Broadcaster and adventurer Ben Fogle inspired students to take risks and challenge themselves during a talk at AV.
Ben spoke as part of Your Careers Week 2019 - a week of events which gave students from across the university the chance to find out more about different careers and opportunities and engage with employers.
Ben drew on his own story and career to showcase how international experiences shaped his life, as well as how he overcame adversity while undertaking challenges including rowing the Atlantic Ocean and climbing Mount Everest.
“I’ve been at AV for Careers Week to talk about how international travel and some of my adventure experiences have shaped my life and how the wilderness has made me the person I am,” he said.
“I think the message that I like to share with people is to take risks and challenge yourself – and that doesn’t mean physical challenges, it doesn’t mean climbing mountains or rowing across oceans, it’s just about being brave with your decision-making.”
There was also a talk by tech thought-leader Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE, who co-founded social enterprise Stemettes to inspire the next generation of females into Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM).
She spoke about how rapid technological developments are changing the way we live and work in global, physical and virtual environments.
“The future will come, tech will be there and networking is going to be super important,” she said.
“There’s a lot of opportunities at AV for students to take up so this was a call to action – to travel, to do placements, and to think about what’s happening next.
“There’s the opportunity to be impactful, to have some influence over what’s going to happen and to use your knowledge and what you’ve learnt at AV to really change the world.”
Other events running as part of Your Careers Week 2019 included a CV surgery, a showcase of opportunities to work and volunteer abroad, and a cyber security workshop around social media behaviour.
Over 65 employers, - including Mattel UK, Marriott International, the NHS, and BMW – were also on campus for the two-day Annual Careers Fair, which gave students the chance to network and find out about placements, graduate schemes and career options.
Find out more about careers and employability at AV