Name and job title
Saiyada Fazal, Careers Adviser
How long have you worked at the University? Include details if you have worked in different roles/departments.
I have worked at the University for over 6 years.
What does your job entail?
I have the privilege of helping students and graduates find the right career path for them. This includes 1-1 conversations, running workshops and making videos and lots more. I also work closely with colleagues in the Faculty of Science and provide labour market insights, review our modules' employability component, and liaise with employers.
What do you love most about your job?
My students! Not a day goes by when I am not inspired by the passion, energy and motivation to make a difference that drives my students.
If you could go back and tell your student-self one thing what would it be?
Action builds resilience. Inaction stokes fear.
What personal/professional barriers have you overcome to be where you are today?
I left school at 14, and as a result, I am acutely aware of the gaps in my education (which fuels imposter syndrome) and always end up comparing myself to others. I need to remind myself daily to recognise and focus on what I can contribute instead of what I lack.
What is your greatest personal/professional achievement?
I struggle with a form of Bipolar disorder and am proud of not letting this condition define me or my career choices.
What do you do when you aren't at work?
Cook, garden, tend to my two cats every need and volunteer as a family court magistrate…
What are your hopes for the future?
My students! I have so many conversations where students ask me how they can pursue careers to make a difference to our planet, our community, and the environment. It makes me feel like we are going to be OK…
The crystal ball moment: What does the post-COVID world have in store for us all….
We are going to enter a period of "stable uncertainty" as the dust settles and we figure out the lasting changes and impact of COVID on our lives. It is important we don't resist this reality and instead meet life where it is.
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