She-Ra - Being a Part of a Zine

Recently, I became involved in an independent zine. This is the kind of thing I intend to do semi-regularly throughout the next few years just to make sure I get a bit of regular drawing practice, as this might be a useful skill to keep around for potential design elements of my future in marketing.

Below are the two pieces I produced. Generally, I'm quite happy with them. This also involved getting used to a new drawing software (Sketchbook Pro), which is something I like to do to add more programs into my 'technology experience list'...

Photoshop Training

Today, as part of my position as Student Communications Ambassador, I attended an optional Photoshop training session. After attending a similar session for Premiere Pro last semester that was really insightful, I decided to go. While I am fairly experienced on Photoshop, I found this really useful, as I learnt that there were quicker, simpler ways of doing some of the processes I use regularly.

Communication with Client

Communication between me and my client is one of the most important things to ensure they're happy with the work that I'll be producing for them. It's also really crucial that I learn how to talk to a variety of people in the most professional way possible, to set me up well for my future. Below are some screenshots of messages between myself and Kieran from the Esports Events Society. I decided to go with Facebook Messenger (through the SEES page) as the method of contact here, as I felt it was more appropriate than email or phone call (as the people who run the society do so quite leisurely also seem like the kind of people who would appreciate the casual aspect of Messenger).

Finding Clients to Approach

As someone who is quite paranoid about finding jobs once I graduate, I've recently been thinking about the importance of seeking work, instead of letting it come to me. I really wanted to practice how I sought out and approached potential employers.

Recently, I was watching a livestream by the Staffordshire University Esports Events Society and noticed the casters and presenters mention the lack of promotion for their tournaments. Upon further research, I also found the society had no logo or branding of any kind on any of their social media. I also heard rumours that there was no one in their committee who was able to design anything for them (due to how busy they were setting up the society).

Also, as they are only a non-profit club, they cannot afford to pay a professional graphic designer/marketer so are more likely to want to work with me.

From this, I determined that I could offer to produce a full brand style for them, as well as a full range of promotional materials.

What Type of People Do I Want to Work With?

Due to the fact I am not necessarily going to just be producing artwork this semester, I need to carefully consider what sort of work I want to be producing, and what external clients I want to work with/for.

To identify the kind of client that would appreciate working with me, I decided that a good idea would be to construct a list of all the things a client would want to gain from working with me. This would then give me a checklist that could use to find potential clients.

Things my potential clients may need:-
- Social media management.
- Content creation for social media.
- Promotional graphic design.
- General promotion and marketing work.
- Presenting (both on video and in person).
- Basic art commissions.

Deciding on a Post-Graduate Course

For the past year, I've spent a lot of time focusing on what I want to study during my postgrad education. The choice was really quite daunting, especially as I wasn't certain what I wanted my career path to be. I also struggled due to the fact that the MA I had originally intended on studying, was cancelled this summer.

Attending the postgrad open evening last semester did slightly confuse things further, as it lead me to seriously consider study a PGCE and go into teaching (particularly as they said I could do a Masters whilst working as a teacher once completing the qualification). And so, at the end of last semester, I was more confused than ever.

Over Christmas, after a lot of research and consideration, I found that the Esports MA would be a brilliant fit for what I want. It offers the chance to get seriously involved in an up-and-coming industry and is more academic and figures-based (something I really enjoy and have missed whilst studying the arts over the past few years). It also teaches a variety of transferable skills that will be really useful when job-hunting within the media and internet industry.

One-to-One with Laura Allen

Today I had a one-to-one meeting with my boss - Laura Allen (communications officer @ Staffordshire University) - to discuss my progress in my position of Student Communication Ambassador, and where I hoped to go with my career in the future.

I always find these meetings really useful, as they help me put my current job into context with my future career, and let Laura know what I want to get out of the next few months in my position. Laura is very good at adjusting the content I produce in ways that ensure I can use my content on my CV and in my portfolio.

Career Meeting with Stephen Bayles

On the 14th January, I had a meeting with one of the university's career's advisers, Stephen Bayles. I chose to book this appointment, as I have always struggled with figuring what career I want to pursue, to the point that I'm not even sure of the industry I want to work within. Obviously, time is running out for me to make this decision and - although I do have an extra year because of doing post-grad - I actually need to have a vague idea of career goals to know what postgraduate course to chose to make sure I don't waste a year!

One of the most useful things Stephen helped me with was identifying my goal industry. I had a lot of anxiety due to not knowing even a vague area of what type of job I want, but Stephen took things from the way I talked about what I wanted and my interests and skills and gave those things context. By pulling these things together, Stephen helped me come to the conclusion that I would be best suited (and would most enjoy) a career within the media and internet sectors.

Stephen also advised me to contact the course leader of the Esports Masters course at Staffs (my preferred post-grad option) to ensure it was going ahead and that I had a chance of getting on, as this was something I was really anxious about.

Introduction

This blog will detail my progress throughout this semester, from vague ideas to fully finished products. This semester I have a few goals that I've set myself to ensure I get the most out of the end of my time at university.

During this project I hope to...
- Create a sort of mini-portfolio of experiences and skills (explained more in my next few posts).
- Job-hunt for summer jobs or for on-campus jobs for next year.
- Try new things.
- Expand my connections.
- Identify my personal strengths and weaknesses.
- Decide on and apply to the postgraduate course that will benefit me the most.
- Set myself up in the best place for starting my postgraduate study.