“Take every opportunity that you can get. The experiences that I got at university have led me to where I am today.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. You don’t have to do everything on your own.
If you’re just starting university then join a club or society because it’s going to make your university experience much better.”
Originally from Norway, Maria came to Scotland on holiday as a teenager and instantly fell in love with the country. She promised herself that ‘one day I will live in Edinburgh’.
Around the same time Maria began working at a local paper. Twice a week the paper would give a group of young journalists a double page spread to fill with their own content. As Maria had a keen interest in writing and language, she decided to apply.
“I started doing it because I thought ‘oh, this looks fun’, but then I realised that I wouldn’t mind doing this as a job full time.”
Maria’s investigative credentials were evident even then as her walls were filled with lists of different UK journalism courses and their entry requirements. Maria is someone who likes to try new things and experience as many things as possible. The BA (Hons) Journalism course at Edinburgh Napier stood out to her as it didn’t focus on one aspect of journalism, it allowed students to develop a varied skillset.
“At this point I had already done print and I wanted to try broadcast… but what if I was really, really bad at it?
“This was the time to try and fail”.
Throughout her four years of study Maria gained exposure to print, radio, TV and broadcast journalism. She took advantage of Edinburgh Napier's industry connections and earned even more experience through placement and volunteer roles. Maria shadowed an ENU alumnus who now works for STV and got to see first-hand how live broadcast journalism works. She also spent two years as a volunteer writer for the International Paralympic Committee where she wrote about power lifting. She didn’t have plans to be a sportswriter but knew it would be another useful skill to add to her repertoire.
Maria didn’t just have enthusiasm for the academic side of university life. She wanted to make her entire university experience count and was heavily involved with student societies.
“My high school form tutor used to joke that if something is happening, Maria will toddle along to find an application form and join in. When I came to university I was determined to make the most out of my experience here.
"I’m from quite a small town and therefore hobbies are quite restricted. Before I moved to Edinburgh, I sat at home looking up the student societies. I wanted to do everything that I hadn't been able to do yet.”
Maria joined the Climbing Club to ensure she got regular exercise. She was the club’s media secretary, and her efforts won the club the Media Award at the ENSA Sports and Societies Ball. She also joined the Christian Union. She loved getting to know a completely different set of people and that their activities didn’t revolve around going to parties or nightclubs. The society held a ‘grub crawl’ during Freshers Week which involved visiting a different flat for each food course.
In addition to these, Maria was also a co-host at ENRG, the university's student-run digital media platform. Two of Maria’s course mates already had a regular slot. Maria wanted to get involved but didn’t really have an idea for a full show. She asked her classmates if they would be interested in taking on a third presenter and she ended up with her own segment. It allowed Maria to have fun while also learning how to operate the controls.
“I was motivated; I wanted to do it.”
Norway has a proud history of conscription. Maria was born a year before national service was compulsory for women, but she was keen to sign up as a volunteer.
Maria had applied to join the Norwegian Armed Forces at the end of high school. By this point Maria knew that she wanted to be a journalist and therefore wanted to spend her year of service in the military's media team to add experience to her CV. However, Maria hadn’t studied any media subjects at school and was therefore pushed to the back of the queue. While this was happening, Maria had received her offer to study at ENU. She was informed that if she had a degree in a relevant subject then she would be first choice. A plan was then formed.
Maria graduated from Edinburgh Napier in 2019 and two weeks later was back in Norway undergoing basic training. For eight weeks she shared a room with 5 other people. The alarm was set for 5.30am each day and she would spend her time learning new skills, such as first aid and shooting. Maria then headed to Oslo to take up a post as a journalist in the Norwegian Armed Forces.
“The job was a bit of everything. I would travel around Norway visiting the different branches of the armed forces. I would write articles. I edited films for social media. I even did a podcast where I spoke to a sailor from the 2nd World War who is now 99 years old!”
When her service came to an end, Maria waved goodbye to everyone in the armed forces and got a summer job at NRK, the government-owned radio and television public broadcasting company. She thought her time in the military was over, but then she saw that the Royal Norwegian Navy was looking to hire a journalist.
She knew someone who had done the job previously and said it was great. Unfortunately, Maria’s experience was hampered by Covid.
“It wasn’t as exciting as I was expecting because of the pandemic. The ships need to stay healthy as they can’t operate if they get Covid. They were really reluctant to let us on board. I spent more time in the office than I was expecting.
“I was based in Bergen. I didn’t have a network before I moved, and I didn’t have the chance to build one up because everything was closed. I got in touch with the Scouts because I’d been part of the Scouts since I was 12 years old. I asked to become a leader or if there was a student group I could join. But nothing was on”.
Maria wanted to return to the UK but hadn’t applied for pre-settled status before she left. She took a chance and applied even though she had been out of the country for over a year. Luck was on her side, however, and her application was successful.
This was just the start of her dream week because a couple of days later she was offered an interview with DC Thomsons!
DC Thomsons is a media company based in Dundee. Maria moved to the city in July 2021 and works in the business team despite never having done business journalism before.
“I applied for the job and essentially said, ‘I have no experience in this but I’m sure I can do it’”.
The job requires Maria to speak to local independent businesses.
“I meet so many inspiring people who decided to just go for it and set up their own business. Or firms who have been running for a long time in the area and employ lots of local people.
“I recently went to Perth Airport and got to fly in a gyrocopter. I have a great job!”
What's next?
“I don’t know! I’ve always been a person who thinks one step ahead. When I was in school, I was thinking about university. When I got into university, I was planning what to do next. When I got into the army, I began mapping out my next steps.
Now I’ve managed to come back to Scotland, I’ve moved in with my boyfriend, I’ve got a really good job… my head is stressing out a little bit because I don’t know what’s next. At the moment I don’t need to dream or to plan the future because I’m quite happy about where I am at the minute. It’s really nice.”