"Being able to share my experiences with IAIS students has hopefully allowed some of them to widen their career goal posts and think about alternative paths to follow." Kelly Mullane (graduated 2000) at the alumni panel.

Careers Day in the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies

A variety of careers were discussed on the 12th February at the Institute of Arab and Islamic studies careers day. The first panel was made up from alumni talking about what they did with their degrees in Arab and Islamic studies.  All of the panellists agreed that their degree had been instrumental in their career choices. We heard about working as an Army Arabic linguist, about working as an interpreter and about how to be successful at getting a job in a think tank, with tips from a recent alumnus who is currently a Political Liaison Officer at Quilliam.

The second panel was on “Careers in the Middle East” and brought together professionals who work in archaeology, journalism and NGOs. All the panallist gave advice on how to pursue a career overseas, emphasising how, as a British Arabic speaker, there were great advantages in terms of a career path in museums, archaeology and working for non-governmental organisations.

John Cooper, the Director of Education in the Institute of Arab and Islamic studies commented; “The day was a great opportunity for students to network, and also to gain tips and advice from panellists about routes into employment, and the recruitment process.”

The day was organised collaboratively between Sarah Turner, Alumni Officer, Julia Paci, Employability Manager and with the fantastic support of the IAIS Student Staff Liaison Committee Chairs, Olivia Hardacre and Sarah Davies.

Date: 28 February 2014