5 Things The Candidate Taught Me That Books Couldn't!

I have recently finished my final year of studying Marketing Management at Manchester Metropolitan University, graduating with a 2:1. As much as this has been a very exciting time, it has also been very emotional and scary. There’s no safety blanket anymore, you’re out in the real world now!

It’s no secret that many recent graduates feel worried and stressed around this time, and it can be difficult to shake thoughts of potential post-university unemployment. I have seen many of my friends go through this, but I have luckily had my experience at The Candidate to keep me from getting too stressed.

One thing I have recently realised is that no matter how much you research your assignments, turn up for lectures or revise for exams, there are some things you simply can’t learn from books alone. Experience is everything in the marketing world and, as it is such a popular career path, you really need something that makes you stand out from the crowd, especially when searching for your first job

Here are 5 major things I learned at The Candidate that university can’t really teach you:

1) There’s SO many different types of marketing careers…

Throughout university, I always believed the only job I would be qualified would be a Marketing Assistant, then I’d have to climb the ranks to Executive, then Manager, then Head of. My time writing job adverts at The Candidate taught me that I couldn’t have been more wrong! There are so many different strands of marketing which I wasn’t aware of, such as CRM, PPC, SEO and pretty much every other acronym you can think of…

2) A real 9-5!

Working part-time at The Candidate allowed me to experience full working days in an office environment. When I was close to finishing university, I was so worried that not having this experience would really hinder my job search, especially as I hadn’t done a placement year. I knew I was capable of working like this, but I had no proof! Being able to list my role at The Candidate on my CV immediately put me ahead of other graduates who had never had the opportunity to gain office experience before. It also gave me great insight into how a marketing department runs on a day-to-day basis and how marketing works in relation to the rest of the departments in the business.

3) The importance of analytics.

At university, it’s common to just submit your assignment or sit your exam, receive feedback, glance at it once then just move on to the next assessment. In a real-world marketing department, this is not how things are handled! Every post on social media is analysed and we have to consider what we could have done better, how to improve engagement and a number of other things. Analytics helps so much with all of this- it gives insights, so you can identify exactly what does well and what doesn’t, and you can start to notice trends. This is something we never got the chance to play around with on my course, but something that is an every day, super important task at The Candidate.

4) Once it’s out there, it’s out there!

A big part of my job is posting on social media and updating The Candidate’s website. Having the responsibility of your work being published online for all to see is a big one, and it can be quite scary at first! At university, no one apart from your markers were looking at your work, but now I know anyone will be able to access it online. Knowing this really makes me pay more attention-to-detail and has improved my ability to spot mistakes, and I’m getting quicker and more thorough as time goes on. This is something else that I wouldn’t have to worry about at university but practicing this at The Candidate is improving me as a marketer.

5) Free software training- take it while you can!

Working at The Candidate has taught me a number of practical skills, but some that I am SO grateful for is helping me gain the ability to use a variety of software I have never experienced before! Each day at work, we use different software to create infographics and store information. University never really taught us to use photo editing software, Excel, Google Docs or any programmes like that, so gaining this experience in the workplace and seeing it’s use in a marketing department has been fantastic training for me. It’s also saved me a lot of money on expensive online courses I would have had to take!

I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as a Digital Marketing Intern turned Marketing and Operations Assistant at The Candidate! It has taught me so many practical, real-world skills I simply couldn’t pick up from learning theories and reading books. I would absolutely recommend the internship to anyone, The Candidate is a great place to learn and grow, and the skills I have learned here will continue to benefit me for the rest of my marketing career!

As my time at The Candidate draws to a close and I take the next step in my career, they are on the lookout for some new interns! If you are interested in gaining some work experience within The Candidate's marketing department, get in touch on 0161 833 1044 or email [email protected].