Yes, as I wrote recently, the past couple of weeks have been spent not only cramming in as much work on the Group Design Project (the Masters equivalent of a group dissertation in Software Engineering) as physically possible, but also career planning for the months - and potentially years - ahead.
Thanks to the excellent opportunities on offer through the University’s Career Destinations, ECS Careers Hub and a few other online directories, I’m glad to say that the search has been relatively fruitful so far. Indeed, thanks to the (probably excessive, according to my Mum!) number of extra-curricular activities I’ve undertaken, I’ve managed to identify several areas I’d like to work in, so now it’s just a case of applying and seeing what happens.
One such avenue which I’ve been looking into is that of the creative industries, for example forms of media, journalism and (surprise, surprise!) the arts, with an emphasis on drama. Something which I’ve identified over the course of my University career is that, for me, there’s simply no greater feeling in the world than that of having an idea, noting it down, and seeing it grow into something even bigger – it’s probably the most satisfying thing in the world, even if it doesn’t always come off!
It’s that sense of creativity which has driven my ambition and personal rationale since I encountered so many theatrical and media-based opportunities upon arriving at Southampton three years ago, as well as the many I’ve since come across during my course. My highest-scoring module to date was the brilliant ‘Human-Computer Interaction’ module in my second year, during which we studied various ways we could design computer applications and hardware to achieve certain objectives, making sure they would not only be fun and natural to use, but also powerful enough to make them stand out as products.
Our coursework assignment, to design a survey creation tool, started as a sketch on a notepad for me. A few days later, the mind maps were drawn all over any piece of paper I could find on my desk – the backs of envelopes, rough paper, and even in a notebook from time to time! A few months on from that and a report full of far too many different designs and ‘wireframes’ (sketches of application interfaces) for ‘QuestionBat’ was written, one of the most challenging and enjoyable coursework assignments I’ve had in my time here which really inspired my imagination.
An excerpt from my design document for the fictional survey website ‘QuestionBat’, one of the most enjoyable assignments of my time here!
Plus, it not only design modules which give you an opportunity to show off creative flair in Software Engineering, but even the more scientific, programming-based ones too. In first year, I was tasked with building a Crossword Generator application which might be used to produce them on a daily basis for newspapers, for example, which was in itself a great challenge and required great analysis of their mechanics, so there was many a crossword to be solved along the way (a guilty procrastinating pleasure of mine)!
Likewise, my Third Year Project granted me the opportunity to apply computer-based video analysis techniques to footage of theatrical shows which our Performing Arts societies put on here. This was not only a great way of applying my degree and personal research to the extra-curricular passions I’ve developed in Southampton, but was also a great excuse to watch loads of theatrical shows and not feel guilty about it – I could always claim it was research, after all!
The Creative Industries also introduced me to some of the best people I’m lucky enough to know – there’s nothing quite like it!
That’s not to mention specific events that the Students’ Union lays on, for example the Creative Industries Zone training at the beginning of the year, and the Careers Season at the beginning of last month, where experts from all branches of the field were invited to talk to us.
There’s loads of more ways that I’ve been able to try to harness this creative streak, from deriving ideas for theatrical shows and setting them on their way, to writing for publications like the Soton Tab (the Union’s entertainment magazine, The Edge, is next on the bucket list!), and even taking part in co-hosting student radio shows on Surge Radio (such as the ‘Performing Arts Show’ every Monday!) and filming with the Union’s television station, SUSUtv.
A small taste of the celebrity lifestyle, perhaps – but it’s a taste I’ve begun to aspire to making a regular occurrence, if my career one day allows it!
Robin
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