My Work Experience

14 year old Hannah Oladugba recently completed a week's work experience at Point Blank. This is how she got on:

Hannah's Diary

Monday

Today I arrived at the Point Blank office for the first time. As soon as I got there I was whisked off to the Hackney Town Hall for a Young Hackney web training session with the Hackney Youth Parliament to pitch the new and improved site to them.  I helped set up some of the computer equipment and was then asked to join the session.  During the session we viewed the site (including the remix machine on it) and shared ideas on how to improve the site.  At the end of the session we shared what we thought should change about the site, then we decided to make some amendments to the Hackney Youth Parliament section. We then drew the session to a close and I helped to pack the equipment away.

Tuesday

Today was a little different; the first thing I did was take part in a Music Production Course, where I learnt how to produce my own music using Recyle.  It was nice learning those skills.  After lunch I shadowed Ed, the studio assistant, he showed me around, told me a little about the things he does, things like producing, helping students, running errands in the college and fixing things. 

Wednesday

I had fun today at work, it was great. I was working with the people doing the magazine course that was going on and I was put in charge of writing an article about what not to wear. The day was actually chilled out and more about researching and writing.  I really liked it, I met new people that were easy to make friends with and I was taking the lead on my own page.

Thursday

Another day at Point Blank and today I did some office work.  First I was given some information to put into a spreadsheet, it took a little bit of time but I had some music so it was ok.  When I had completed that, I was given some more work to photocopy and staple, this wasn’t too hard so I completed it quickly.  Today we had lunch in the office which wasn’t a good idea because I spilt water on the computer, I felt embarrassed but I was told that it happens occasionally so I felt better.    

Friday

Today was a little different, when I got into work today I was told we were going out to do marketing; giving out leaflets. It was alright, however there were not many young people out and about so we unable to give out all the leaflets.

Hannah's interview:

1: How have you enjoyed your time at Point Blank?

It’s been great; everyone has been really friendly and helpful. I have learnt new skills and have gained an insight into different aspects of working life. The courses and the time in the office have been fun.  There has been such a big variety of things to do I haven’t been bored at all.

2: What activities have you been involved in?

I have been working in the office doing admin including photocopying, filing and going through the “Young Hackney” website, giving ideas for changes that can be made to make it more suitable to young people. I also took part in some of the courses which were great as I have a lot of interest in music. I took part on the Music Production course where I learnt how to produce my own music and then with the help of ‘Ed’ (the studio assistant) I recorded myself singing on to the track.

I took part in the magazine course where we designed how the pages of the magazine where going to look and took and edited photos that fitted into our articles.

I also helped do a bit of marketing by going out into Hackney and handing out flyers to help recruit young people to help develop the “Young Hackney” website.

3: What was your favourite part of working at Point Blank?

I really enjoyed the Music Production course as I learnt about how to make my own songs and record myself. As I am a singer it’s really useful to know how to make your own tracks as it makes it easier to get your ideas down. I must admit the class was very intense and you do take in a lot of information but that wasn’t a bad thing in this case because there is so much to learn and you never get bored.

4: Would you like to work at Point Blank in the future?

Yeah I would like to work at Point Blank, because it’s a different and really creative environment. I think I would prefer to be a teacher as I already play instruments and sing and I think the office would get boring after a while. My main ambition is to be a doctor; however if I were to pursue a career in music Point Blank would definitely be a great place to work.

5: What are your plans for the rest of the summer/next term?

I will be performing with my Samba group, “Bigger Fish”, at various events including the Notting Hill Carnival and Underage Festival. I will also be singing with my choir in shows and concerts throughout London.

If you are interested in Point Blank work experience contact lavinia@pointblanklondon.com to apply for a place.