Lisa Barrett

School of Creative Industries / Creative Futures / Student Case Studies 

Lisa Barrett

I had some fantastic lecturers when I studied at Wolverhampton including Marc Austin, Jeff Leak, Jess Glasier, Julia Chidley and Ian Madeley, who each brought a different perspective to creative study. I owe them a lot for their enthusiasm and encouragement. Live briefs were always my favourite aspect of the course, as they really helped to develop my confidence and commercial awareness as a designer, this was great practice for life in the 'real world'. At the time I used to fear standing up in front of my course mates and talking through my work, but looking back I'm really grateful for those experiences. And I believe this set me in good stead for being employable when I graduated.

You'll never have such creative freedom in life as you do now as a student, so embrace that privilege and really do make the most of this very special time. Experiment, don't be afraid to try things and fail, travel and seek creative opportunities to develop yourself. When you start uni, usually in your late teens and early twenties, your life is an explosion of new adventure, and lots of that can be a distraction, try to use this energy to bring focus to your studies,  immerse yourself in your subject, work hard, be kind and it will pay off with a rewarding and fulfilling creative career.