'Don't wait for a job title': Alumna urges students to take initiative
In a talk delivered to undergraduates in the School of Creative Arts, Culture and Communication, award-winning journalist and copywriter Becky Wells, who has written for BBC Top Gear, What Car?, Auto Express, PistonHeads and the Aston Martin F1 Team, urged students to take initiative rather than waiting for the right role to pursue their interests.
“If you want to do something, just do it - don’t wait for a job title to tell you that you can.”
That was the message alumna Becky Wells (BA Digital Media Culture 2024; MSc Marketing 2025) delivered to final-year undergraduates in the School of Creative Arts, Culture and Communication last month, as she returned to Birkbeck to share practical advice from her academic and early professional journey.
In a conversation led by the Head of School, Professor Fintan Walsh, Becky encouraged the students to think beyond the limits of their degree programmes and to diversify their knowledge in order to broaden what they can offer professionally. University, she said, should be used as a space to experiment, refine interests and identify what genuinely motivates you. Becky’s favourite module, Thinking Through Digital Media with Dr Scott Rodgers, particularly helped shape her thinking.
In the session, Becky further spoke about how her Birkbeck degrees allowed her to move beyond her original journalism career into a more marketing-focused field. She shared that she thrives when taking on responsibility - one of the reasons she valued her time at Birkbeck. She encouraged students to turn personal interests into academic projects, noting that bringing something you love into your studies helps you stay invested and enjoy the research process.
Students in attendance shared their own experiences of studying and working to translate their learning and skills for future opportunities.
The event was collaboratively brought together by the School, as part of its Careers and Employability offer to all students, and the Development and Alumni department. It demonstrated the School’s commitment to equipping students not only with academic knowledge, but with the confidence and initiative to carve out their own paths beyond graduation.