Sally McCarroll

Current Employer/Organisation Name

Unilever 

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

I was unemployed for a year after I graduated in 2020. I was offered a place on the Unilever marketing grad scheme, which started in Sept 2021. I was in an Assistant Brand Manager marketing role for Pot Noodle 2021-2022, and now I am in a global data analyst role. 

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

I chose this career because it aligned with what I wanted professionally – something creative, that works with people, and has a wide variety of tasks/roles. I enjoy the variety of the job, and the fact I get to work with people from different countries

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

The teachers are incredibly dedicated and brilliant resources. I was a big fan of the Acts of Writing module in my final year. 

What did you enjoy most about studying here?

The teachers are wonderful, the campus is beautiful and I met some life-long friends. 

Why did you choose to study at Exeter?

At the time I was applying, UOE was very highly ranked in the league tables for English Literature .

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

It’s less to do with the skills/experience you have, and more to do with how you frame it/how you frame your story. I had no ‘professional’/corporate experience before joining Unilever – I had lots of volunteering and mentor work, and I was able to use that to evidence my people skills, amongst other things. 

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

If you are from a working class background, apply to join the charity upReach, They partner with UOE and helped me indefinitely in my job searching progress. Apart from this – LinkedIn is your best friend. It is hard to get used to at first, but some of the best advice you can get is reaching out to people in these roles and asking for advice. For every 10 people that ignore your message, you’ll get one person who will provide invaluable insight that you can’t find elsewhere. 

What are your plans for the future?

Keep learning and growing – keep trying new things. I want to pursue professional mentoring in a larger capacity too.