Olivia Harvey

Current Employer/Organisation Name

University of Exeter Students’ Guild

What have you been doing since leaving Exeter, and what are you doing now?

Since graduating I was elected into the position of Vice President Activities at the Students’ Guild and am continuing into my second and final year in this role.

Why did you choose this career? And what do you enjoy most about your work?

I chose to run for this role because I had such a wonderful University experience and got so much out of the extra-curricular activity I took part in that I really wanted to do something to ensure other students had the same opportunities to get involved and have a great student experience.

Please tell us if you were a member of any societies, groups or sports clubs?

I was a part of a few theatre societies which included Footlights, Theatre With Teeth, EUTCO and ShakeSoc and was also a member of BodySoc. I was also on the Drama SSLC.

What did you enjoy most about your programme and what was the biggest highlight?

I most enjoyed the flexibility we were given to choose what we wanted to study – I really enjoy Shakespeare so it was great to be able to choose to take modules in this area. My biggest highlight was probably writing my dissertation which was on Gender-Switched Casting on the Contemporary Shakespearean Stage.

What did you enjoy most about studying here?

Every single lecturer or tutor I had were clearly so passionate in the field in which they taught in – this really made a difference and made me very invested in what I was studying.

Why did you choose to study at Exeter?

I was wowed by the campus on an open day – it’s so beautiful here and reminded me of home!

What skills and experiences have been most useful for your career?

Definitely confidence – it’s so important to be confident in your own abilities even when you feel like their are other people in the room who are more skilled than you are. Everyone has their own unique set of skills and that’s really valuable.

What advice would you give to a current student who wishes to pursue your career?

Any career in student unions or higher education is really challenging but a really lovely way to ‘give back’ and use your experiences to improve the experiences of others.

What are your plans for the future?

I’m definitely keen to continue working in a University environment but would like to move more into higher education than student unions. I am also hugely passionate about theatre, creative industries and all things Arts so would love to do something in that area too.