Edinburgh Napier University

Graduate Career Advantage Scotland (GCAS)? 

GCAS is an initiative which supports recent, eligible graduates living in Scotland to find rewarding employment. They offer careers support and access to high-quality paid internships by collaborating with employers, universities, and other key agencies.  

What skills did you bring to your internship?

"I loved writing and did it in my spare time: writing lots of essays, creative writing, blogging and script writing. I also enjoy telling people's stories, being able to help get their vision seen or heard in the world is very satisfying. I think my love of writing is what helped me get the role, especially because writing can be a big part of the job; I’ve recently been learning about writing press releases which can be difficult. I'm having to learn to write in a different tone from what I’m used to, but I'm enjoying the process. Another part of my role is pitching to journalists for them to write about the shows or projects we are looking after. We aim to get our clients the best possible media coverage, we do this by working collaboratively as a team which has also been great for my learning."


What is your most memorable moment?
"Working on the fringe. It was a busy month of hard work but also seeing really great shows. I was part of the press office during the fringe and my main job was media monitoring. This basically meant that I looked for any media coverage that mentioned the shows we looked after or the venue we were based in. We all contributed and helped each other in our jobs so I also had time to catch a few shows during the work day. I got to meet a lot of the artists from the shows and journalists which was exciting. There were usually lots of parties in the evening too, so, if you weren’t too tired after work you could enjoy the social side of things. It was such a fun month."


What was the most interesting thing you learnt about the company you work for?
"We work with lots of amazing and interesting clients. This is mainly on live theatre performances throughout the UK, but I’ve also been involved with art exhibitions, book tours, a music festival and met a wide variety of people. I feel like working on such an extensive range of projects has enabled me to learn so much more, and being able to see the entire process has helped me appreciate how expansive PR can be. My colleagues are very supportive too. I told my line manager that I have a particular interest in music, and within the next week they had me working on a music festival we’re helping support."