FINAL YEAR: FINAL MAJOR PROJECT

It had been such a relief and a breath of fresh air to spend the month of December dedicating my time solely to placement searching, which only confirmed to me that I had made the correct decision in leaving my placement at Forever Unique after completing only half of my 12 month contract. The culture of insensitivity, blaming and punishment in addition to a total lack of transparency from higher management to staff had ultimately pushed me away and made me deeply uncomfortable to be there. While the working environment was partially to blame for my departure, I also worried that I was no longer fulfilling my true capabilities or my ambitions to learn as much as possible about all aspects of the communication and promotion sectors within the fashion industry. And while Manchester is an ever-growing and thriving city of fashion in the UK, it's a given that it does not offer the same amount of opportunities as the capital. Ultimately, I had an unsettling feeling that I wasn't carrying out my placement year in a way that I would be proud of once it was over. As a result, during my search for a new internship, I was much more conscious about the culture and morale of the companies I was applying to which led me to be more selective throughout the application process. I want to challenge myself to explore a completely new role, therefore enhancing my skill set and giving me a better chance at matching the experience criteria for any given role.

After sending waves of initial applications and a series of follow-up emails but receiving very little back in way of communication from the companies I'd applied to, I couldn't help but feel a bit fearful that it would take me much longer to be employed again than I had first hoped. I stayed hopeful by checking FashionWorkie religiously every day to stay ahead of the game, ensuring that my applications were submitted early and constantly reading up on the best things to include in cover letters.

I was invited to an interview with Alexander McQueen for a PR position in the menswear department. I had quite high hopes for this interview because I felt like I had a lot of advantages under my belt already; I'd previously attended an interview for the same position in the McQ diffusion line but was rejected for not having enough experience - now that I was returning with 6 months of experience at a luxury brand I felt quite optimistic that they would be satisfied with my developed skill set! Sadly, that wasn't the case, but I took away from the interview the importance of not getting my hopes up too high or being too confident about whether or not I'd be offered the position. I've found that even if I'm completely qualified for a role and consider myself a 'perfect fit', sometimes it really just isn't meant to be! I've decided not to put myself forward for any other role that becomes available at Alexander McQueen for the remainder of my placement year because I found that their approach to interviewing candidates was kind of nonsensical; the interviewers were aware of my previous experience on both occasions that I attended an interview yet they could only suggest my lack of experience as a reason not to hire me.

Next I was invited to attend at interview at Coach. I was so excited to attend the interview, having been a huge lover of the Coach brand since undertaking two huge marketing assignments on it in second year. I knew that I already had the upperhand against other interviewees having studied the brand's competitive status in the affordable luxury market in such depth. I used this fact to my advantage by reaching out to the hiring manager Grace Simmons, PR Co-ordinator, to let her know that I had submitted an application for the role. In the email I also attached my final marketing assignments so that she could see the extent of my knowledge. In effect, I had already lain my skill-set bare to her before even setting foot in the Coach HQ! I immediately knew that this interview had gone much better than my interview at Alexander McQueen; conversation flowed much better and I stayed cool, calm and collected with every question asked. I think it also really helped that I came with my very own Coach bag, gifted to me on my 21st birthday, on my arm! It definitely left a positive final impression and communicated clearly my genuine love for the brand. Within a couple of days I had been offered the position and naturally, I didn't even have to think twice to accept it. I can't wait to experience PR from the perspective of a luxury brand, having already interacted with brand/agency PRs from the position of a fashion intern at a weekly magazine.

And then, within hours, I was offered an additional position as fashion intern at Look Magazine. It seems to be a recurring theme during placement year that internships are sparse and I start to worry that I'll never be hired and then all of a sudden they start to come in thick and fast - a lot like waiting for a bus and then three come at once. While I've already had a similar experience to this role at Fabulous magazine, I'm interested to see how the Fashion Cupboard process may differ from publication to publication. I'm also keen to get more exposure on the set of main fashion shoots where I can see experimental and trend-led styling firsthand and become familiar with a brand new host of photographers, hair and make-up teams and stylists.

I began my preparations to move on to a new placement about 4 and a half months into my time at Forever Unique. At that point, I was feeling more and more compelled to leave with each day but still hesitant about making any big decisions. I started updating my CV to ease my anxiety about the decision to leave, having not updated it since the beginning of my placement year in May. By doing this I felt like I was being semi-productive in looking for a new placement without actually having to commit to the decision yet.

I also set up an online portfolio to showcase all of the exciting projects that I've been working on. I'm really happy with the final outcome of this and hope that potential employers will be equally as impressed by my initiative as they are by the actual content of my work. I will provide the link to my portfolio in an interactive PDF when submitting my CV and cover letter to applications, so that the hiring managers can click straight through. In addition to these preparations, I've made sure to strengthen my LinkedIn profile by making new connections in my colleagues at Forever Unique and updating information to reflect my new skills. My CV and portfolio are available to click through from on my profile. My social channels have also been edited to reflect my experience; I feel that at this stage in my placement year, the tagline 'Fashion Creative' is much more relevant to my skillset than simply 'Fashion Communication and Promotion student' and the link to my portfolio has also been provided. Having secured my placement with Fabulous magazine and an upcoming work experience with the Press Association through Twitter, I definitely appreciate the powers that social media can have in paving a new career path.

Now I am eagerly sending carefully penned cover letters to a number of companies I'd really like to gain experience with. I'm particularly interested in a role where I can put my writing skills to professional use, as this is an area which I have yet to explore on placement. I'd really like to work for a print publication - ideally one which I already have a personal affinity for - as there is something very rewarding to me about seeing my hard work come to life in the flesh between the pages of a magazine. By working for a magazine, I could also have the opportunity to develop my experience in styling which is an area I am intrigued about.

My online portfolio can be viewed at www.lauratownsend.wixsite.com/portfolio.