Work experience
Hey! I’m Ben, I’m 14 and I have been doing work experience at Oxfam since Monday.
I am here until Tuesday 16th and I have been experiencing what it is like to be working for a charity and in an office environment. I have been working for Amy Christian and working in the media, looking at various pictures and videos from the trips that Oxfam has gone on. I have found the experience refreshing as I have been doing GCSE’s at school for the past year and working in an office has been really different and interesting for me.
I have also learnt more and now care more for the issues in other places in the world and in particular the crisis in Syria. It has made me more aware of what is happening there and in the neighbouring countries.
A lot of my work has been on Words and Pictures (Oxfam’s photo database) and I have been posting photos that I have selected and then captioning them with information that I have gathered off the Oxfam website. I first started with photos from Oxfam’s trip to the Zaatari Refugee camp in Jordan. I was given captions for these photos and I had to write them in. I found this interesting as I didn’t know much about the Syria crisis and the refugee camps in neighbouring countries before this week.
After that I was given a large selection of images from Oxfam’s trip to Glastonbury to launch their Love Syria campaign. I had to choose what I thought were the best pictures and then they were uploaded. Once they were uploaded I had to make all the captions from information I could find about the Love Syria campaign on the Oxfam website and from other images from Glastonbury on Words and Pictures.
It’s not just captions on pictures that I have worked on however as I have also had tasks from other members of the team. I have done research on Filming in Kenya, Solar water pumps and I have even been given tasks such as finding the best prices for certain filming accessories. I sat down on the Thursday to look at over 200 video clips and to caption them, label them, and write what exactly was in each of them. I also had a job earlier this week to try and figure out how to remove the head from a tripod as none of the team actually knew how to take it off. I tried for hours, examining instruction manuals on the internet and actually getting the toolkit out to try and remove the head and I’m sorry to say that I didn’t succeed in the end. But it was fun trying!
So, to describe my work experience so far, I would say it’s been hard work but it’s definitely worth it! I have found it very interesting to not just look deeper into the current world issues and affairs but also to experience work in a proper office environment. I have found it very different to school and it has been refreshing for me.
I will admit that before I came here, I thought that my main job would be just making the tea! But, actually I’m surprised to say that I have been trusted with some really important jobs. I have really felt like it’s my job working here and I have had a significant role in the office. I have been given my own login to the computers and to Words and Pictures so I have been able to do all my own work. As if I am working here for real. I am sure that my last two days here will be as interesting and as informative as the last week and I would like to say thank you to Amy, and the rest of the team for making my time here interesting and enjoyable.
Thanks to Ben for all his hard work – we’re really glad you enjoyed being part of the team!
Great blog Ben! Sounds like you’ve been doing a great job.