Work experience at CUP: What, why and how? 

I’m more than proud to say I have completed my work experience placement at the University Printing House at Cambridge University Press – the oldest publisher of its kind, and one that cannot be compared to other university presses due to there being such rich history. But how and why did I choose CUP, what does work experience involve, and most importantly what did I gain from my experience at the Press? 

I chose CUP to be my first option for work experience due to my own curiosity about an initially daunting, global organisation. After applying for the place, I was invited to two interviews for the placements I was most interested in – Editorial, and Marketing (which I was given the place for). Even the application process was teaching me how to apply for jobs and future placements, and the added interview experience gave me exposure to what the working world roughly resembled. 

After being introduced to the team and what they do, I was set my first task, which was to find and record any errors or statistics that need updating on the Cambridge Core Librarians page – I had to learn some basic level of marketing from the Library Marketing team. My other tasks were also explained to me – this blog, and to prepare and present a presentation about my work experience at CUP. 

I arrived knowing I wanted to achieve three key aims during the week; to develop my marketing skills, to gain an insight into what a business is really like, and to prove to myself that I can do things outside of my comfort zone. My marketing skills gradually developed over the week, as I completed more tasks, and was exposed to more and more marketing vocabulary, projects, and overall way of thinking. As my marketing skills progressed, so did my gauge on the business environment; I attended meetings, met new people, and immersed myself in the marketing and business workplace, as the more opportunities I took, the greater the amount of understanding I had for this particular setting. Finally, once I had become familiar with the feel of the workplace, the more comfortable I got – which proves that even if I push myself to do things that are out of my comfort zone, I can enjoy them – which I have greatly over the course of the week. I can use this experience as a future reference for myself when I am approaching new challenges; to go about it openly and to take and try new experiences whenever I get the opportunity to do so. 

However, I would not have reached my potential during this week if I didn’t have the Library Marketing team who explained everything so clearly and were always really kind and supportive. After the entire experience at Cambridge University Press I can confidently say I am even more interested in marketing and business and would like to carry on down that road, whether it be A-Levels, university, or an interest that I continue developing myself. I believe by having explored more branches into the different areas of marketing, my eyes have opened up to the scale of possibilities that not just marketing has, but business in general too.