On November 14th I joined the Marketing Communications Team, in the Division of Corporate Affairs & Planning, as their Online Communications Officer. Even though I was happy in the Careers Service and really enjoying my ever-changing role, when I saw the job spec, it was obviously that I would have been mad not to go for it.
The job spec mentioned, amongst other things:
- Devise and develop a plan for social media communications.
- Initiate and participate in online conversations on behalf of the University with a view to developing online communities
through the University’s main social network outlets. - Analyse and evaluate both existing and potential social media activities and strategies.
- Work with student recruitment to support the generation of online content.
- Ongoing management of the Leicester Exchanges blog site.
I read the spec and felt like it was a really good match. All of the above, from developing plans, to generating content to managing a blog, I had done before, just in a different context.
After a really enjoyable interview (yes, honestly!) they offered me the role and I was delighted to accept.
Leaving the Careers Service was really hard. I had carved out a role for myself around what the service needed and was still really enjoying it (even despite all the uncertainly we’ve had as a service over the last 12 months, which must therefore be attributed to the great team). However, it had been obvious for a while that communications, especially online communications, social media, web development, publicity etc were where my skills and interest lay, as opposed to the Information and Advice side of my role. So in terms of doing what I love and career progression, it’s a fantastic opportunity and I am actually very proud of myself for getting it.
I’m only 3 weeks in but really enjoying it so far. I’ll let you know how I get on!
VicUoL 