毕业生就业能力我s a key priority at UWTSD Swansea College of Art

15.05.2019

Students at UWTSD Swansea College of Art were given insights into potential career options by two of the University’s graduates.

Sean Ellis and Richard Baldwin both work at iCreate, a Swansea-based 3D visualisation and animation company specialising within the property market internationally.

The aim of the session was to demonstrate to current students studying Animation, Games Design, Advertising, Graphic Design and Illustration, the range of career opportunities available with the skills that they have acquired whilst at University.

Both Sean and Richard took the opportunity to talk about the company’s work and also their route into their careers. In addition, they advocated the importance of not only having a good portfolio to show to prospective employers but also the need to demonstrate enthusiasm, interest and the ability to work in a team with other creative colleagues.

Richard, started his educational journey studying a HND before completing an undergraduate degree and Master’s at Swansea College of Art. A EU-funded placement programme introduced him to iCreate and eventually a job as a Senior 3D Animator with the company. Richard said: “We presented some of the work that we’ve done in the last couple of years and wanted to get to know the students so that they can get to know us and send in their CV’s. We wanted to tell them that we’re here because maybe they haven’t researched companies who are out there!”

Sean, who decided to go to University to study Games Design after working for several years in a call centre, said: “我们今天来这里有两个原因;1、在iCreate we’re always on the lookout for talent and we want everyone to know that we’re here, come and knock on our door, come and see us. If you’ve got what it takes you could end up with an internship, or getting a job or making a career out of it.

“Secondly, we wanted to inspire students to start looking into different sectors that aren’t necessarily the most obvious choices that are related to their course. So, if you’re studying Games Design we want to break the mould to thinking that you need to work in big corporations like WeSoft, ER or Rockstar, which is great as some people will get in there - but for some they may not want to work for a huge organisation or move that far away. But they may not know that they’ve spent the last few years learning a trade, a skill that’s applicable to loads of different sectors. So that’s what I wanted to do was open their eyes, get them thinking outside the box of what else they could do to earn a living using the skills that they’ve acquired at University”.

Derek Bainton, Head of School of Graphic and Digital Arts said: “There was a tangible buzz of inspiration and creative energy amongst our students, our staff and Rich & Sean from iCreate today. We are really proud and thankful to have Sean come back to visit us so soon after graduating and giving back to our students, inspiring and invaluable experiences he has already gained. Rich continues to be an important contributor to our annual public Animation conference, SAND, giving our students and wider audience insights into the diverse opportunities open to them through study with us.”