Student Ambassadors

Grace

Hi everyone, I’m Grace. Postgraduate Ambassador and I’m currently studying for my Masters in Gender Studies.

Oscar

Hi, I’m Oscar. I’m a current Undergraduate Ambassador studying Psychology with Cognitive Science.

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Student Experience, Becoming a student ambassador

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Why did you become an ambassador?

Grace

I became an Ambassador because I am really passionate about student experience and the student community. The Student Ambassador role is a really wide and varied one. I’ve done a lot of work with other teams outside the postgraduate recruitment team, such as Widening Participation. This has been really important for me because I’m a disabled student and I am really passionate about that student community and how we can work together to make the university experience more accessible for everyone.

Doing the talks that I’ve done working with the postgraduate recruitment team, and working with the other teams across the university, has meant that I’ve felt like I’ve put a lot back into Sussex as I’ve been studying and getting a lot out of Sussex.

Oscar

I became an Ambassador because I thought it’d be a fun, easy way to earn some money while being a student. And it was a chance to give back, which I thought was even better given the easy application process, because in my first year, first term sort of madness, I was thinking, gosh, I’m so busy. I need to find a way to earn some money that doesn’t take too much time.

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What was the application & interview process like?

Oscar

I wrote a CV and cover letter, sent it in and a few weeks later I was invited to an assessment afternoon where I got to meet a lot of the other students also applying and got to meet some of the staff I’d be working with, if I was lucky enough to get the job. While we were there, we completed some group exercises and got to know each other. We did some role play activities. And then we also had a solo conversation interview with one of the staff, and that was to discuss how we filled out time, what we were studying and basically to try and gauge what the spin on our answers would be, I suppose, when put in a conversation situation with a potential parent or student.

Grace

The application and interview process were really easy. I went to a careers fair the university was running and spoke to the Postgraduate Recruitment Team and we just had what was a very informal chat and I was asked about what I was doing and why I wanted to be an Ambassador and I got the chance to ask for any clarification of the role. It only took about 10, 15 minutes and then I received an email in the next week to invite me to do the next few stages.

Yeah, it was dead easy. It’s probably the smoothest job application that I have ever submitted.

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What roles have you taken on as an Ambassador?

Grace

I’ve done a lot of different things within my role as an Ambassador. But I think the things that stand out most were working on an audio guide for campus so that we could do contactless tours of campus for prospective students. And that was really interesting and really exciting because I’d never been in a recording studio. It was a really new and cool thing to be able to use all that equipment and to think about how I spoke. And I hadn’t expected to be able to do stuff like that. So that was really interesting.

And I did a live welcome for the first Masters online event that we ran this year. And I welcomed all of the prospective students live on Zoom. And that was a bit nerve-racking, but it was also another really cool experience.

Oscar

I’ve been a tour guide on Open Days. I’ve worked various roles on Open Days. I’ve been part of a Zoom Open Day, and I’ve helped host that and answer questions. I’ve also done some content creation for online Ambassador stuff, as well as online question-and-answer sessions, both on Zoom and also via the Unibuddy question-and-answer platform. Which has been, actually, really quite fun.

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What’s your favourite thing about being an Ambassador?

Oscar

It’s a great way to meet lots of new people and really a chance to give back to the University. I have loved my time, I am loving and I am sure I will love the rest of my time at Sussex and I’m immensely grateful to be able to give back and entice some more students to come and study here too. And I mean…that, and it’s a chance to earn some money so it’s a very happy combination for me.

Grace

I have met so many fellow Ambassadors who I would never have met otherwise. And also, I meet people all the time on Unibuddy when I’m answering their questions. And I answer lots of questions on the ‘meet the students’ Zoom session that I’m part of and on Open Days and all those sorts of things. And it’s really nice, especially when this past year has been quite isolated for quite a lot of people, to be able to do that and be a figure of reassurance for people who are considering further study or worried about further study, or just really interested and have lots and lots of questions. Those things were really cool and I really like that about my job.

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What have you learnt and what skills have you picked up?

Grace

A skill I’ve picked up is definitely adaptability. Because the job is so different from day to day and because I’ve been asked to do a lot of things - going live to welcome people to Masters events or talking to students on ‘meet the student’ sessions and not knowing what the questions might be. I’ve had to become really, really adaptable and really, really ready to do anything and everything. And that is a really great skill to be able to take forward into further employment and also into my studies as well. Masters study can be quite challenging at times and it’s really nice to know, and to have the confidence to know, that you can do those things. Even if they are a little bit nerve-wracking at times.

Oscar

I’ve really built confidence in talking to new people, either one-on-one or in bigger groups like on a tour around the campus. And also people of huge age varieties. So we’ve got mature students who come to open days and we’ve also got postgraduates, we’ve also got undergraduates, and then we’ve obviously got the parents of those students and then you’ve even got schools just coming on Open Days and sort of school visits. And they’re sort of usually GCSE age. And that’s really exciting because they’re still at the decision making process. I’ve really developed my time management skills - it’s been brilliant to help me sort of work out how to fit my Ambassador role alongside my other commitments. So my studies, as well as the societies I’m part of.

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Any advice for those thinking about applying?

Grace

My top tip for those thinking about applying, I think it would be just to do it. And I don’t think the teams are looking for people to pass skills tests or to demonstrate that they’re the greatest student in the world. They’re looking for a wide range of student experiences so that we can all improve the Sussex experience together.

Oscar

Firstly, you’ve got nothing to lose. It’s a paid job that is very flexible on hours. They’re so easy to work with and super easy going. If you can’t make a shift, you let them know and it all works itself out. As for the application process, forget it’s an application process. When you get to the assessment day, the interview, they just want you to treat it like you would an Open Day. It’s supposed to be friendly, it’s supposed to be open. You want to hear backwards and forwards with view and opinions because that’s what sells any university.

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Interested in becoming a Student Ambassador?

Grace

There are lots of different Ambassador teams across the university, including the International Ambassadors and the Widening Participation Ambassadors.

Oscar

If you’re interested in finding out more about the Ambassador scheme, check student.sussex.ac.uk/experience/ambassadors.