Megan Kelly admits that her first attraction to the Thomas J. Moran Graduate School wasn’t too high and mighty.

She says, “I started my Masters in 2017, and the very first day I collected my student card, I noticed the Graduate School were running an initiative which invited students to say how they thought their postgraduate journey would go. I mightn’t have taken any notice, but the prize was a set of Lush bath bombs, which I love – so they had my attention straight away!”

Since then, however, Megan has experienced the Thomas J. Moran Graduate School in nearly every way possible. Having studied her undergraduate degree at Queen’s, she progressed to study a Masters and then PhD, before working as a Community Assistant and then Graduate Intern.

Megan explains that her understanding of The Thomas J. Moran Graduate School has changed throughout her various roles here.

She says, “at the start, you just think of the Graduate School as a building that’s exclusive to postgrads, but then you become aware of all the unique workshops you can avail of and suddenly it becomes the place you go to for all sorts of support.

“Throughout my time as a Postgraduate Student, I always kept an eye on what the Graduate School was offering and more often than not I found that I could make it align with what I was doing, so it always proved a great place to be.”

Being a Graduate School Community Assistant

Megan became a CA at the Thomas J. Moran Graduate School in 2022, a role which provides an opportunity for a graduate to learn about working in a University environment, supporting and delivery a high-quality student experience, and contributing to the postgraduate student experience.

She says, “it was something of a leap. I spent a lot of time in the Graduate School during my PhD, but then of course there was the period of COVID lockdowns when I was away from it for a while. I really missed all that interaction, so when things returned to normal and I was preparing to hand in my PhD, I saw the opportunity to become a Graduate School Community Assistant and I thought it would be a great new experience.”

Having spent so much time at the Thomas J. Moran Graduate School, Megan felt well placed for this new role, but she also learned a lot about postgraduate study, the needs of different students, and herself in the role.

Megan says, “I think I have a pretty good insight into what students want from the Graduate School – after all, I pretty much lived here during my PhD! – but it’s been really interesting to learn more about the effort that goes on behind the scenes. It’s been really eye opening!”

“We get a huge range of questions at the desk or over phone and email. They can often be specific, in which we can direct students to the best possible information; however, I’ve often found that students just want reassurance more than anything, so I’ll always make sure to use a calming and clear tone when responding. Of course, there are lots of challenges we face, and I sometimes find it difficult to sign post students. I’ve had to quickly learn that we can’t sort everything out for them, and that’s okay!"

Graduate School Intern

Following on from her time as a Community Assistant, Megan successfully applied and interviewed for the role of Graduate School Intern. In this post she worked as part of the Student Engagement Team, where she was able to use her own ten years of personal and academic experience to help support and elevate the postgraduate student experience.

Seeing behind the scenes of the Thomas J. Moran Graduate School in this role, Megan found that what was most notable was the attention to detail Graduate School staff paid to what students were saying.

She explains, “I was really intrigued to see behind the scenes of student development, particularly at the Graduate School, where I’d always felt that staff were so supportive of me and all students on our journeys. One thing I noticed we were always talking about was how we could respond to the needs of students, both academically, but also in terms of issues such as mindfulness or the cost of living. As a student, I think it’s easy to take for granted that social and community events just happen, but there’s a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to create them.”

Moving Forward

Megan took up a new position as Research Assistant in the school of Nursery and Midwifery last month. This very much aligns with the research she carried out during her PhD, but she says it’s also her experience working at the Thomas J. Mora Graduate School that has prepared her for the role.

“My research aligns quite nicely with my new role, but the confidence of working in a front facing role with students is also crucial, to the point where I actually found that in my interview, I spoke more about my job experience with the Graduate School than I did about my own research.

“My time at the Graduate School has also given me a real confidence to get back into research. I think when you finish a PhD it can feel very necessary to take a break from that environment and for me, the Graduate School was a really positive and uplifting place to be. It gave me a great confidence boost and made me feel ready to apply for the new post I’m going to, which I might not otherwise have felt suited to. It was also the perfect place for me to be because it got me out of the intense, individualised research environment I’d been in during my PhD, but kept me in the wider University society.”

Specifically, Megan enjoyed and benefited from the variation which comes from the Thomas J. Moran Graduate School Intern post.

She says, “there was so much support going on around me in this role. I learned from the Graduate School consultants, but also the marketing team and the events team. It’s fantastic to gain experience from those people, but it’s also a very encouraging feeling when you know that you’re helping and supporting them in your own role.”

“Whatever job you take after a PhD is going bring a huge change, so it was so beneficial for me that when it came to interviewing for this new job, I had so much experience from my time as Graduate School Intern to talk about. I was able to say I work with people in careers advise and student support services and marketing, and directly with students, and that’s all invaluable.”

It’s this variation of experience that means Megan would highly recommend the Thomas J. Moran Graduate Intern post. She says, “anyone considering applying for the role of Graduate Intern, I say go for it. It’s a unique job in that you can make it what you want to be.

“I was able to say early in my time in the role that I had a passion for student and wellbeing and in helping support during the cost of living crisis, and that became central to my job role. Likewise, if you’ve an interest in marketing, or events, or administration, you can make that part of your role, because there’s so much talent and experience to learn from throughout the Thomas J. Moran Graduate School team.”