“Oh, aren’t you one of those ambitious wotsits?” is the question I am asked by another member of staff.

Yes, that’s me! I am actually one of two graduate trainees on the Ambitious Futures Graduate Programme for University Leadership at Newcastle. Despite the name of the graduate programme not quite catching on yet (it’s kind of a mouthful and also somewhat cringe-worthy), many of you will have heard of or met the two of us at some point in the past year.

For those of you who may not know, Ambitious Futures is a national graduate scheme focused on University management and leadership. Graduates complete three project-based placements, two of which take place at the ‘host’ University with the third being based at another University in the region. The opportunities available are wide-ranging and offer graduates challenging and stimulating projects to lead and manage.

I began Ambitious Futures at Teesside University and after a rather shaky start, moved to Newcastle in January to begin my second placement in Marketing and Publicity. Here I managed a review of Student Services’ communications with current students, which included mapping activity across the various communications channels, facilitating focus groups with UG and PGT students and consulting with other Russell Group institutions. Completing a final report and presenting my findings gave me a real sense of achievement and satisfaction.

I took up my third and final placement at the end of May, working both in the Faculty of Medical Sciences and in HR on a variety of projects linked to the University’s Equality and Diversity agenda. In contrast to the second placement, this project is less compact and includes working on different strands of activity, with a wide variety of people across the University. From coordinating a careers mentoring scheme and supporting the Director of Diversity in FMS, to relaunching the Just Ask Service and running the NU Parents’ Network, I’ve definitely got around the place a lot in this placement!

As the programme draws to an end, it’s time to start looking at my next steps. The programme has definitely given me a broad overview of what it’s like to work in Higher Education and I’ve polished my skills as a capable project manager. What is now clear is that for many jobs at Newcastle and other universities there is a depth of experience that is required that has been tricky to gain due to the short nature of Ambitious Futures. This, coupled with the lack of clarity surrounding many career paths of professional support services staff in Higher Education, means that securing a job in the sector after the programme is far from a foregone conclusion . Despite this, I’m optimistic. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time at Newcastle so far. I’ve been fortunate to work on some interesting projects with some inspiring members of staff and I look forward to what the future holds.

Laura Draper, Ambitious Futures Graduate Trainee