33 with 3 degrees — charting my career climb
I hope this catches your eye, as this title has been bubbling up inside me.
Last month I went on a tour around Oxford and soaked up a millennia of their collegiate history. However, it left me questioning my own experience of education and academia. Coming from a comprehensive school background and being the first person in my family to go to university, I’ve come a long way since arriving at Sheffield Hallam in 2006. I naively (and faithfully) thought being a good student and getting an education would open up opportunities to me — don’t get me wrong, in some ways it has. Yet, in other ways, despite following the path of education and achieving 3 degrees, (*footnote to degrees) I still don’t think I have achieved my innate potential.
For the last 6 weeks I’ve taken part in Lauren Currie’s UpFront course, where I’ve learnt that writing as a way to share your unique experiences, use your voice and raise your visibility has been a central tenet.
Today, 19 July 2021, marks my fourth graduation (my first graduation that isn’t tied to an academic qualification) — it was a celebration of confidence.
As a graduate from Bond 4, and to mark this milestone, I want to set out my intention: to share my own unique story and ask for your help.
Charting my career climb
2021 marks 10 years since I completed my Masters in Globalisation as well as the first decade of my career. I don’t plan to spend the next 10 years doing any further study — it has been exhausting.
I plan to apply my love of education in two ways: firstly, by committing to share the experiences that have got me this far and secondly, to document my learnings to help others chart this tricky journey called a squiggly career. This is from the perspective of a 33 year old woman who intends to be childfree by choice CEO — just putting that out there!
Over the next 6 months there is plenty I want to share and talk about; for example, how we don’t live in a meritocracy, that even with help along the way there’s a lot to navigate and plenty of things that no one tells you! Here’s a flavour of the range of topics I plan to share — anything that you’d really like to hear about? Then read on for how you can help me:
- Pre-uni experience: part-time worker playing truant
- 1st class degree number 1: how the Erasmus scheme broadened my world view
- A masters in getting a job during a recession
- Pros and cons of professional qualifications
- Post MBA reflections: the merits of executive education
- Child free by choice — the power of conversation
- MBA dissertation findings:sustainable forms of business
- Being a Trustee at 33:why we need more young professionals on boards
- The future of executive education:life-long leadership learning
- 6 months in CX (Customer Experience)
- Secondment reflections
How can you support me?
I’m a big believer in lifting while you climb — in a nutshell, that’s helping others around you along the way. I’ve done it over the last 10 years myself, giving my time via mentoring schemes, running events and workshops to help other young professionals, creating bursary schemes, paying forward membership places and being a STEM ambassador. Making an impact matters to me, even more so as the choice of being child-free means investing in our youth.
So now I’m asking for your help. I want to put into practice everything I’ve learned from UpFront and say what I want on my terms.
I want to share my story and experience far and wide. I’m looking for blogging opportunities, relevant podcasts, feature writers and conference organisers that are interested in hearing about the above topics.
Why help me?
My hope is that my story and experience resonates with young people, to help shine a light on class privilege within education and to help accelerate a new generation of child free by choice leaders, where you don’t have to be explicit about saying you don’t plan to have children to help progress your career.
But mainly because I wish my 18-year-old self had access to help like this. Getting access and support of networks like UpFront, to see diverse role models and hear real life stories of just how hard you have to work to carve out a career as a woman and the practicalities of how to climb.
3 Degrees footnote*
2006–2010 BA International in Business + Spanish (1st), Sheffield Hallam
2010–2011 MA Globalisation & Development (merit), Sheffield University
2019–2021 — Masters in Business Administration, Manchester Met Uni
