Student Spotlight: How Louise found her groove at UNSW

Picture this: You've got some uni learnings under your belt, but the next step is to get some practical experience in the field where you can apply those learnings. Thing is, where exactly can you get this experience?

As it so happens, it is possible to get that much needed work experience right here at UNSW as a Student Content Assistant!

We spoke to newly graduated student Louise Perigaud for some first-hand insight about her two-year journey from initially interning with UNSW to becoming a Student Content Assistant. 

Joining the UNSW Student & Stakeholder Communications Team

For Louise, it all started during her second year as a Communications and Journalism major when she received the weekly Student Newsletter.

"I was very avid on reading the weekly newsletter, and I saw that they had a little ad come up for an intern role for ten weeks," says Louise.

Of course, it isn't as easy as 'apply, interview, done' as there was a lot of pressure to stand out among the many applicants throughout the process.

"I think the hardest thing was trying to make the 'tell us about yourself' easy enough that everybody could understand, but also different enough from everybody else's," says Louise.

"I hadn't done many interviews like this, so I was just kind of like, 'what do I need to prepare?' And then I proceeded to cry during my interview [laughs], but it went really well. [The interviewers] and I really clicked, and one of them became my manager."

Louise found out first-hand that the interview process is much more than just talking about her experience. It's also about whether she would get along with her would-be boss, and luckily they clicked. Her main takeaway? Preparation is important, yes, but being human first is essential to form that all-important rapport.

What even is a 'Student Content Assistant'?

The age-old question of 'what do you do?' The Student Content Assistant role was created in 2025 to have a real student put their voice in the content you see. For two days a week, the student will work across the content spectrum and be empowered to let their creativity fly. For all those wondering, yes, it is also a paid role.

"I'm a bit of a jack-of-all-trades where I can kind of just dip into anything. I help make a lot of content for the newsletter because it is a hefty mountain to tackle. I also do photography for the team. I create videos as well," says Louise. But there was one big takeaway that stuck with her:

"There is no one specific lane. I think that is really the greatest thing about being in this team is that you get to see a bit of everything."

Not only is there such a wide range of projects and content-related tasks for Louise to try her hand at, but there was creative freedom galore. It's a bit of a cliché to say that every day is different in the role, but it was indeed the case for Louise.

"I came up with so many bad ideas all the time, and they were always so, so appreciated," laughs Louise as she pulls up several Instagram videos that she masterminded for the UNSW Students account. "I would say the creative freedom was very important in this, especially seeing as, you know, I was starting out my career in comms."

More importantly, the Student & Stakeholder Communications team encouraged her to let her imagination run wild. "I feel like I got quite a bit of creative freedom, you know? I was never afraid to kind of be like, 'I have this idea, what do we think of this?', which I think is super great," recalls Louise. "If you are afraid to say anything to your higher management, there is a problem.

"So I think that was really great to be allowed to like, think whatever I wanted could come to life. I think it's really empowering for like just a job to do that."

Takeways from the job to last a lifetime 

There's an assumption with a communications or journalism degree that the content you produce is limited to within those select fields. But in reality, content is incredibly versatile across many platforms and channels. Your degree doesn't limit you in what you and your imagination can do in terms of content. Equally importantly, Louise's time with the Student & Stakeholder Communications team helped shine a light on the many possibilities her degree can actually open up:

"This role has really opened up my eyes [on how] my degree is versatile. I don't only have to stick to this."

"So it really changed my idea of storytelling, [it] doesn't only need to be articles with a picture, it can be done in so many different ways," says Louise. "I really did enjoy the days where I would go do photography for some events, come back, and then I would get up from my desk and walk around film[ing] content."

The big cherry on top? "Saying on the CV that I had worked for UNSW is always so good for an employer," jokes Louise.

Looking back on the two years she spent as a Student Content Assistant, Louise says there were many learnings beyond simply having ideas and honing her craft.

"It really taught me how to mature properly in a way that was safe," reflects Louise. "Not in a way that was forced or [where] I was reprimanded for the stuff that was done wrong."

When asked about how she fared with constructive feedback, Louise says she revelled in it as the advice she received from the beginning helped make things easier as she grew more comfortable in the role.

"Every time I sent [my manager] copy, she'd tell me what she would change about it," recalls Louise.