Samantha Hearn - Intern with Artswork Ltd   Southampton Solent University, graduate

Tell us how you found out about the internship scheme

I signed up to the Graduate Jobs South website and received emails about jobs.

Applying for the internship – tell us how you did this

Received the email with the advert for Artswork Academy Assistant, and instantly thought it was exactly what I was looking for at that time in terms of the experience it would give me and the possible opportunities it will open up. Attached my CV and wrote a cover letter. Received a response email a few weeks later and an invite to an interview. Went to the interview at Artswork head office. Received a telephone call the next day saying I was successful!

What made this role attractive to apply to?

As said previously, it was exactly what I was looking for at the time. An aspiration to eventually teach media at post-16 level and an interest in the arts, working for a youth arts organisation seemed ideal. To be honest I was not entirely sure what exactly the role would involve until the interview and then I discovered how ideal the job really was. Also, the chance of a paid graduate internship is not an opportunity that comes along every day!

Did you apply for more than one internship?

Yes I applied for another internship at the same organisation, that I realised I was not as suited for as the one I am now involved in. Also another, I was invited for an interview, about a month into my current placement, that I did not attend as I was already employed.

Tell us about the interview process with the employer

I detailed this a little bit above in ‘applying for the internship’. Also, in the interview itself, I was interviewed in the same way any other employee would have been. Two members of staff undertook this, the Chief Executive and another member of the organisation. They asked me standard interview questions and enquired about work experience I had and details on my CV. They were particularly interested in a peer mentoring programme I had been involved in and my involvement with my University, as my job now involves coordinating a mentoring project and events. Had a call back the next day.7.

Any other thoughts or comments?

I think the GJS scheme is amazing, and is helping to overcome problems when it comes to getting paid 'graduate jobs' and 'work experience' which is often very difficult, particularly in hard to reach sectors of employment, e.g. Media and Arts (believe me I know!) Sometimes it is just not possible for graduates to undertake full time unpaid work placements and often they go into paid jobs they do not really want to do, just to pay the rent, etc. missing out on opportunities. GJS is opening up opportunities for me, and I hope many others are benefiting as much as I am through this scheme.

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