The Graduate Award

[email protected] The Graduate Award By Fay Goulding

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL

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Portfolio

The Graduate Award


PRODUCTION AND DESIGN WORK – With Sheffield University Theatre Companies

2013 till present

Approx. 60 hours of participation

Activity Description

Sheffield University Theatre Company (SUTCO) are an amateur theatre company formed

entirely of students. I have been involved in four plays as part of the design team. Not only

was I responsible for the design work, but I was also expected to attend a sufficient amount of

rehearsals and help the production team with the ‘Get In’, technical rehearsal and dress run.

The Get In would involve helping move all the props, set and costume into the theatre space,

along with setting up all the technical elements, taking an average of 12 hours to complete.

Transferable Skill: Applying creativity

During my time with SUTCO I was able to demonstrate my creative skills through design

and composition. As a production team we were required to constantly communicate with

each other to ensure our designs collaborated well together. We would also be given

guidelines to ensure our creative designs were not taken too far. Most of the time the director

would only have a general idea of what they wanted, so there was usually room for creative

development and also a chance to suggest innovative ideas of your own. This would always

be more exciting for me as a designer, as it meant there was more freedom in what I could

create. However, I had experienced one director who knew exactly what she wanted,

resulting in many of my creative ideas being rejected. Nevertheless, I adapted my designs to

her visions, yet continued to suggest my own ideas to ensure my creativity was used to its full

potential.

Supporting Evidence

1. Photos of my design work (P.3-6).

2. Copy of the programs with my name in them (P.7-8).

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SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EVIDENCE (A)

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SOCIAL AND CULTURAL EVIDENCE (B)Programs for each performance with my name in them

The White Devil –

Projectio

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL

PRODUCTION AND DESIGN WORK – With Sheffield

University Theatre Companies

SOUND & MUSIC/ART

WORK - SUTCO’s ‘That Face’

Performed 12th-15th February

2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -

SUTCO’s ‘The depth of field’

Performed 23rd-26th October 2013.

P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER

DESIGNER - SUTCO’s ‘The

White Devil’

Performed 26th-1st March 2014.

P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -

SUTCO’s ‘Merchant of Venice’

Performed 12th-15th March 2014.

P.9

Depth of Field – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting Designer


SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL



SOUND & MUSIC/ART



2014.

P.6

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.7

PROJECTION & POSTER


White Devil’


P.8

LIGHTING DESIGNER -



P.9

The White Devil –

Projectio

The White Devil –

Projectio

The White Devil –

Projectio

The White Devil –

Projectio

The White Devil –

Projectio

The White Devil –

Projectio

The White Devil –

Projectio

The White Devil –

Projectio

The White Devil –

Projectio

Depth of Field – Lighting DesignerDepth of Field –

Lighting DesignerDepth of Field –







Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting DesignerMerchant of Venice – Lighting Designer




















ENTERPRISEONLINE COURSE – With Future Learn 9th Feb-29th March 2015


Course Description

The course was split into two sections: ‘How to Succeed at Writing Applications’ and ‘How

to Succeed at Interviews’. Through videos, animations, articles and discussions the course

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gradually takes you through the stages of writing a professional application and how you can

flourish in subsequent interviews. The course would occasionally ask you to complete tasks,

contribute to discussions and/or finish with a short quiz to summarise everything you have

learned. To help with the learning process I would make notes and print any documents or

templates that were provided. These have been filed and kept for future reference.

Transferable Skill: Time management

Alongside the course I was balancing my university work, rehearsals for an upcoming play

and cheerleading practice. As the Course gives you the freedom to work at your own pace, I

was worried it would become overlooked and pushed to the back of my priorities list. I

therefore set aside a certain amount of hours a week to dedicate my time towards completing

the course. This way I was able to write substantial notes, take part in some of the online

activities and print out documents I felt would be useful for me in the future. I would also

ensure that I had spent more time on the things that were more relevant to me personally, to

ensure I got the best out of the course. By managing my time successfully it meant I could

take my time where necessary during the learning process. The course was completed

comfortably before the deadline and did not get in the way of any other commitments, thus

showing my ability to time manage effectively.

Supporting evidence

1. Certificate of Participation.

2. Screen shots of my profile and participation in discussions (P.10).

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THE UNIVERSITY AND ITS COMMUNITYCOURSE REPRESENTATIVE for Theatre and Performance, and CHAIRPERSON of the

School of English SSC meetings - Sep 2013-Jul 2014


Job Description

Being Chairperson required a lot of responsibility in communicating with my peers to ensure

a date that suited everyone was set and an agenda was created for each meeting. I was also

required to govern the meetings and ensure they were run efficiently and effectively. During

these meetings it was essential to have the confidence to speak up and fight for your cause,

and then be prepared to make important decisions on how these issues can be resolved. As a

course representative I was required to keep a close relationship with my course peers,

primarily through email, social media and class announcements, to encourage them to talk to

me about certain issues they may have.

Transferable Skill: Overcoming a problem

Whilst being a course representative, one of my most challenging tasks was creating an

activity for ‘The Art of Work’ event, in which we encountered a number of problems during

the process. The job required an immense amount of organisation and regular communication

with collaborators and potential candidates to lead the activity. Unfortunately, due to personal

reasons, our main organiser was forced to drop out, requiring me to take over. This was

extremely difficult as she had not kept me updated throughout the process, meaning I was

bombarded by information and correspondence emails which became confusing and stressful

to sort through. We also found a lack of support from the events manager who had not

advertised event at all, and informed us last minute that this was a job for ourselves. As a

consequence the turnout of the entire event was extremely disappointing. Our experience had

taught us that communication is key and effective advertising is essential when organising an

event like this. Although we did not achieve the audience we wanted we persevered and, by

doing so, had successfully achieved our goal in organising an event within the restricted time

limit we had.

Supporting Evidence

1. Screenshots of agendas I wrote whilst being chairman (P.12)

2. Emailed confirmation of my attendance as a course representative (P.13)

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UNIVERSITY AND ITS COMMUNITY EVIDENCE (B)

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THE UNIVERSITY AND ITS COMMUNITY EVIDENCE (A)

Course Representative Agendas


Emailed confirmation of my attendance as a course representative

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To whom it may concern,

I can confirm that Fay Goulding was the chairperson of the StudentStaff Committee, 2013-14, and was a highly valuable individual on theteam, coordinating and managing an event, 'The Art of Work' involving

external participants, such as 'Invisible Flock', the theatre company.Please contact me at [email protected] if you require any

further information.

Yours,

Madeleine Callaghan

WORK EXPERIENCEGENERAL ADMIN AND OFFICE ASSISTANT - DC Law Jun 2012 till present

Approx. 1,400 hours of participation

Job Description

During three years at Sheffield University I have maintained a job working full time over the

holidays with DC Law, a Licenced Conveyancing firm who help clients with the legal side of

buying and selling houses. Primarily, I took a supporting role by assisting my colleagues in

file opening, taking calls, drafting letters, passing on messages, filing documents and general

admin work. Higher responsibilities would occasionally include dealing with customer’s

queries or complaints when the case handler is unavailable and investigating files, solving

their issues and resolving them as quickly and effectively as possible. I have also taken part

in extra training sessions, team building exercises and team meetings.

Transferable skill: Team work

Whilst working with DC Law, team work and communication were essential skills to ensure

deadlines were met. My team would therefore assign each other jobs with challenging, yet

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achievable, goals to help us hit our targets. A rota was created to guarantee all messages and

emails were picked up on a daily basis. We would also try to make the extra effort to help

each other out when appropriate. Sometimes my jobs would be less urgent and have no

specific deadline, but I would always maintain in setting myself a target to ensure I was

helping my team by reducing the workload as efficiently as possible. During my time with

DC Law I noticed the filing system was confusing and frequently used incorrectly. I therefore

used my initiative and reorganised the filing cabinets to create a tidier, more organised

environment. My team were extremely grateful as files were easier to find, thus making a

huge difference to our workload. Although I had lost time by reorganising the filing

cupboard, by doing so it meant I had benefited the team as a whole.

Supporting Evidence

1. A reference from my previous manager Heather Ward (P.15).

2. Copy of a P60 end of year certificate.

WORK EXPERIENCE EVIDENCE (A)Reference

For the attention of the Sheffield Graduate Awards Team

I am writing this reference for Faye Goulding as her holiday employer.

I was the Completions and Post Completions Manager at DC Law at Grant Hall, Parsons Green, St Ives, Cambridgeshre PE27 4AA from January 2011 until 25th February 2015, when

I retired

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Faye worked for my team during her university holidays, We always welcomed Faye back to our team as she was very bright, committed and thorough in her work for us.

Faye soon grasped some quite difficult legal concepts, especially in leasehold matters and applied them by reading through files, identifying problems or outstanding points and using

her own initiative continued working on the file until she obtained a resolution.

Faye always demonstrated a positive "can do" attitude towards her work and I can thoroughly recommend her work ethic and commitment to any future potential employer in the future.

If you would like me to respond to any specific enquiries, then I would be happy to do so.

Kind rehards

Yours sincerely

Heather Ward MA FCILEX6 Robin Hood Road

HuddersfieldHD2 1NR

MY PERSONAL LEARNING AND EVALUATION

CAREER PLANNING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

How useful do you think your extra curricula activities will be for your future

employment or further study?

During my time at Sheffield University I have applied myself to a variety of extracurricular

activities, which I feel have enhanced me as a person and allowed me to develop a range of

skills that can be transferred into any work place. For instance, throughout my time with DC

Law I have improved my investigation skills through examining files and solving problems. I

believe this to be an extremely valuable skill as it requires attentiveness, knowledge of the

field and competence. Although we worked closely as a team, the job also involved a certain

aspect of independence, both of which are considered important within any work place. I

have also enhanced my communication and customer service skills through extensive training

and developing close relationships with my clients. Whilst working with SUTCO I have been

able to contribute my own ideas, challenge myself artistically and enhance my creative skills.

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However I was also required to meet with the criteria of the director and stick to tight

deadlines. In doing so I have shown my strengths as an individual, but also my ability to

work as part of a team and hit targets effectively. In volunteering to be chairman of the course

representative meetings, I had challenged myself by taking a role that would usually be out of

my comfort zone. As a result I have grown in confidence, immensely improved my

communication, organisation and leadership skills and shown my capability to adapt to a new

role and team. Throughout my Future Learn course I have taught myself time management

and learned to prioritise my work effectively. The Future Learn course has helped me

develop my application writing and interview skills, which will prove valuable when

applying for jobs in the future. By applying myself to such a range of activities/job roles, I

have developed a diverse variety of transferable skills and experiences, and also become a

more confident and well-rounded person as a whole.

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Which of your activities did you enjoy the most and why? What did you gain

most from?

The most enjoyable activity I have taken part in, during my time at University, was the design

work I did for SUTCO. I have always been a creative person and took a great pleasure in

being able to apply this to a specific field of work. Although most of my other experiences

still allowed a certain level of independence and resourcefulness, they did not have the same

satisfaction as seeing your design develop from a simple idea to a final product. It was

extremely rewarding, especially when your work was a part of a performance that was

watched and appreciated by hundreds of people. Whilst working with SUTCO I had

developed close working relationships with team members, thus making the experience far

more enjoyable and giving the feeling of being part of a community. Shown through my

extensive work and ability to hit deadlines, I have shown that I can work well independently.

However, by working as part of a production team I have also shown my ability to work

effectively with people. In total I have worked on four individual shows, all of which have

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required me to become accustomed to a new production team, a new schedule and a new

concept. This was something I believe I adapted well to each time. From working in lighting

design, with no previous technical experience, to designing, generating and editing over ten

detailed images from scratch, I have rose to every challenge given to me. My experience with

SUTCO was like no other. It has helped me develop a number of transferable skills, grow in

confidence and, most importantly, enjoy every moment of it.

SKILLS AND ATRIBUTES

As a result of taking the Graduate award, what skills do you now consider to be

your strengths and why?

Shown through my design work with SUTCO I believe my creativity is one of my biggest

strengths. Fine art and design has always been a hobby of mine, but by working with SUTCO

I have been able to develop my artistic skills and apply them to something much bigger that

my own personal pleasure. I have also been able to apply my creativity to other activities, for

instance when I was involved in the Art of Work project during my time as a course

representative. My time management and organisational skills have improved drastically

during my time at university, as I have had to juggle many extracurricular activities along

with my university commitments. By taking so much on I was forced to organise myself

effectively to ensure I did not fall behind. In doing so, it has become second nature to me and

I would now consider it to be one of my greatest strengths. These organisational skills have

been transferred into my work with DC Law, where I have been able to manage my work

more efficiently. As an employee of DC Law I have been fortunate enough to have had a

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fantastic supervisor and extensive training in many fields of work. These have especially

allowed me to develop my communication and customer service skills. For instance, I can

now speak confidently to clients over the phone and in person, I am currently able to write

professional and coherent letters/emails to clients and I understand the company’s values of

good customer care and service. My confidence was low before I started DC Law, so I would

find it difficult to talk to clients and would always rely on other people to tell me what to do.

Over time my confidence, and therefore my communication skills, have developed

significantly over the years which I consider a great personal achievement.

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The Graduate Award

Documents