End of traineeship- beginning of the next chapter – Hannah Eastwood

Well, I don’t quite know how to sum up the past year of the HLF Skills for the Future traineeship in a few words. So much has happened in such a short space of time that it has simply whizzed past! I remember our first day where we wrote down our expectations and areas which were concerning us as a group. I think all of us said that we needed more experience of delivering and that our most familiar audience that we felt comfortable with was families. 

It was agreed that each of our placements would give us equal opportunities to gain this experience and by the end we would be able to give an example of working with all audiences. 

I really enjoyed how supported I was throughout my time at each museum. Each team were there for me, helping me through any worries and encouraging me to give things a go to boost our confidence. I always felt part of the group and therefore had a real sense of how it would be getting a job outside of the traineeship. 

 

Hannah with a local primary school- lantern making workshop

Alongside our time on each of our placements we also had the chance to meet with our project coordinator for mentoring, 1 to 1 meetings and to chat about anything which we were doing or if there was an area which we were struggling with. These meetings were really beneficial; they helped to maintain a sense of progression and also helped me to document what I was doing in order to feedback. 

I found the training days to be really enjoyable. The many different areas we explored were really helpful- especially as we could then go back to our museums and put our learning in to practice. It’s always really interesting to hear from the experiences of different education officers and to gain insight from their own experiences. 

 

Hannah on placement at the Museum of the History of Science

Having explored many different collections, jumped to different challenges and experienced delivering to a wide range of audiences, I now feel equipped with confidence and experience to demonstrate my skills on job applications and at interview. 

I have learned lots, but the biggest lesson I have come away with is to remain confident. I know that I am capable and I just need to carry on believing in myself.

I am so grateful for the opportunity I have had and I will continue to pursue a career in museum education. I’m excited for what the future might hold!