A student’s experience on academic placement

At the beginning of my third year studying English Literature at Reading, I realised I should finally start paying attention to all those emails we get about getting ‘real world experience’. I have always been interested in the theatre so I went along to a meeting with Cindy Becker, talked to her about my interests and the modules I was taking, and she helped me to organise a fantastic placement with Reading Rep Theatre.

Reading-Rep-logo

Reading Rep is a new professional theatre company in Reading, and during the time I did my placement, the company was putting on a production of A Christmas Carol. My placement mainly consisted of observing the rehearsal process and the actual performances, and helping with front-of-house duties. I am currently writing my report about everything I learned, relating it to the module I took the placement in conjunction with: ‘Victorian and Edwardian Children’s Fantasy’.

 The best thing about the placement was that it has opened up further opportunities for me within the company. I was involved in marketing for their most recent production Miss Julie, and look forward to helping out with their future productions as well.

My placement with Reading Rep was extremely valuable to me as a literature student with a particular interest in drama. I learnt so much about the processes involved in transforming a script into a brilliant piece of theatre, and everyone was so kind and helpful to me. I am so glad I did it, and feel much more confident about my prospects working in this industry. I would recommend academic placements to any student!

Jennifer Jope

About Cindy

Associate Professor in the Department of English Literature at the University of Reading. Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
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