“HAD has given me the opportunity to work on a number of interesting projects and also gave me the chance to visit Lebanon as an intern, which was an unforgettable experience”

I completed my BA in English Literature and Philosophy from University of York in 2016. I then moved to London where I pursued an MSc in Violence, Conflict and Development at SOAS, University of London.

After completing my degree my SOAS, I began my role as Research and Development intern at HAD. I was given the opportunity as an intern to work on numerous projects and contribute significantly to the work of the department. I was able to utilise skills I had not previously had the chance to use and also gained confidence in my abilities, which strengthened my existing skill set. It was rewarding to see my work come to life in a meaningful way beyond just high grades for assessments.

One of the bigger projects I was working on was for the Orphan Sponsorship Programme at Islamic Relief Worldwide. As a result of working on this project, I was given the opportunity to visit the Islamic Relief field office in Lebanon. I was able to gain data collection skills whilst there by conducting household surveys and focus group discussions, as well as improving my data analysis skills when compiling the report for the trip. This experience informed my work back at HAD as I was developing an impact study for the programme. Beyond technical skills, I was able to gain first-hand experience of how beneficiaries live, the challenges they face and the perseverance they have, in particular refugee communities. This is an invaluable experience for anyone, whether they work in the sector or not.

Since then, I have been working as a full-time consultant in the R&D department. I have had the opportunity to continue with previous projects from my internship as well as new ones and have also been able to start developing my personal portfolio through my own mini programmes projects. Being able to work independently on a variety of projects during my internship has made the transition to my position as a consultant effortless.