Student of the Week - Fallon Bates, Climbing Kili

When we talk about work experience, charity work doesn't always necessarily spring to mind. Ok maybe you think of some volunteering, or working in a charity shop, but what about climbing a mountain? Here we hear from Fallon who used her time this Summer to do something a little bit different... 

"I am an undergraduate, just going into my second year of English in Education. This summer I took on the immense challenge of climbing Kilimanjaro for Hope for Children. The trip took place between the 9th and 18th September. However, the real journey began last October, when willing students like myself decided to head over to a general meeting about the climb. Reflecting back on this I honestly don't think any of us knew what we was letting ourselves in for. 

The idea of climbing a mountain was a distant thought at the time, so everyone put all their efforts into raising £2,650 for charity. Charity and fundraising work is something that, although can be very hard at the time, is so self-rewarding when you are reaching goals throughout the year. Not only will it look amazing on my CV or any further education applications but the other transferable skills I have acquired will be useful in all areas of my life. I have learnt that if you want to get something you have to personally interact with individuals, societies and associations. Making phone calls and writing handwritten letters at first seemed very daunting, but the more you put yourself out there, explain to people what you are trying to achieve the more confident I grew. The times when you hear 'Unfortunately we cannot help you in your efforts, but we wish you all the best in your pursuit' at first was so down heartening and put a dampener on any ideas of goal margins. I feel this could be relate-able to how the job market may be when I graduate and have been able to draw on the idea that if one organization or individual rejects you then the only option is to never give up and move on as someone will be there willing to accept you. 

Now getting down to the real deal: CLIMBING KILIMANJARO, Although I could ramble on about the excessive walking, monotony of scenery and the general fatigue that the whole trek brought with it, I will refrain. I'd like to speculate and reveal what I gained from the experience itself. 

From the get go on the first day when we was delayed at the gate for two hours the team spirit was extremely high and we was all eager to begin our trek. I found that there was such a mixture of backgrounds and age ranges in the group that in normal situations may have been hard to interact with, but saying that everyone got on so well and gelled like a family. The climb brings you out of your comfort zone, you have to articulate to people how you are feeling, any anxieties you may have and generally socialise to keep yourself motivated. No matter where you ended up in the climb: right at the front, leading the group, huddled up in the middle, or even staggering at the back there was always a friendly face to talk to. With these sort of expeditions you just have to put yourself out there and go for it. As you can imagine everyone has habits, saying and turns of phrase that they use which when with constantly can become annoying. The trek really works on your patience and tolerance of individuals and a group as a whole. The team inspired me with their overall positive attitude from waking up til going to bed every day, 

The main aim of each day was to make it to a new camp, and each camp was completely different to the last. The only common denominator in place was the dreaded pit loos. Considering our group was highly dominated by females any sort of class and glamour had to be tossed aside for six days. I'm actually glad to express that the foulest memory of the whole trip was the toilet facilities. The little things whilst you are away really make you appreciate what we have in modern society. By actually experiencing first hand what the porters and guides use on a regular basis gives you more insight and not only a realisation of their culture but other cultures from around the globe which aren't as up to date as that in the United Kingdom. At camp we always had high energy food prepared for us, where loss of appetite and stomach bugs were often passing through groups, the determination of all team members to finish our food was strong. Setting up our space within tents took a lot of organising, delegating of areas for each person and creating space for people to manoeuvre comfortably within the night. 

In my opinion, the trip was definitely not about physical strength (although it did help), it was more to do with the stamina of the mind. Every day, hour, minute and second you had to keep yourself going. It helped me to set personal goals independently. Too often in the past I have allowed others to just set me tasks to do and I try my hardest to complete them. The approach I took was that the only person that you can rely on to get you to the place you want to be is yourself. Although the group really encouraged me, and working on my own was a struggle, whenever I got past a phase I felt so much more proud of what I had accomplished. 

Overall, this amazing opportunity which was given to us from the University if York by RAG has changed my life completely. I am so grateful for the people I have met along the way (trekkers, guides, porters and travelling companions alike). The stimulation of the climb for allowing me to realise that I can actually determine my own path and any outcome I want in my life, I really don't have to blag everything on a whim and prayer. I definitely know that all these skills, methods and approaches I took to getting up and down the mountain safely, all in the aid of charity will be something I can take with me on my journey of life. Although, they will all be really important and essential to my career path I feel the main aspect of the trip that has really changed me is how much I have grown as an individual." 

Fallon is exactly right in what she has said in terms of this isn't just about something to put on a CV but this has helped her grow as an individual. Doing something like this really does build your determination for life in general. However, some of you may still ask, well why would an employer care? Putting in an application that you have climbed a mountain for the benefit of others is something that will definitely make you stand out from the crowd. If you imagine an employer sifting through a pile of similar CVs, the person who has that extra something will be the one going through to the next stage. It will also provide a fantastic talking point between you and the employer. But before you even get to that part it shows a level of independence, organisation and determination that a graduate who hasn't made the same effort as you will struggle to demonstrate. 

Opportunities such as this are available through Universities but also independently and through external organisations. 

"The Internship" - A quick guide to your treatment on an internship

The recent death of Moritz Erhardt during his internship at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, ( a big player in the finance game for those of you that don't know), has raised many questions amongst employers, legal experts and students alike. Just how far can you push an intern? 

Moritz Erhardt was a student, a highly promising student at that, hailing from Germany he was undertaking an internship which (pro rata) paid £45,000 a year. Unbelievable isn't it? You're right I didn't know internships paid that much either. But at what personal cost does this internship come? 

Current reports suggest that Moritz suffered from epilepsy and the late nights he endured at work may have triggered a seizure which killed him.

 The late nights we speak of here may be as a result of something in the industry known as "the magic roundabout". This is when a taxi picks you up from work early in the morning after working through the night, and waits outside your house while you shower and get changed to return to work. I would have thought that this would be a secret in the industry, though it seems this isn't the case. A friend of mine who attended only an insight day into the financial sector said they were told about the magic roundabout by someone running the insight day, possibly as a hint towards the hours expected of them if they were to pursue this kind of career. 


Before we go any further, I feel it is important to note that this is not a blog to deter you from an internship, but one that will from this point explain to you what you should expect and how to deal with any problems you have. 

1) You can leave

Yes, the money is attractive, but if you feel you are being worn down to a point where you're not enjoying yourself anymore, have a word with someone. If you don't feel it can be someone at work, try a family member. Listen to their concerns. You're only an intern so I don't think the option of opting out of the working time directive will have been presented to you yet.. (this is the piece of legislation which says you should work no more than 48 hours a week), so if you're doing more than that or being pushed too hard, look up your rights. 

2) You should be getting paid

Some companies argue that an internship is like work experience. No it is not. They are right in that for work experience you don't need to be paid. But if you are doing the job of a permanent employee, i.e. performing the same tasks, you need to be paid. This should also be above or equal to the national minimum wage for your age group which you can find on the www.gov.uk website. 

Source: www.brightfutures.co.uk

To show how seriously the government take this you could read this article on Chris Jarvis who sued Sony for £4600 for not paying him even though they said he was a volunteer... http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/unpaid-intern-who-sued-sony-awarded-4600-8794347.html  

3) Talk to your University 

Most people who complete an internship will tell you it was one of the most worthwhile things they have ever done. It doesn't have to be with a fancy sounding company and you might not get paid the world but you will gain fantastic experience and really grow as a person. If you do get the chance to complete an internship, you could talk to someone at the Careers Service at your university, who may even be able to talk to the employer themselves to keep track on you while you do it or just offer you some advice.

4) You have most of the same rights as other employees.. 

Ok so you might not be entitled to build up holidays and the rest of it, but remember you can't be discriminated against and you can't be forced to doing tasks you feel do not relate to your role in the company (like the hoovering - unless you're on a cleaning internship). If you feel like something is not quite right, speak to the Human Resources department at the company and let them know your concerns. They should point you in the right direction. 

Don't feel you have to see an internship through if you feel it will be of detriment to your health. But do remember, as mentioned earlier, hundreds if not thousands of students every year are treated perfectly well on an internship and are catapulted into the career of their dreams, or at least gain the work experience to put them ahead of other students in a job application process. Don't miss out and follow the advice in this blog; the real value of an internship will be seen in upcoming and previous 'Student of the Week' posts.