In this episode, Kate is joined by Leah Tharpe, who works as an independent Art Appraiser with Tharpe and Fairchild LLC. As well as a fine art specialist with Copley Fine Art Auctions and is also currently undertaking a PhD. Leah explains what the day to day role looks like, the key skills that are required and the joys and challenges of her work. Leah's Bio Leah C. Tharpe is a third-year PhD researcher at the University of York, supervised by Jason Edwards. Her research focuses on Australian fr...
Apr 30, 2025•23 min
In this episode, Kate meets Flora Palmer. Flora is a current University of York student who is on placement year at the Walt Disney Company, working on production and operations for National Geographic. Flora describes her role, the skills and qualities she has developed and how this experience has helped her shape her future career ideas. Kate and Flora also discuss taking the initiative and going for a goal! Flora's Bio I’m Flora, I’m an undergrad History of Art student, currently working in P...
Mar 28, 2025•19 min
Kate is joined by Juany Murphy, who is Director of International Relations at the Otra Cosa Network, an International Development charity and alongside her, is one of her volunteers, Kate Geraghty. They discuss the satisfaction of making an impact with their work coupled against the precarious nature of funding for international development. Juany and Kate also share their tips and advice for breaking into this sector. Juany's Bio NGO - Founder and Director of Otra Cosa Network (OCN) with many y...
Mar 25, 2025•33 min
The Art Loss Register is the world's largest private database of stolen, missing and looted art, antiques and collectables. It currently lists over 700,000 items.In this episode Kate chats to Charlotte Chambers Farah who works as the Global Art Fair and Auction House Manager. We've got Lucy O'Meara, the Recoveries and Art Finance Manager and James Ratcliffe, who is Mediator, General Counsel and Director of Recoveries at the Art Loss Register. They discuss how their studies and experience impacte...
Feb 25, 2025•48 min
In this episode, Kate chats to George Young. George graduated in History and undertook the Change 100 internship programme which matches graduates with any disability or long term condition with progressive employers. Through the programme, George secured an internship with the NHS Confederation working in the People and Culture department. George and Kate discuss the process of applying for the programme, using transferable skills and George's thoughts on how their disabilities have impacted th...
Nov 20, 2024•38 min
Kate chats to Laura Gravini-Rodriguez who is a senior associate with DAI, a large employee owned International Development company. Laura gives us an insight into her role and the many routes into International Development work. She explains the personal qualities she feels are key to her work and the skills she developed as an international student in the UK. Laura and Kate also discuss the evolving challenges facing the future of international development work Laura's Bio Laura is a Colombian ...
Nov 06, 2024•27 min
Kate is joined today by Faz Kazmi. Faz graduated in Economics and Finance and now works as a Vertical Launch Grants Manager at the UK Space Agency. Listen as Faz reveals what his day to day looks like. He also talks about the breadth of roles within this sector for graduates from all degree disciplines plus his tips on how to develop your skills and gain insights to help you break into the Space sector. Faz's Bio: After graduating from York, I joined Meta's risk management and intelligence team,...
Oct 23, 2024•33 min
Kate chats to York graduate Cezara Jalba about her role as a Control, Electrical & Instrumentation Design Engineer at the Sellafield site, which is part of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. They discuss what her role entails, key skills, how Cezara's degree helped to prepare her for this role and what she loves about her job and the bits that she doesn't love quite so much. Cezara's Bio I am an engineer on a mission: to solve problems and make the world a better, safer and more efficien...
Oct 09, 2024•39 min
Listen as Kate chats to Molly Watson about her past life working as a BBC News Journalist and her recent career change. She currently works as a Media and Communications Officer focusing on the impact of food on climate change. In this conversation, they discuss the similarities and differences between journalism and a communications role, leaving your comfort zone to make a career change and also Molly's thoughts on what personal qualities are helpful for a career in journalism or communication...
May 01, 2024•32 min
James Halpin is a York graduate who is currently on the science and engineering stream of the Civil Service Fast Stream programme. Listen as Kate gets to the bottom of what James's job looks like. They cover the variety of postings James has undertaken on the Science and Engineering Fast Stream, the transferable skills that have helped him in his role and the future challenges for the Civil Service. James's Bio I'm part of the UK Civil Service Fast Stream graduate programme and I'm on the Scienc...
Apr 17, 2024•46 min
Izi Hutchinson is Senior Account Director at VCCP, an international integrated communications agency. Listen as Kate gets to the bottom of what Izi's job looks like. They cover the breadth of roles within advertising, the highs and lows of account management, the importance of mindset and attitude and what the future of advertising could look like. Izi's Bio Izi's most recent piece of work was relaunching Lotto (The National Lottery flagship game). She has also worked on client accounts for Mayn...
Mar 20, 2024•31 min
Ian is an Academic Clinical Fellow and junior doctor in Obstetrics & Gynaecology. After graduating in English during the 2008 credit crunch, he pursued Graduate Entry Medicine and an MSc in Global Health Science. He divides his time between clinical work and research into complications of pregnancy. Transcript and useful links This is a re-released episode which was first published in March 2021
Mar 06, 2024•19 min
Harpal Sahota is a data scientist at MagicLab, who operate a number of dating apps, including Bumble & Lumen. He studied an MA in Computational Biology at the University of York, and went on to take a PhD in Computational Biology at University of London, before entering the job market, working for the likes of YouGov before settling at MagicLab, where he has worked since January 2020. This is a re-released episode that was first published in May 2020 Useful links and transcript...
Feb 21, 2024•12 min
Alyson Webb is a Director at Frankly Green + Webb, an agency specialising in human-centred design to improve digital experiences in the cultural sector. Listen as Kate gets to the bottom of what Alyson's job looks like. They cover working in the cultural sector, digital experiences, human-centred design thinking, consultancy and more! Alyson's bio: Alyson has worked in the cultural sector for 30 years. As a creative director and innovation programme leader, she has helped countless museums, gall...
Dec 06, 2023•29 min
Kate Every works as a Service Design Practice Lead for global digital transformation company Mastek. Service design is a really interesting area of work that's getting more and more attention. Find out what this job actually involves and how you can get a job in this exciting area! Kate's bio: Kate is a Lead Service Designer specialising in inclusive and ethical design and delivery. She currently works in Service Design consultancy for global digital transformation company Mastek. Her academic b...
Nov 22, 2023•28 min
Dan is a York graduate and works at National Grid where he completed a year in industry before becoming a Transmission Engineer. Dan tells us what his day to day job looks like as well as what you need to know if you're thinking about a career in this area. Dan's bio: I am a Transmission Engineer at National Grid working on design assurance of the protection and control system. I attended York for my Undergraduate where I was given the opportunity to do a year in industry - I am a huge advocate ...
Nov 08, 2023•27 min
Elizabeth studied History of Art and thought she'd go into museum curation, until she discovered the amazing world of consultancy in the heritage sector! She helps museums, theatres and galleries solve problems... everything from how to boost visitor numbers to launching new learning programmes. If you have always wanted to work in heritage and you're interested in what makes people tick, this could be the career for you. Elizabeth's bio: I work with arts and cultural organisations helping them ...
Oct 18, 2023•21 min
Pretty much any student at York can do a placement year or year in industry! And right now second/middle year students can register for the programme. With that in mind, we thought it would make sense to speak to a York student just back from a year out in the world of work. Toby studies History and spent his placement year working in recruitment for Reed. It sounded like a lot of fun. In this episode, he tells Kate what recruitment is like and why everyone, especially History students, should g...
Oct 04, 2023•27 min
Cass is a freelance climate communications consultant in Belgium, working with NGOs, charities and ethical organisations to help them improve their communications and translate the good work they are doing into words the public and policymakers understand. This is a fascinating conversation for anyone interested in: freelancing, working in comms and making a career in climate activism. Cass has some super interesting things to say about following your values, final year career stress and creatin...
Jun 07, 2023•33 min
Lots of people want to work in the rail industry and York graduate Laura has made it happen. She is Technical Head of System Safety at Network Rail, which means it's her job to make sure the railways are safe. Get an insight into what's going on in the sector and what this kind of work is actually like. Laura's bio: I gained a Masters of Engineering at the University of York before starting my career in the rail industry. Over the last fifteen years I have been part of the modernisation of the i...
May 24, 2023•25 min
For grads interested in heritage, Rebecca Thompson might just have the dream job (she describes it as 'one of the best jobs in the world'): Senior Estate Manager at English Heritage, where she cares for over 400 buildings and monuments in England. She has lots of info to help people wanting to get into the sector, including how to network, skills shortages and the impact of climate change. Bio: After starting in commercial construction, Rebecca followed her interest in cultural heritage and stud...
May 10, 2023•21 min
What does an investigative journalist actually do?? Sam Bright studied History at York while running a politics blog in his spare time. He's now the UK Deputy Editor at DeSmog and has written two books. Sam tells Kate what his day looks like and shares his tips for students interested in this kind of work. Sam's bio: Sam Bright is a journalist and author who has written two books: Fortress London and Bullingdon Club Britain. He has worked for the BBC and has been published by the New York Times,...
Apr 26, 2023•34 min
We get a lot of questions about Speech and Language Therapy careers. It's a hugely rewarding area of work where you support and care for people of all ages who have difficulties with speech, language, communication, eating, drinking and swallowing. York graduate Jess is a Speech and Language Therapist working with adults with learning disabilities. Find out about what she does each day and how she got there. As always, full transcript and useful links can be found on our blog . Jess's bio: Jess ...
Mar 01, 2023•27 min
Want to work in the television industry? Tim Dean knows how to make it happen! He graduated from York with a degree in Social Policy and now has 20 years' experience in TV. Tim and Kate talk about how he got into the industry, why you don't need a media degree and what it's actually like producing TV every day. Transcript and useful links on the blog . Tim's bio: BAFTA and RTS award winning Executive Producer with over 20 years’ experience in TV. I've run a whole array of different shows from ju...
Feb 15, 2023•25 min
Kate talks to York graduate Jack about training to be a barrister. Jack studied History and decided to train as a barrister after completing the Teach First Programme. Jack explains what skills you need, what he does each day and how you shouldn't be put off by thinking it isn't a career for you. Full transcript and useful links on the blog . Jack's bio: Hi, I'm Jack, a graduate of the University of York and aspiring barrister. I graduated with a BA in History in 2015 and decided to pursue a car...
Feb 01, 2023•20 min
Something a bit different in this episode - Kate speaks to two Uni of York colleagues about imposter syndrome . What is it? Why does it happen? How can you deal with it? What support is out there for you? In Careers we hear a lot of students mentioning impostor syndrome in relation to their studies and career planning. We also hear it from graduates - and it's come up on the podcast a lot! - so we thought it was time we addressed it head on. Feeling like a fraud and doubting your skills and tale...
Jan 18, 2023•49 min
Bethany is a York graduate and director of Experience Heritage , where she uses her expertise in archaeology and interest in digital storytelling to bring history to live in innovative ways. That could mean augmented reality experiences, interactive heritage apps and digital animation. Bethany tells us how she started her own company after realising there was a gap in the market where she could combine her interests in archaeology and storytelling. There's a full transcript and useful links on o...
Nov 16, 2022•23 min
Interested in startups or working for yourself? That's what this episode is all about. Toby Cannon graduated from York in 2019 with a degree in Computer Science. He now runs Myles , a startup that began as an app allowing people to complete virtual challenges by tracking their fitness activity. He explains what his day looks like, what it takes to work in a startup and what students can do to follow in his footsteps. There's a full transcript and useful links on our blog. Toby's bio: After gradu...
Nov 02, 2022•25 min
Vinusha is a York History student who completed a placement year in the NHS Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Group as a Quality and Safeguarding Support Officer. Vinusha explains what she got out of her placement and has tips for current students starting their placement or work experience search. Full transcript and useful links on our blog. Vinusha's bio: I am currently a History undergraduate student who is completing a placement year at the NHS Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Group. Although ...
Oct 19, 2022•23 min
Want a job in research? Or interested in working in the media? This episode is for you. Today Kate talks to Lucy, York grad and current Journalism Researcher at BBC News, about what her job is actually like. There's a full transcript and useful links on our blog. Lucy's Bio: Lucy is a Journalism Researcher at BBC News, specialising in home and social affairs. Before joining the BBC, she worked as a Research Assistant at a policy think tank in Cambridge. After graduating from York in 2017 with a ...
Oct 05, 2022•27 min
