Global Marketing Agency Champions Grimsby Institute

I was studying Computer Science somewhere else, originally, and I realised I preferred the design elements of that course – so jumped ship to concentrate on Creative and Interactive Design at Grimsby Institute.

The Grimsby Institute course helped my personal development – what I wanted to be, how I should go into it, what I should do and, importantly, what I should avoid. I got to explore different skills and find what I was good at and what I enjoyed.

That’s how I learned that my real skills lay in creating brands, building websites and generally in marketing.

So, my Grimsby Institute course gave me confidence about my abilities and it gave me the confidence to talk to people in the industry, which got me my first jobs.

I genuinely believe that doing a degree at Grimsby Institute’s University Centre gives you opportunities – but it doesn’t spoon feed you. You have to have the determination and the energy to do work yourself. You have to learn to solve problems yourself – because that’s the greatest life skill you can learn.

In return, you’ll get to meet and enjoy working with new, fascinating people. You’ll learn a new, professional language. You’ll be driven to discover new skills you didn’t know you had and, if you’re lucky, you’ll find the thing that you love and want to do forever. And, importantly, going to university lets you have fun while you’re learning.

My tutors were very interesting, real characters with a lot of experience that they shared with us. I enjoyed learning from them. Indeed, they impressed me so much, I was happy to go back into the department a few years later to work alongside them.

As a Teacher and Programme Leader, I found that the greatest moment (and I think most teachers will agree) is when you see that lightbulb go on in a student’s eyes. There is that moment of realisation – when you realise that thing you’ve loved your whole life, be it creating video games, writing stories, cooking, caring for animals, fixing cars, whatever – that thing can be your career!

Grimsby Institute is the place where those things you really care about, can become the things you do for a living for the rest of your life.

I learned a lot when I was teaching. My mentoring skills, for example, were developed there and I carry those through into my Creative Director role, now.

When Institute graduates come to CMA, they bring a new perspective – a new energy. They’re full of ambitious ideas and their enthusiasm brings a freshness to the business.

At CMA, we allow people to choose their own fate – to develop their skills in the areas they love. We have a commercial directive, of course, but we’re happy for staff – especially new ones – to experiment.

Through completing a range of jobs for a range of clients, they can find the things they love the most and, provided we can see commercial value in it, we’re happy for them to develop their career in that direction.

Here at CMA, everyone has that passion. We take enthusiasm, along with the skills learned at the Institute, and use them creatively and productively. Why? Because everyone, wherever they are, has the right to build for themselves a good, fun career that they enjoy.

I studied two courses at Grimsby Institute – firstly a Graphic Design Diploma and then I went on to the University Centre to do my Degree in Creative & Interactive Design, for which I received a First!

In 2012, I was working for my grandad’s business and he wanted to have a website – so I went to Grimsby Institute simply to learn how to do that. While there, I found I was really enjoying the course. I enjoyed the subject, the culture and the people I was working with – I had no idea that I was interested in design until I discovered it through my studies.

So, I made the decision to pursue a career in design and felt I should go to university to do that. I was accepted at three unis, but decided on Grimsby, in part, because I was already living in a shared house and already had a part-time job, so learning locally would allow me to continue with all this.

But, also, when I met the staff on the design course, I was really impressed by them and by the facilities that were available – all of which made the course feel very appealing.

There was no sense of ‘making do’, it was the course I wanted at the place I wanted!

I learned about designing for specific needs, working within deadlines and, of course, loads of new design skills.

Working with other creatives with a range of other specialisms was also really interesting – I learned a lot from collaborating with my peers.

And, of course, I learned a lot from my tutors, not just in terms of their skills but also their industry experience. Working in a studio with fellow Creatives prepared me for the real world of work.

Some of the highlights have included working with TeamGB at the Olympics which, being a sporty person, I loved. I have also developed full brand identities from scratch and, now, I get to mentor other designers.

I have recommended the Institute many times – including to my younger brother – because I had a great time there and learned everything I needed to go on and forge a world-class career.

I studied a degree in Business Management and I purposefully chose Grimsby Institute’s University Centre because it allowed me to get the higher education I wanted, whilst staying local. Like many people, I had commitments so I had to stay local, which meant the Institute gave me an opportunity I would have otherwise missed.

The Grimsby Institute degree was also perfect for me because it included elements of Sociology, Politics and Ethics, which gave the course a more holistic scope – much more than other courses I checked out. I wanted to have that wider experience.

I think the most consistently useful business skills I learned were around people management and dealing with change.

Also, one of the great things Grimsby Institute taught me was how to learn independently. Learning to learn is a fantastically important skill in an ever-changing employment landscape.

Thanks to Grimsby Institute, I am skilled in developing strategies based on my understanding of processes. I can look at a business workflow, or a campaign strategy, and see where issues may arise, so to prevent or mitigate them.

That kind of attention to detail has proven remarkably important in building marketing campaigns. Whilst working at CMA, I have developed skills in a broad spectrum of marketing disciplines including pay-per-click, social media marketing and SEO.

I get to find out what my strengths are and develop them. In some workplaces you get into a groove – you’re doing this specific job and that’s all you do – here I get to explore.

I took two courses at Grimsby Institute, first there was my Motor Vehicle Apprenticeship, then I followed that with a Computing Extended Diploma.

I chose the Apprenticeship, first, because I had school-based work experience in a motor vehicle business and enjoyed that, so the opportunity to get an Apprenticeship as a mechanic was very appealing.

Although I ultimately decided to take my career in a different direction, I still gained a lot from the Apprenticeship – such as customer support skills and how to speak to customers in a professional way. I developed a great grasp of time management in order to get cars back to customers in good time. I created structured workflows and pre-planned jobs to work most effectively and efficiently. One of the most important things I learned was how to work as part of a team and how to communicate clearly with my co-workers.

Fixing and building computers had always been a hobby, but I’d never seen it as a career option. Then, whilst working at the garage, there were occasions when the company computers needed fixing or updating. I found that I enjoyed doing that even more than fixing the cars. It was a real lightbulb moment for me and I decided I wanted to have a career working under the bonnets of computers instead of cars.

Grimsby Institute offered the exact course I was looking for with a variety of skills that were appealing to me – ranging from 3D Modelling at one end of the spectrum, to Networking at the other.

This was important because, while I knew I wanted to work with computers, I wasn’t yet sure which part of the industry I wanted to specialise in. The Diploma offered such a variety of skills it prepared me for the varied role I now have.

For example, my first pieces of college coursework were around web development fundamentals – followed by building websites. Both of these disciplines immediately proved useful when I started at CMA, as I now help create and maintain the websites that CMA builds and manages.

The structure of the modules at Grimsby Institute were relevant, always fresh and challenging. My interest never waned.

The support I had from the tutors was one of the highlights – no question was too difficult for them. They told me very early on that if they didn’t know something, they would find out – which they did. That is something that I have adopted in my own work. I love being tasked to do things I have never done before. Every day at CMA is a school day!