Career Lab is a series of opportunities designed to develop students' skills, experiences and confidence. The programme is open to all undergraduate students, with places prioritised for students from underrepresented groups. Opportunities are split by year group and include paid summer internships, digital skills training, insight visits and student consultancy.

We connected with BA Philosophy and English final year student, Valerie Kporye, who shares her experiences of taking part in the Student Consultancy Programme.

What subject do you study at Sussex?

English Literature and Philosophy.

Which Career Lab programme did you participate in, and what did the programme involve?

I participated in the Consultancy Project. It involved working with students across different disciplines to solve a problem posed by a boutique consultancy firm (Aviatrix). In our group we chose a leader and carried out tasks pertaining to marketing a non-tangible product for Aviatrix. It was heavily dependent on research, developing a greater understanding of the market and how we could drive demand for the product.  

Why did you decide to take part in the programme? 

I am coming to the end of my degree and considering careers that I would like to pursue. This was a great opportunity for me to see whether I was skilled and interested in consultancy. I also wanted to network and develop my CV.  

What did you enjoy most about the programme?  

I really liked working with my team/peers. They were open to discussing ideas and considerate of each other’s time. I also liked learning something new; namely, values-based segmentation.  

What skills/knowledge have you gained from participating in the programme? 

I have learnt that although I gravitate more to the role of a leader, being a team member can be very beneficial for personal development and communication. I have also gained a better understanding of what consultancy looks like on a smaller scale, at least specific to marketing.  

How do you think the programme has helped you going forward? 

It is an added experience to my CV which I can speak confidently about in job interviews and was also a great way of networking with my peers and meeting people with similar passions.  

What would you say to a student who is unsure about participating in the programme? 

Do it, you honestly have nothing to lose. You meet some intelligent people, you are stretched out of your comfort zone, and challenged by a new task. Plus, you can learn more about an industry without being fixed to a job all whilst getting a bursary.  

Interested?

Visit the Career Lab website for more information.