Jennifer McErlain
BA (Hons) Politics, 2015
About me
- Business Change Analyst and Project Lead at Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council
- Studied: BA (Hons) Politics, 2015
About my career
After graduating in BA (Hons) Politics in 2015, I was successful in being accepted into the National Graduate Development Programme (NGDP), a graduate scheme for high-calibre graduates in the public sector, run by the Local Government Association. The two-year graduate scheme equipped me with two years of experience in Local Government, and also a PgDip in Strategic Leadership and Management.
After completing the graduate scheme in 2017, I was invited to join Trafford Council as a Business Change Analyst. My job is challenging and exciting; I am responsible for delivering the successful development of services, systems and processes as part of the Transformation programme of work, in line with corporate vision, values, and priorities through business analysis, redesign, change and project management. It’s a busy and often complicated job, but I get immense job satisfaction knowing that I am supporting improving Local Government services for our residents. I am also studying for my MBA in Strategic Leadership and Management alongside my role at Trafford Council.
My degree in BA (Hons) Politics at MMU provided me with a sound understanding of the complexity and structure of both local and national government and political theory. This has proven essential in my role; as political officers, we work side by side with both local Councillors and local MPs and must be able to navigate the political system in order to carry out our roles.
My top tip for students
Go to employability events and network network network. A high percentage of graduate jobs are filled with candidates who are already known within the company, so making connections at an early stage will put you ahead of other candidates from the beginning.
I’m inspired by
Mike Tyldesley, who was a veritable mine of information during my dissertation research and really made Politics enjoyable and interesting to study.
Why I love Manchester Met
Manchester Met is a fantastic and lively place to study and really pushed me to be the very best I could be.