Featured image – Carmen (front) joined by her fellow Employ.ed on Campus interns at their internship.
We continue to highlight our students’ Employ.ed on Campus internship experiences with our fifth blog in our series from Carmen, a fourth year International Relations with Quantitative Methods student. Carmen spent the summer working as an Employ.ed intern as part of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals Project team at the School of Engineering.
Hi Carmen, how did you find out about Employ.ed on Campus and what were you hoping to gain from your internship?
I found this position when browsing through the internship opportunities on MyCareerHub, and upon reading the job description, I realised it covered many of the skills that I have been developing through my degree in an area in which I have a great interest – sustainability and development. I thought that this project would be a great way to apply some of those theories and technical skills in a real-world setting.
What did your internship role involve?
My internship was project based, within a team of three other interns. This meant that our roles and responsibilities fell under the goals of delivering a final report. We were tasked with assessing and evaluating the current School of Engineering curricula, at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels, in how well they were tailored to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. We also had the broader aim of determining how and to what extent engineering students are engaging with sustainability within their courses and degree programmes. Additionally, our results would contribute to signposting sustainability in degree programmes, with the aims and hopes of attracting new students and improving the recruitment prospectus.
The team met in person at King’s Buildings to discuss approaches, methodologies, findings, and results. Even though it was somewhat narrowly focused to one project, the workload was incredibly versatile. After an initial period of research in the first weeks, we started surveying the faculty and student body, through a mix of interviews and general mass surveys. Finally, during the last leg of the internship, we focused on analysing results and preparing the final report.
What have you learned from this experience?
I have learned a lot from this internship, especially how to apply the skills I have gained in university in a workplace setting. Although the workload and expectations in carrying out this project were somewhat similar to what is expected of handing in assignments and projects for my courses, the environment and development of the work becomes more complicated in a workspace and team setting. For example, getting the opportunity to review an engineering curriculum is unlike anything I would have seen in my degree. I am very glad I have learned how to make these skills transferable in these kinds of settings and plan to keep developing them to apply them in future positions.
Carmen, why do you think other undergraduate students should consider an Employ.ed on Campus internship?
The Employ.ed on Campus programme is a great way to gain some work experience while contributing to the community at the University of Edinburgh. It is very interesting to see the working of the University outwith the student perspective, and I think it makes you appreciate your experience on campus in a way that you sometimes don’t have access to as a student, or simply take for granted.
To anyone wanting to take part, I would advise them to make the most out of the opportunities that come with being employed by the University. There are some great programmes and workshops that will help you develop your skills during your internship, like the Edinburgh Award and various training which will be offered through your department.
Many thanks Carmen.
Catch up with other inspiring Employ.ed on Campus blog posts we’ve already published by using the Employ.ed Internships tag.
