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Ananya Sharma

January 16th, 2025

How my career goals have changed since joining LSE

1 comment

Estimated reading time: 10 minutes

Ananya Sharma

January 16th, 2025

How my career goals have changed since joining LSE

1 comment

Estimated reading time: 10 minutes

Since joining LSE and taking on a variety of work experience, my career goals have shifted hugely from what I thought I wanted to do to what I know for sure I want to do. It can be an overwhelming process thinking about what a future career looks like for you, but I found that the more opportunities you take to explore different avenues, the clearer that future becomes.

My first year was a whirlwind of reading, essays, socialising and much more, but I was able to find some time to think about my career goals and what I wanted. Like several people at LSE, I did a spring insight scheme at a bank to see what working in the financial industry would be like. Coming from a non-finance degree background, it was a challenging yet hugely rewarding experience to gain insight on a completely unfamiliar sector for me, and helped me make valuable connections with people in the industry. For any first year students reading this, spring weeks and insight schemes can be a great way to explore many different industries, as most of them are during the Spring break and don’t clash with university work. They show you what working in different sectors is like – any personal insight gained is incredibly helpful in determining your career goals and what you want in the future.

That being said, spring insight schemes are definitely not the end-goal by any means – other work experience is just as valuable in helping you learn about yourself and your working style. For me, my work as a blogger, events steward and receptionist at the Student Union have all helped me develop different transferable skills and discover more about what I love. I love working with people as part of a team, but also value autonomy over my workload, especially as a student blogger. These part-time work experiences are sometimes dismissed as ‘casual’ work,  but in my opinion all work is valuable and can teach you something. Now that I’m at the stage where I’m applying for summer internships and work experience, knowing what I look for in a company and its mission has helped me write better applications and approach my future career with confidence, knowing what I want.

Looking back at my younger self, she definitely would not have predicted an interest in banking, finance or the legal sector – she wanted to be a princess! I’ve been able to take advantage of numerous opportunities whilst being at LSE, and the most important thing I’ve learnt is that the sky’s the limit. My mum always says that you only get the opportunities you put yourself forward for, and I think it’s some of the best advice I have in terms of approaching your career goals. The more experiences you have, the more you’ll know about what you like and dislike, and it can also help dispel some stereotypes or myths around particular sectors. 

University is the time to discover yourself – don’t worry if you haven’t got everything figured out just yet. People who have been working for 5, 10, 15 even 20 years are still finding out what it is they want from their career and what goals they’d like to achieve. Having a fixed plan for your future after university is by no means necessary. Now’s the time to explore all your options and have a go – who knows where you might end up?

About the author

Ananya Sharma

My name is Ananya Sharma, a first year undergraduate student from the UK studying History. As well as reading and studying history, I love listening to music, going on long walks in the city and trying new restaurants in the area.

Posted In: Careers

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