We’re on the hunt for some more volunteers for our social media rota – an essential part of how we tell great stories about Sussex. We’ll be arranging more training sessions for new staff soon, around the end of October/start of November. 

You’ll get to see the epic Social Media 101 presentation, where we’ll fill you in on our platform strategies and some background on why and how the University uses social media. We hold meetings to check in and feed back every other month, and you’ll also:

• receive training and support to understand different social media platforms and their conventions
• learn how to write and edit copy for different audiences
• get to grips with the basic functionality of how to post on social media. 

There’s also scope to learn more about graphic design, branding, customer service, video editing and filming, and opportunities to contribute to creative workshops to come up with new ways to reach and engage our followers.

Below, some of our regular rota staff have shared their experiences of working on social media:

“I’ve learnt a lot from being on the social media rota, particularly about platforms I had little to no experience with before. Working out what content to put out is a fun challenge – it could be anything from a limerick about seagulls, a research story about the nature of consciousness, or planning, filming and editing a video championing the importance of International Mother Language Day. It’s a great way to find out what’s going on in and around the Sussex community, and work out the best ways of communicating with our audience.”

Dan, Marketing Officer

“Aside from being able to showcase my dad jokes and puns, being on the social rota has taught me so much in my first three months in External Relations. I get to learn something new every day, as the content we promote is so varied – one moment I can be writing about a fun event on campus, and the next I am delving into research pieces about quantum physics and whether or not dinosaurs had bedbugs!

It’s a great feeling when our audience engage with our posts and start a dialogue. In particular, the #ThrowbackThursday and #FlashbackFriday pictures are well received by our alumni, and it’s lovely to hear the unique memories and stories they have of their time at Sussex. Monitoring feeds and responding to comments has also been a solid foundation to understanding community management. I’ve really enjoyed this aspect of the role and it’s also­ been good in terms of my personal development.

For anyone thinking of joining the rota, I’d say: go for it! It hones your written communication skills and it’s so varied – from filming or networking to using new tech, there is real scope to expand your skillset and try different things outside of your usual role.”

Jo, Social Media Officer

“Being on the Social Media Rota is a fantastic opportunity to do something a bit different from your usual day-to-day role. It’s a great chance to be creative, learn to use new tools (such as Photoshop and Canva), use analytics, and understand the type of things current and prospective students want to know. Your time on the rota can encompass everything and anything to: trying to edit copy to fit into a small number of characters (the struggle is real), photographing bunnies on campus (must share the important stuff with the world), creating content linked to what’s trending online, and responding to some very odd queries. It’s also a good way to keep on top of what’s going on at the University in terms of news, events and media reporting when seeking out content to publish.”

Sarah, CRM Officer

“Working as part of the Social Media team is great fun. The team are really supportive and you get a lot of freedom to be creative and develop content for our social channels. From sourcing amazing images and taking videos on campus, to covering key events like Clearing and Graduation, it’s a really varied role that helps to develop a range of skills. It’s also vital in raising awareness of Sussex, conveying our personality and sharing our achievements. You get a real sense of achievement in seeing the reaction to your posts and it’s great to see how our social media and Sussex resonates with our audiences.”

Anne, Marketing Officer

Social rota staff work in one-week long shifts, either mornings or afternoons. We’re also able to be flexible – you can often swap shifts with other staff if you’ve hit a busy period in your usual job. If you’re interested in learning some new skills and being part of a friendly, fun team of staff, email E.Proctor@sussex.ac.uk