Molly Bailey graduated this year with a First Class Degree in Marketing with a Year in Industry. Molly landed an exciting role at entertainment giant Disney during her placement year, where she gained skills that improved her academic achievements and helped her secure a graduate job role.
“When I applied for a course in Marketing at Kent, I was impressed by the rankings and the beautiful space of the Canterbury campus. It was amongst rolling countryside but still felt fun, everything was in one place. But, the main thing that drew me to the course was the opportunity to take a Year in Industry.
I did A Level business and had found it really interesting and so felt that a career in Marketing was a good idea, especially through my interest in consumer behaviour.
The support from the Employability Team was second to none. They assisted with placement opportunities, drafting cover letters, CVs and rehearsals for interviews. We also had workshops during our second year about job hunting that proved really valuable. I am not always a confident person, but armed with all the help KBS offered me, I felt prepared!
I applied for a placement at Disney in my second year. Having been a fan as a child (who isn’t?) it seemed like a great place to work and a big multinational corporation on my CV could only improve my future chances.
I sent a CV with cover letter and was asked to go to the assessment centre. I had to give a short presentation, do an individual interview and complete a group assessment. There were thousands of students applying for placements during that period.
I was over the moon to receive a call a few weeks later saying I had secured a Year in Industry and would be working in the production management team for Disney+! The role was office based and involved helping to coordinate projects from development to post-production. This required me to work with a huge variety of people, including marketing, legal and many more.
Within just a few months I felt I’d really developed skills that I just didn’t have before. I learnt how to manage myself across different projects and realised just how much I enjoy the organisational side of things. I also found that the opportunities to communicate with other teams and interns was great, they’ve got a very big network and it broadened my horizons.
This was during the pandemic, so I was working from home, but I didn’t feel isolated. We did so much through Zoom, we felt like a close-knit unit. I also got involved in a charity event with my fellow interns, raising money for Medicinema. I’d have loved the camaraderie of office life, of course, but I made the most of the situation.
Going back to university was a bit of a culture shock, but it was great to see my friends and the campus once more. I took so much from my placement and started to work on my university work in a 9 to 5 fashion, factoring in breaks and managing my time in a much better way.
I was ecstatic to graduate with a First in my degree this year and secure a graduate job on Samworth Brothers’ Commercial Graduate Scheme. Both of these things were aided by gaining such valuable experience in the middle of my degree. Learning how to apply knowledge in a mature way enabled me to really get to grips with business theory and successfully complete assignments; a highlight of this was being the winning team in creating a marketing communications plan for a real company, which as a group we got to pitch to the owner.
I would advise anyone applying to university, especially in today’s competitive environment to consider a placement year. It really gives you an edge when it comes to being employable.”
Find out more about our Year in Industry Programmes