Class of 2025: Sam Robertson

For passionate historian Sam Robertson, a degree with a placement year provided the perfect opportunity to help him realise his dream of working in museums. He’s not only graduating with a BA History, great friends and memories, but also key skills and experience that will help him in his future career.

“I’ve had a great interest in history my whole life,” Sam says of his degree choice. “I wanted to do something with that passion.”

Essex seemed like the logical university for Sam, who is from Shoeburyness in Essex and wanted to stay close to home, but it was attending the open day that sold it to him.

“The staff were friendly and the modules advertised were interesting. Overall, I got a good vibe from the place,” he said.

His time at Essex has been memorable for a number of reasons.

Joining the History Society has been a highlight because it helped him meet like-minded friends and interesting people from around the world.

His Russian history classes with Dr Felix Schnell proved inspiring. He praised Dr Schnell for his teaching which was “interesting and conveyed in an entertaining way. You can feel his passion.”

However, it was Sam’s placement year, an experience he describes as “priceless”, that really stood out.

Explaining why he chose a degree with a placement year, he said: “I wanted to get as much hands-on experience in the heritage sector as possible, to both improve my CV as well as make connections.”

He was lucky enough to secure a position at the Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences in Cambridge, where he says he “gained an invaluable insight into the day-to-day operations of museums.”

His varied placement saw him digitising loans almost a century old, auditing specimens including hundreds of gastropods, and rediscovering old maps, correspondence and newspapers that he found fascinating.

His was also responsible for assessing, packing and helping to relocate specimens as they were moved into new storage.

As well as his designated responsibilities, Sam volunteered as a representative of the Museum helping at a history fair at Senate House in London and supporting the Night at the Museum experience at Sedgwick.

His year at the Museum was capped off when he was given the chance to design and install his own exhibit detailing his placement and what he’d learned along the way.

“I got a great look at the work that goes on behind the scenes and had the priceless opportunity to work alongside some of the smartest people I know. I have always wanted to work in a museum, and my placement has not only reinforced that drive to achieve that goal but has made it that much more tangible,” he said.

He hopes the experience will help him secure a job in the heritage sector after he completes a part-time MA Museum and Heritage Studies at Essex.