Ashley Curran

Ashley Curran is a Philosophy Graduate with a passion for journalism.

Career Ambition

His career ambition is to combine ‘making a difference’ with creativity.  Ashley’s view on journalism is that this satisfies both of his ambitions – “telling people’s stories in an entertaining and creative as well as making a difference through good objective reporting”.

Career Challenge

Like many graduates over the past few years, Ashley had a great challenge in finding work.  There were many individuals applying for very few job roles. Also, being unemployed for a year did not seem to be working towards Ashley’s advantage.

A Great Opportunity

The advert for Trainee Journalist at Society Media seemed to be the perfect opportunity for Ashley.  He was excited at the prospect of getting training in journalism and having researched the company before applying he became very interested in the social enterprise sector.  

Ashley has a very diverse job role at Society Media.  He researches information for SE100, conducts interviews with top social enterprises, is being trained in how to write news, and has also attended a number of conferences.  Ashley is also learning how to conduct interviews and make calculated decisions and quick analysis of detailed information.

Ashley hopes to improve his writing ability as well as his understanding of journalism.  He also wishes to achieve a greater confidence in his abilities inside and outside of work.  He believes that these new skills will help him in the future with regards to finding new work.

At the start of his placement with Society Media, Ashley was worried that he would not be able to keep up with the steep learning curve.  However, after the initial period he has settled in well.  He enjoys his placement and enjoys working with the people around him as they are always there to support him.

Developing Ashley

Career Coaching sessions have also been beneficial to Ashley.  He looks forward to his sessions and has been given sound advice with regards to work and non-work related matters.  He believes that everyone could benefit from coaching support at work.

“Through six months of paid employment the FJF has given me the opportunity to help myself. I have grabbed that opportunity with both hands and now feel ready to take control of my life".

Find out more information about Career Coaching

Chrisanthi Giotis is Editor and Journalist at Society Media.

Background

Society Media is a Publishing Company which deals with Magazines and PR work.  They have a team of talented communications professionals with a passion for positive social, environmental and economic change.  They also publish their own magazine, Social Enterprise, which is where Trainee Journalist Ashley Curran has been placed via Future Jobs Fund.

The Need for Staff

The magazine itself has a handful of team members which includes Ashley.  Society Media decided to recruit through the Future Jobs Fund for several reasons – Firstly, they were looking for a young intern at the time they discovered the scheme and this allowed them the opportunity to pay them.  They felt the timing was perfect and it was a good opportunity on both parts.

The application process was simple and the response from Striding Out was extremely positive.

The New Recruit

Ashley Curran was hired for the role of Trainee Journalist as Chrisanthi felt that he had a lot of passion for this job role.  Since starting his job role, Ashley has made a big difference to the company.  He has helped deliver the SE100 index project which is a very important part of Society Media.  He is progressing fantastically in his job role and Society Media are extremely pleased with him and what he has brought to the company.

Chrisanthi believes that the coaching support provided by Striding Out is a good thing for Ashley.  She feels that it is a benefit to him, which improves his work performance.

The Success!

After the success of Ashley, Society Media have decided to take on two more young people through the Future Jobs Fund!

“The Future Jobs Fund has been a really good experience.  The Striding Out Coach makes a real difference, especially when it comes to the future goals of our Future Jobs Fund employee.  I would definitely recommend this scheme to other employers as we have had a great benefit from it”.

Click here to find out more about the Future Jobs Fund Scheme.