Employability Bursary: Ava Echard
Ava Echard is currently studying International Relations. She was awarded the Employability Bursary in 2023.
Ava used the fund to help her workshadow at Spazju Kreattiv in Valletta, Malta.
I was fortunate enough to spend three days in Valetta, Malta, working with the publicity and communications department in Spazju Kreattiv where I shadowed Audrey Rose Mizzi, a St Andrews alumna.
Spazju Kreattiv is an arts programme housed in a 16th century fort at Valletta’s Castille Place, which also houses the Maltese Parliament. Spazju Kreattiv is government-funded, and is an important part of the Maltese government’s desire to showcase and protect Malta’s cultural heritage. It is also unique in that it showcases a variety of creative mediums- not only is it a gallery space, but also an arthouse cinema and a theatre as well as responsible for art festivals in Valletta, such as their children’s festival ŻiguŻag.
Because of the range of responsibilities of the creative team, my experience was varied- for example, I wandered around the galleries, sat in on coffee meetings with the creative team, attended an art historical film screening, and helped with the publicity for dress rehearsal of a play entirely in Maltese. Not only did I find these experiences to be very aligned with my professional interests, I also learned so much about Maltese culture and the challenge of promoting the arts to different audiences in Malta. My favorite aspects were hearing about the governmental investment in the arts, such as the embassies in Malta collaberating with Spazju Kreattiv on a series of international film screenings, as well as the more innovative ways that the team worked to publicize creative works. The two women I shadowed, Audrey Rose Mizzi and Kylie Vella, were both incredibly kind and taught me so much about the complexity and joys of promoting the arts in Malta through their personal experiences and accomplishments.
I would definitely recommend the experience and would share the advice that you have nothing to lose in applying and so much to gain. The Employability Bursary empowered me to travel alone somewhere that I knew very little about, and I gained so much by not only by learning about a new way to explore my passion for the arts in my career but also through learning about the fascinating cultural composition of Malta. Not only did I gain confidence in my ability to travel to another country alone, but I gained so much in the connections I made while at Spazju Kreattiv. The bursary took me to a completely different country and gave me the ability to experience and contribute to a unique, multi-disciplinary artistic environment which is an experience I will continually be grateful for going forwards.
I do feel like the bursary helped to expose me to an environment in which I could combine multiple interests and experience a variety of tasks on a day-to-day basis. As someone who is interested in writing, the arts, and political science, I felt that this experience was fascinating in that I could combine aspects of each of my interests, which I feel is rare. I also felt like the people I was surrounded by at Spazju Kreattiv are genuinely invested and passionate about their work, which was heartening to see. I feel that the chance to jump out of my comfort zone by traveling by myself and making professional connections also positively impacted my employability going forwards through developing greater confidence which will encourage me to leap at similar opportunities in the future.
We are delighted to hear that Ava enjoyed this work shadowing opportunity in Malta, and that the Employability Bursary helped her to make the most out of it. To find out more, please visit our Employability Bursary page.