Extra-curricular Activities
Introduction
There is invaluable experience as well as a community to gain from societies and other activities. Because I am passionate about a variety of topics, my extra-curricular activities have been wide-ranging -- from empowering communities through ENACTUS to organising my own singer-songwriter projects.
In this section, I would like to focus on 3 main key areas- creativity, leadership, and sustainability- by describing 3 key incidents from my engagement in Glasgow University Climate Action (GUCA), ENACTUS and my singer-songwriter ventures. All three experiences have widened my collaboration and communication skills, confidence, resourcefulness and adaptability.
In this section, I would like to focus on 3 main key areas- creativity, leadership, and sustainability- by describing 3 key incidents from my engagement in Glasgow University Climate Action (GUCA), ENACTUS and my singer-songwriter ventures. All three experiences have widened my collaboration and communication skills, confidence, resourcefulness and adaptability.
Glasgow University Climate Action
© Milena Kula
I have been involved in the Green Movement as an activist from around the age of 16, starting my own environmental group at school, organising events, attending demonstrations and connecting with fellow activists.
Joining the University of Glasgow Climate Action Society (GUCA) has helped me build a strong community of like-minded people in Glasgow which, in turn, has increased my ethical and social awareness through discussions with members and the work involved in the Society. Working in the Divestment Campaign with NGOs such as 350.org and People & Planet has increased my critical thinking and investigative skills as I learned to look at arguments pertaining to divestment from different angles. This also gave me the chance to read Naomi Klein’s Book “This Changes Everything”, which has immensely widened my horizons on environmental issues. Being part of GUCA has also increased my adaptability as many actions and events are organized last-minute due to the vast coordination necessary between groups. Most importantly, GUCA has made me more resourceful and responsible.-> © Milena Kula
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-> During Green Week led by the Glasgow University Environmental Sustainability Team (GUEST) in February, I was given the task to prepare a workshop called “Live a Little Greener” options we can choose in our daily lives. My job included keeping the team on track, working on the workshop content, deciding on energizers, preparing snacks and materials ready in time for the workshop.
In doing so I managed a team of 3 people and learned valuable leadership skills. I organized meeting times through Google Calendar to discuss workshop content and a communal baking session to enhance group bonding. During the meetings I gave everyone the space they needed to feel comfortable with one another. I also ensured all members could contribute their thoughts and ideas to the content by setting up a shared Google Document File; my aim was to use a collaborative-leadership style rather than a top-down approach. Thus my three peers took on tasks they enjoyed doing and were able to deliver results effectively. Through planning ahead and considering all aspects of the preparation needed, I used my time management skills to set deadlines to complete the tasks and review the process. This led us to become a highly motivated team that delivered a well-rounded workshop, which received a highly positive feedback.
“Live a Little Greener” was a vital experience as I motivated everyone to contribute equally and created a strong bond within our team (I am still very good friends with all three of them) and within the Society as a whole. This in turn has lead other groups to ask me for guidance and help in preparing and facilitating seminars, such as organizers of the Refugee Week 2015 in Glasgow, who have asked me for advice on running a workshop on the topic of how climate change has caused forced resettlement. For more information about GUCA, click below:
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Graduate attributes developed
(See Graduate Attributes Defined for more information)
Adaptability
Critical Thinking
Ethical & Social Awareness
Investigative
Resourcefulness & Responsibility
(See Graduate Attributes Defined for more information)
Adaptability
Critical Thinking
Ethical & Social Awareness
Investigative
Resourcefulness & Responsibility
Impact on university studies and future employability
My endeavours in the environmental movement and the involvement in the Climate Action Society helped me consider issues in relation to the “bigger picture”. It has encouraged me to understand the cause and effect of social and economic structures. This, in turn, prompted my understanding of the correlation between academic subject areas and current social issues. As an aspiring entrepreneur, my social and ethical awareness fosters the vital skill of comprehending the dramatic impact businesses have on the surrounding social structure. Given the economic, social and environmental changes this century still faces, this proficiency is decisive for the success of a social entrepreneur.
The comprehensive thinking style practiced in the environmental movement has also helped me write well-rounded essays. Assessing multiple perspectives of a topic and questioning viewpoints has helped me critically assess the material given in class. .
My endeavours in the environmental movement and the involvement in the Climate Action Society helped me consider issues in relation to the “bigger picture”. It has encouraged me to understand the cause and effect of social and economic structures. This, in turn, prompted my understanding of the correlation between academic subject areas and current social issues. As an aspiring entrepreneur, my social and ethical awareness fosters the vital skill of comprehending the dramatic impact businesses have on the surrounding social structure. Given the economic, social and environmental changes this century still faces, this proficiency is decisive for the success of a social entrepreneur.
The comprehensive thinking style practiced in the environmental movement has also helped me write well-rounded essays. Assessing multiple perspectives of a topic and questioning viewpoints has helped me critically assess the material given in class. .
ENACTUS - Career Camp
Career Camp is a project to help beneficiaries in the Maryhill area of Glasgow through the help of the Prince’s Trust to improve their employability skills and build their confidence through workshops and placements. This, in turn, is part of the head student organisation ENACTUS Glasgow, which aims to empower people in their local communities through entrepreneurial action.
© Milena Kula
During term time, our main task as a group consisted of coordinating our activities with the Prince’s Trust and working on the content of the workshops. This hugely increased my adaptability as the Prince’s Trust changed their schedule mid-way through the programme so that we had to coordinate a new project schedule amongst ourselves. Through good communication and flexibility of the ENACTUS team members, we were able to split up the workshop dates so that two members were available to facilitate. This solution worked for all of us - I booked a flight early back to Glasgow to be there for the sessions, which were delivered in mid-April. The participants were very satisfied with the content and we received positive feedback from the Prince’s Trust as well. This experience also improved my confidence and social awareness as I engaged and motivated 15 beneficiaries who came from very deprived areas and homes in Glasgow and lacked self-confidence. Through interactive energizers, short immersive activities, group work and 1- on - 1 interview sessions we were able to keep our audience motivated and boost their self-assuredness. ->
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Most importantly, by gaining contact with a local NGO called XChange Scotland which gives young people the opportunity to volunteer abroad, I was able to coordinate a meeting with the recipients interested in this opportunity and the manager of the NGO. This way, these participants managed to get involved in their local and global community.
ENACTUS also increased my confidence through the Regional Competition that takes place each year in March. By preparing a speech on Career Camp and delivering it to jurors at the EY offices in central Glasgow, I came in contact with professionals to whom I had to present the project clearly and convincingly. By fully answering their questions and delivering a well-rehearsed presentation, we were invited to the National Competition in London in May. Here again, I was given the task to present our project in front of about 50 people, which greatly increased my public speaking and presentation skills as well as my confidence in communicating effectively.
© ENACTUS UK
Lastly, at the Annual General Elections meeting I expressed my concern for the lack of input on our Social Media Pages. I was then appointed Social Media Officer and given the task to monitor our Facebook and Twitter pages. This experience has given me the opportunity to understand and use twitter communicating messages effectively to the right audience. The ENACTUS Twitter page grew its followers to 200+ and made important connections with people in vital industries. It has also helped me to stay disciplined as it was my responsibility to post on the Twitter page daily. Not only has this increased my palette of skills; it has also increased my communication techniques and resourcefulness.
For more information about ENACTUS Glasgow, click below:
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Graduate attributes developed
(see Graduate Attributes defined below)
Adaptability
Confidence
Experienced Collaborator
Effective Communicator
(see Graduate Attributes defined below)
Adaptability
Confidence
Experienced Collaborator
Effective Communicator
Impact on university studies and future employability
The impact of ENACTUS on my future career has been huge, as this Society helped grow my interest in entrepreneurship and develop my own community cafe project ideas in April 2015, which has in turn made me resourceful and responsible. Furthermore, working in a tight-knit team and gaining presentation skills will be of great advantage in any work space. Most importantly, ENACTUS has given me insight into a variety of companies ranging from ASDA to EY and awakened my interest in consultancy as well as how to communicate in business.
In terms of academia, writing the reports and preparing the PowerPoint for the regional and national competitions have shown me how important structure, visualisation, team work and rehearsal - and thus reflective learning- are in delivering a good presentation.
The impact of ENACTUS on my future career has been huge, as this Society helped grow my interest in entrepreneurship and develop my own community cafe project ideas in April 2015, which has in turn made me resourceful and responsible. Furthermore, working in a tight-knit team and gaining presentation skills will be of great advantage in any work space. Most importantly, ENACTUS has given me insight into a variety of companies ranging from ASDA to EY and awakened my interest in consultancy as well as how to communicate in business.
In terms of academia, writing the reports and preparing the PowerPoint for the regional and national competitions have shown me how important structure, visualisation, team work and rehearsal - and thus reflective learning- are in delivering a good presentation.
Music4Youth
At an early age, the love for piano improvisation lead me to experiment with harmonies and melody. At age 11, I was introduced to the skill of writing poetry, and soon discovered my fascination for song writing, which combined my interests for language and music. Practicing my singer-songwriter skills, I overcame my fear of failure and performed my songs at local events, which increased my confidence. This led me to record my first demo at age 16, filming the music video for the song soon after that.
As a musician, it is important to practice essential networking skills with producers, venue managers, fellow musicians and technicians. New to Glasgow in 2014, I wanted to become part of the local scene to build a community, gain experience and experiment with genres. I attended numerous local gigs and open mic events, contacted musicians at the Royal Conservatoire and found musicians through the Contemporary Music Society at Glasgow University. Despite having a small music social group at the start, I often had to push past my comfort zone and attend events on my own. Having to approach people (who often had strong Glaswegian accents) improved my networking and communication skills. This, in turn, led me to perform at the Queen Margaret Union, The Project Cafe and Bank Street Cafe to great success: In May 2014, I took the chance to apply as a musician to the Music4Youth Festival taking place at The Arches in June 2015. This was a great way to connect with others and the industry and to build my performance training. I was then invited to perform at a singer-songwriter workshop with the renowned composer David Scott. This experience enhanced my performance and songwriter skills as well as increasing my time-management and communication skills. |
I rehearsed the piece over a 2-month period and wrote and re-wrote the song numerous times along the way. Having attended Creative Writing classes, I reflected on my learning process writing poetry and began to use repetition and imagery to enhance the meaning of the song. I also learned valuable time-management skills as I had to estimate the practice time needed and set myself internal deadlines (when to finish the final lyric plan, when to find and decide on performance outfits, how often piano/voice needs to practice together) to be ready for the final performance day. Because I was working with two other very busy musicians, it was important to coordinate rehearsal times and a rehearsal room accordingly and communicate with both individuals in an effective manner.
Effective communication was especially important as both musicians helped to build and recreate the song using the instruments of voice, piano and violin. Since the song had first been written for piano and voice, the violin part was added in the process and readjustments between instruments had to take place. Furthermore, I was also the main contact person of my band for the organizers of Music4Youth and had to relate essential information to my musicians and friends who wished to attend the performance. This increased my adaptability as the Event was moved to another venue (The Platform) about 45 min further via transport on very short notice. It was my task to let my friends and fans know about this change and provide details on venue location and transportation possibilities. The performance itself was very successful and concluded as a valuable learning experience. Many of my friends came to support and film me, my fellow musicians were happy with their execution of the piece and David Scott and the audience were impressed. Despite abysmal sound acoustics, I had the chance to perform on a large stage, use the space, and set the atmosphere of the piece. I learned how many factors are vital to a great performance - from focused musicians, to carefully chosen light and sound effects, quality of acoustics and excitement and attention of the audience.
The performance led me to organise a producer and professional studio to record the song for EP material. The experience also helped me gain the confidence to set up a Facebook Page for my singing-songwriting endeavours, continue writing more pieces and collaborating on future music video projects.
For more information about the performance and my musical endeavours, click below:
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Graduate attributes developed
(See Graduate Attributes Defined for more information)
Confidence
Experienced Collaborator
Reflective Learner
Subject specialist
(See Graduate Attributes Defined for more information)
Confidence
Experienced Collaborator
Reflective Learner
Subject specialist
Impact on university studies and future employability
Music4Youth has encouraged me to reflect on my musical style and the genre I would like to market myself in. As an independent artist, it is vital to become a brand your audience can identify with and become accustomed to.
These vital marketing skills have been useful in other areas of my life, such as ENACTUS as well as in my Business & Management degree, where I learned the basics of marketing principles last semester and became a subject specialist in marketing. They will also become useful once I market myself professionally in job interviews, CVs and assessment centres.
Furthermore, working with other people and understanding and communicating creative ideas effectively is not only vital in my Music Course but will be equally important during my work in the creative industries. This also ties in with finding the confidence in my abilities which will ensure I can manage projects and tasks well and find appropriate areas to delegate to others according to my skills-set.
Acting simultaneously as promoter, marketer, manager, musician, songwriter and coordinator I also first appreciated the role of a music manager and gave consideration to pursuing a career as a music manager, as I gained confidence in the tasks of delegating and communicating with all parties involved.
Music4Youth has encouraged me to reflect on my musical style and the genre I would like to market myself in. As an independent artist, it is vital to become a brand your audience can identify with and become accustomed to.
These vital marketing skills have been useful in other areas of my life, such as ENACTUS as well as in my Business & Management degree, where I learned the basics of marketing principles last semester and became a subject specialist in marketing. They will also become useful once I market myself professionally in job interviews, CVs and assessment centres.
Furthermore, working with other people and understanding and communicating creative ideas effectively is not only vital in my Music Course but will be equally important during my work in the creative industries. This also ties in with finding the confidence in my abilities which will ensure I can manage projects and tasks well and find appropriate areas to delegate to others according to my skills-set.
Acting simultaneously as promoter, marketer, manager, musician, songwriter and coordinator I also first appreciated the role of a music manager and gave consideration to pursuing a career as a music manager, as I gained confidence in the tasks of delegating and communicating with all parties involved.