How a dose of good will set two students on road to MTV
TWO SCHOOLGIRLS have secured internships at MTV after taking part in a conference aimed at helping students learn more about employment opportunities.
Emma Desmond and Nikki Taylor were offered the placements after questioning a senior executive from the channel.
TheinauguralGoodwill Hunting conference gave young adults the chance to hear from industry experts about forming career paths a n d f i n i s h i n g their higher education.
At the London event attended by Emma and Nikki, Viacom International Media Network senior vice president Georgia
Nikki Taylor
Arnold focussed on jobs in the media.
Around 80 students aged between 16 and 21 attended the conference, organised by Goodwill Hunting chief executive Paul Cohen. The students were asked to prepare CVs and write questions for the experts, with Ms Arnold offering placements to 12 of the participants following the conference.
Gl a s g o w- b a s e d Nikki, 16, a former FZY tour participant, said: “It was really good to find out more about what I want to do. I’d like to get in to television and cinema and so I didn’t want to miss it.
“The conference’s question process is great a s i t gi v e s people an opportunity to g e t a w o r k placement, especially for someone who doesn’t know anyone in the industry. It also means you have to be proactive.”
Emma, 17, a member of Noam and New North London synagogue, said: “The guest speaker was brilliant. My question was about social media and how MTV uses Twitter and Facebook. The questions meant that everyone got to learn so much more from all of Georgia’s answers.”
Mr Cohen said: “The conference is all about empowerment and social mobility. We enable any student to potentially secure a work placement, simply on the quality of the question they submit.
“The conferences allow students to ‘look inside’ a company and get a greater understanding of how it works. A large percentage of college and university students still don’t know what they want to do after completing their course, and we hope to give them a little direction.”
The next conference, due to take place in January, will feature speakers from two law firms. Chanucah packs have been distributed to Liberal Jewish students on 36 campuses in time for the festival.
Liberal Judaism sent out 250 packs, each containing a menorah, candles, dreidel, Chanucah gelt, and messages from chaplain Rabbi Ariel Friedlander and student rabbi Benji Stanley.
Rabbi Friedlander said the organisation had increased its contact with students through the use of social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook.
“Although we’re better connected to our students than ever before, there’s nothing like receiving a Chanucah pack through the post,” she said. Bnei Akiva movement workers spent a week touring campuses, meeting more than 70 students in Cambridge, Birmingham, Manchester, and Leeds.
Cambridge student Brett Bernstein, said: “To have the leaders come and visit made BA students feel valued and it reinforced us with the feeling that we are an integral part of the movement.”
BA national director Jonny Sherman added: “Our students are the lifeblood of our movement. Without their passion and dedication we wouldn’t be able to do half the things we do. This tour was just a small reminder of the value we place on our student volunteers.” He spoke about his time as a student at the university, his membership of the union, and how he met his wife, Elaine.
A student klezmer band performed at the event, attended by around 170 students and alumni.
Model Caprice Bourret, a Cambridge JSoc patron, sent a video message. Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks was guest of honour at Cambridge University JSoc’s 75th anniversary celebrations. Former United Synagogue president Simon Hochhauser spoke at an Imperial JSoc lunch and learn session on science education.
Around 40 students attended the discussion and heard about Dr Hochhauser’s experiences in the hightech industry and work in the Jewish community.