Amy
Manktelow

Amy studied BA Politics and International Relations and MA International Relations, PGDip Research Practice, PhD International Relations whilst a student at NTU.  Fast forward to today and Amy is now working at the University within Project Management. Amy spoke to us about the support she got from NTU as a student that helped her along her career journey.

Why did you choose to study at NTU?

To be honest, I had never heard of NTU until I saw it still had spaces available through Clearing, this was when they still published courses that had space in national newspapers. It was here or somewhere in Scotland and 18 year old me thought that might be a bit far from London for someone who hadn’t spent much time outside the M25, so I made the phone call. I’d never stepped foot on any of our campuses until the day I moved into Peverell on Clifton Campus. Whilst it wasn’t the most “normal” way of picking a university, I certainly have never looked back, sometimes going in head first with no idea what is at the other side works!

Tell us about your memories of NTU, what did you learn?

I learnt so much, some of which is getting a little vague in my memory as it was nearly 20 years ago! However, the best thing I learnt during my university experience is to be an unapologetic version of yourself. It sounds so corny but I really found myself at NTU, all the staff and students I met along my journey were supportive and encouraging. I also learnt the value of taking part in extracurricular activities and the positive impact they can have on you as an individual. As I was writing up my PhD I worked as an Outreach Ambassador with the Centre for Student and Community Engagement, I learnt the resounding positive impact students can have on the local community. It taught me that committing to activities outside of lectures allows you to meet others outside of your course and to get a fresh perspective on your studies, I wish I had done it sooner in my NTU journey!

What did you do that enhanced your employment prospects whilst studying?

Whenever I needed support regarding employment I always went to the Employability team to get help with application writing and interview techniques. The staff were always helpful and the online material was useful to access if I needed anything else.

What does your current working day involve as Project Manager here at NTU?

Project management doesn’t have a typical day, especially when you support a large department. What is good about working in Higher Education is the cyclical nature of projects and you will find yourself doing similar tasks based on the time of year. For example, we currently in the planning phase for the next academic year so I am spending time with the amazing teams of the Centre for Academic Development and Quality getting their plans ready for 2023/24. “Typical” for me is expect the unexpected, project management in HE is never linear and that is what I love about it.

What attracted you to this field of work?

Helping and supporting people has always been something I’m good at but if you’d told me 10 years ago that I would be a project manager, I would have laughed! However, as my career developed I realised that I have a flair for guiding and leading people through their work whilst creating and developing some of my own amazing projects along the way. Project management can be very structured, but it can also be a space for creativity and change, that is what attracted me to it.

I’ve spent a good chunk of my life having no idea what I wanted to do when I “grew up” – to be honest I still feel like I’m making it up as I go along. I spent my 20’s worrying about if I’d met the “right” milestones, as people around me got their dream jobs and promotions. I compared myself to people I graduated with and ended up feeling like a failure. However, I came to realise your journey isn’t comparable to someone else’s because it yours.

What are your plans for the future?

I definitely want to stay in Higher Education but the exciting thing about project management is that it can take you to lots of different areas of the sector, it’s very exciting!

Finally, if you had a time machine, what would you go back and tell yourself at Uni?

Experience as much as you can while you have the time to do it.

Connect with Amy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-amy-manktelow-00ab66180/