3SC Blog: A Student Placement At 3SC

Contract management was really not an area I had ever heard of before. As an English student who wants to go into the media and marketing sector, contracts sounded a bit too law-school for me. However, getting a week of insight into who 3SC are and what they do has completely changed my mind.

By working with small third sector organisations, 3SC aids them to get the funding they need to help their local communities in the employment, disability, youth and rehabilitation areas. Working with an organisation like 3SC definitely gives you the feel-good factor. From writing newsletters to promoting their new branding, everything I have done for 3SC feels like it is helping them and their third sector partners to grow. As they mention on their website, their working model is sustainable and all about supporting as many VSCE organisations as they can. Therefore, 3SC has given me a sense of purpose and pride that I am contributing to the growth or local charities and organisations.

The community spirit does not stop there. The office environment is extremely positive and hardworking, and everyone made me feel at ease immediately. I have learned that 3SC is a tight-knit and close community who communicate with each other constantly, regardless of rank within the company. There are no social hierarchies or pretences- everyone is committed to the cause and shares responsibilities throughout.

Some of the highlights from my week include; creating a social media report with ways in which I believe the company could improve their social networking, sitting in a client meeting for a new contract and creating a newsletter for one of 3SC’s ongoing contracts. With every task, I have been given all the support and extra information I have requested. The hours would fly by, as I would be kept busy with a variety of different extra tasks, alongside my main projects.

Overall, I have loved working with 3SC and exploring a previously unknown area. It has made me want to further investigate the third sector and the different job roles within it, as I have enjoyed working towards making a difference in society. I have been able to develop my existing writing and promotion skills, whilst learning new ones and exploring a completely different sector.

Ralli Petrova, 3SC Work Experience Student