated by an earlier session in which we discussed what transferable skills we already had as applicants, highlighting skills I had never considered before. This allowed me to diversify my CV and tailor it to the application I was writing at the time.
I didn’t find it hard to balance the programme requirements and my academic work because I stayed organised and planned time into my week to complete the programme. It is important to recognise the commitment involved in this program but by utilising this time now to develop these important skills, you are saving yourself time in the future when you are actively pursuing employment.
Tell us a little about your internship
For the duration of my internship I found myself in Cupar and I was involved with the organisation of the Fife County Agricultural Show.
Officially my intern title was ‘Secretary’s assistant’ but I would argue that my role encompassed so much more. From logistics management to display curator, I never knew what each day would bring – and I absolutely loved it! Primarily I worked alongside the event’s secretary to organise the show, manage the event stalls and program, and generally focus on the details of the upcoming show. I also found myself often called for tech support as the show progressed into E-ticketing and online programs for the first time. I particularly enjoyed this aspect of the role because I was able to contribute my own expertise and engage with my team.
What skills did you learn and how did you put them into practice during the internship?
The dynamic and fast-paced nature of the work environment allowed me to obtain experience and develop skills that would normally be underrepresented in my skillset.
Each day leading up to the show brought new challenges which would have to be quickly resolved and this allowed me to become adept at rapidly adapt to changing variables and being more flexible. Time-management is obviously another skill I developed throughout my internship, given the time-limits imposed by the set date of the show. I also learned how to update a cattle passport which may seem useless now, but I am sure I will find a use for it in the future!
What’s next for you in your career journey?
I am currently looking ahead to my fourth-year industry placement and will be employing the skills developed though YFSN to advance my position as an applicant. I will also be returning to the Fife Show’s management team for next year and I am incredibly excited to get started again.
What would you say to someone considering signing up for Your Future, Start Now?
DO IT! University is so much more that just the education and you should go for every opportunity that presents itself. Here is an opportunity for you to become a better applicant and employee for whatever career journey you find yourself on in the future. You never realise how useful these opportunities and skills are until it is too late and the chance to obtain an internship at the end will provide you with invaluable experience that can set you up for the future.