Even though many of our graduates will have progressed in their careers since completing a case study, they are still of interest to students who wish to gain an understanding of the world of work.

I am CARE's technical advisor on Dignified Work. Dignified Work is one of CARE's pathways towards achieving women's economic empowerment, focussing on promoting decent, dignified jobs for women. As technical advisor, I set CARE's global strategy for Dignified Work, ensuring consistency and programming quality across the confederation. I work closely with our country offices - particularly in Asia - providing technical expertise to support strategy development, programme design and quality, knowledge management and learning, and partnership development.

As a technical advisor, my role is highly varied and no two days are ever the same. A lot of my time is spent coordinating with our country offices and other teams (advocacy, fundraising etc) across the CARE confederation to roll out the Dignified Work strategy. This includes providing technical expertise and support to a portfolio of programmes and supporting the development of new programme designs and proposals. I frequently engage with CARE's partners, such as other CSOs, trade unions, governments and the private sector; I also represent CARE at relevant working groups, seminars and conferences.

I really enjoy how varied the work is and the feeling that my work contributes, even if only in a small way, to the fight against poverty. I'm lucky to be able to specialise in the subject area I'm passionate about and continue to learn more about labour rights. I also get to travel frequently, spending time with colleagues in country offices and visiting our programmes, which is a huge privilege.

The range of expertise required, even within a defined field like labour rights, is still tremendously broad. It's often a struggle to keep up with current thinking on the subject across diverse geographies, topics, industries and types of work. Working in a large INGO comes with many challenges, such as the need to consistently build credibility as a technical advisor with country office teams and build buy-in from other parts of the organisation to what you are trying to achieve.

I became passionate about international development and fighting poverty, particularly through promoting labour rights, at university and wanted to continue working in this area.

The academic expertise I developed through undergraduate and postgraduate degrees is necessary for this type of work, but I had to build on this further through practical experience. I use project management skills to lead the delivery of a global and regional strategy and good communication skills are really important for communicating effectively with internal and external stakeholders.

After leaving Sheffield, I studied for an MA in Global Development from the University of Leeds. I then spent 3 months volunteering in India with the DFID-funded International Citizen Service scheme. My first job was at the Global Labour Institute, working as a research intern on projects for national and global trade unions. I then worked as an ethical trade consultant at Impactt Ltd for two and a half years, designing and delivering projects to improve working conditions in global supply chains. I joined CARE in February 2016.

I'm currently working to increase my technical expertise and experience, with the aim of becoming a senior technical advisor. I also plan to relocate to Asia, in order to get closer to the programming and increase my experience of country office operations. I'm also considering doing a PhD. In the long-term, I may look to move into a management position within a country office or transition into a related career in an international instution (like the ILO) or in the trades union movement.

Academic qualifications are a necessary starting point for INGO work and many now ask for postgraduate qualifications, particularly for positions that require technical expertise. However, getting practical experience is equally if not more important. It's not easy to get work in the sector, so networking, doing some volunteering and being prepared to take intern/temp roles is usually necessary. Some of this can be done whilst you're still studying, so don't wait until graduation before looking for relevant experience. Bear in mind that NGO workers are often highly qualified but paid less than if they were in equivalent positions in other sectors; so the work is rewarding but not always financially!