BA History and Heritage student Abby Foden-Williams, spent the summer break undertaking a work experience placement at Media Isle of Man, and it was there that she began writing some creative content for Gef about her experience as a degree student at UCM! Read some of Abby's work.
What is the project about?
I started working with Gef following a two-week work experience placement I organised with Media Isle of Man over the summer. During the placement, I was working mainly with the sports desk, and I was also given the opportunity to write an article for Gef about ‘anything’! I decided to write an article about why I love studying the history and heritage, and what life is like as a degree student on the island.
Since then, they have been kind enough to give me the opportunity to write feature articles about the ‘everyday’ history of the Isle of Man - as making Manx history and heritage more accessible is something I am passionate about, after learning more about it on my course.
How did your studies help you with this project?
Studying history and heritage has taught me a lot, which has helped with my writing at Gef. There are more simple things, like checking where my sources come from, whether or not they are reliable, and how to measure this up. But also how to be aware of your own biases, and the responsibility you hold in sharing knowledge with others. Another valuable thing I have learnt, which has helped not only with my article writing but also in general, is to be aware of making generalisations; and to understand that not everyone will agree and to respect unharmful alternative opinions.
What did you learn during the project that will help you with your studies?
Writing my history articles means I need to do a lot of research to find out about the subject I am writing about. For example, I recently wrote an article about Hop tu Naa - which is something I did not have an abundance of knowledge of, I was just aware of the tradition from what I had been taught as a child. Because of this, I took quite a lot of time to ensure I adequately researched the Manx tradition, and at times it was hard to find sources. But research is, a lot of time, about perseverance - so I gained a lot from looking into something I was learning about at the same time, which I also think is valuable, because it came across that I was engaged with the subject as well as writing about it.
How did you balance your time to complete this project whilst studying?
As I have started my dissertation research alongside lectures, assignments and also volunteering with Manx National Heritage, I sometimes get a bit stressed for time! But I am very organised in planning out my weeks, setting reminders and managing other plans to ensure I have enough time to fit everything in. Prioritisation is an important part of time management too - at the moment I definitely need to put my studies first. It is also important to be honest with those around you if you feel you don’t have enough time or are struggling with something.
What are you looking to do when you finish your course?
I am interested in journalism and also the heritage/museums sector. I tried over the summer to put myself out there and gain as much experience as possible - so hopefully I have options going forward in these areas, as I’d like to get to work as soon as I can. We will see what the future holds!