Declan spends amazing Year in Industry

A student from the School Of Business has shared the story of his “amazing†year in industry working for a global entertainment brand.

Deciding to pursue a year of work experience, BA Management student Declan Murphy was able to pause academic study in order to gain insight into his preferred career avenue.

Securing a highly competitive placement, Declan said: “Roles can vary massively, from analytics to finance or journalism- but I was most interested in finding something that was management specific and related to my studies.â€

Located in the EMEA licencing and UK retail departments, Declan’s remit was multi-faceted, describing his role as a New Business and Promotional intern.

In his licencing role, Declan’s responsibilities were focused around the delivery of promotional goods- communicating on a daily basis with licensees regarding account management, and providing franchise updates to help licensees through approval processes for promotional items such as giveaways for events and loyalty programmes.

Declan said: “Working in licencing meant that I was able to interact with both the studios team and the communications team. I got a really broad spectrum of what the company does, which was very exciting for me.â€

The other element of Declan’s role, working in the New Business Development Team for the UK office, looked to expand the brand in new and exciting ways- which saw Dec working on a number of interesting projects throughout the year.

Declan said: “My Year in Industry experience was amazing, and I think that it will give me a stronger platform in my career now. I gained new skills such as account management and relationship management, and it was great to work for a company with such prestige.

“The year in industry is invaluable for gaining experience. The job market for graduates is so competitive that a degree on its own is potentially not enough anymore. It’s important to have something that can make you stand out, and I think that spending a year working in a field that interests you helps you do that.â€

  • Read more Year in Industry student profiles from the School of Business