Olivia's business placement

When I first heard about Swinburne’s Professional Placement program in 2019, I was still in high school. The reason I decided to undertake a professional placement was to gain insight into the world of work relevant to the degree I am studying.

Swinburne offering this professional placement opportunity made their offering stand out compared to other universities. I wanted to gain an understanding of what working in the industry felt like and not just read it from a textbook. Swinburne's program has helped me create a pathway into what my career could be. 

The projects that I have enjoyed the most have utilised Google Analytics and Adobe Analytics to identify customer insights. Before beginning my placement, I had a baseline understanding of how these analytics platforms work, but since working at The Lumery, I have had exposure utilising these tools within real client projects and have been exposed to the data that is built for those specific industries.  

My day-to-day as an Analytics Strategist at The Lumery involves supporting marketing teams to understand the performance of their marketing efforts. I’ve also been working with the Analytics team to build reports to highlight value through data visualisation and standardisation.  

I’ve been fortunate enough to work alongside leading experts within the marketing technology (MarTech) industry and have supported projects on some of Australia’s largest brands. This has helped me understand the many ways of working across industries and shaped my idea of career progression in the future. 

My view on real industry experience has changed since my placement. As anticipated, it has enhanced my industry skills, my technical ability and my work ethic. More importantly, it has helped develop soft skills like self-confidence, accountability and teamwork.

Being fortunate enough to immerse myself in a professional environment, in my chosen field of marketing and technology, has benefitted my development and professional self. I know that the experience and skills I build upon now will be beneficial and provide more opportunities for me once I graduate. 

My advice to future placement students would be to remember not to be too hard on yourself; be patient — no question is a silly question. Don’t forget, you’re there to learn and your colleagues are there to support and help you grow. The practical application will take a little extra time. Working with industry experts will increase your skills and knowledge, especially in areas that academic units you undertake during your degree won’t, so make the most of it! 

Real industry experience at Swinburne invites students to apply theory from their degree into practice. It is an incredible opportunity to work with leading industry partners and professionals. I recommend this program to any Swinburne student who wants to enhance their professional and career development, gain some industry experience, and increase their skills and knowledge before graduating.