Here in the Finance Department we’re making a conscious effort to engage with our students; not only increasing the volume and quality of information we distribute but also by offering work experience opportunities to enhance your career prospects.

In 2013 we…

…Produced the hugely successful ‘Finance Guide’ and with the help of the Students’ Union, distributed nearly 7000 copies! If you missed it – check it out here.

…Created this student-facing site, hosting a variety of useful Finance-related info and links. This is most definitely ‘work-in-progress’  so please let us know how you think we could improve it to best serve you.

…Got with the times and got a Twitter account. We now have well over 200 followers (!) which isn’t too bad considering people’s perception of Finance being a bit of a dry subject…Again this is a starting point to build on as we see Twitter as a great way of contacting the department; nobody likes hanging around on the phone so why not let us have a look into the query first before either calling you back or better yet, replying on Twitter.

…Provided work experience by employing a graduate photography student and four budding student models to produce catalogue images for our new range of branded clothing (see here).

…Had a student shadow the CFO, with student Ashley Moore accompanying our Chief Finance Officer to meetings and in her general daily activities as part of the ‘Staff and Student Insight Scheme’.

…Had a total of four Student Ambassadors assisting the team in areas such as Accounts Receivable, Treasury, Accounts Payable and in Student Engagement itself.

On top of all this, in 2014 we’re…

…Producing an international ‘Finance Guide’, working closely with the international office to tailor and translate the guide for our students from overseas.

…Organising student focus groups to capture views on such issues as the enrolment process, distribution of information and payment mechanisms.

…Hosting the first ‘Finance Support Clinic’ with great support from the Students’ Union. This will be a one-stop-shop for any Finance query you may have. The event will benefit from expertise from all around the University in areas such as billing, bursaries & scholarships, payments and financial welfare & support. For more information see here.

…Launching ‘Ask the Team’, an initiative in which Media students will stage interviews with a cross-section of our Finance colleagues, talking about their past experiences and qualifications leading up to their current role. The idea being to give an insight to students interested in a future in Finance.

…Launching the ‘Strategic Competitor Project’. The creation of our CFO, this project pits teams of Business students against one another to produce the best and most comprehensive analysis of the University’s competitor set (for more information click here, to register visit here).

And there’s certainly more on our agenda!
If you have any suggestions please let us know: @UoL_Finance