Helen Swain
Name: Helen Swain
Employer: International Labour Office
Qualifications: BA French and English, University College, Cork; MA French, University College, Cork, Ireland; Diplôme d’Études Approfondies (DÉA), University of Geneva, Switzerland; European Master in Publishing, Oxford Brookes University, UK
I work as an editorial assistant in the publications department of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), a UN organisation based in Geneva. I create and co-ordinate marketing documents for publications in the three official languages (English, French and Spanish), write blurbs and work on the pre-publication texts in co-ordination with the authors.
How did you embark on your European career?
Working outside your home country is a golden opportunity to learn new languages and discover new cultures.
My desire to live and work abroad started to become more realistic during an Erasmus year in France. As a postgraduate a couple of years later, I successfully applied for a Swiss Government Scholarship in order to do a Diplôme d’Études Approfondies (DÉA) – the Swiss equivalent of an MPhil. After two charmed years studying and working part time in Geneva, administrative drama struck when the time came to secure a work permit. Many pieces of paper later, I found a full-time job, still in Geneva, as an executive assistant with a headhunting firm. Administrative challenges should be expected in a country where you are not a national: be prepared for long processes.
How did you change career direction?
A few years on, I decided that I wanted to work in something closer to the arts. I enrolled in a European Master in Publishing – involving one year in Oxford and a second in Paris – to help me change direction. I thoroughly enjoyed living in two such historical and literary cities, and my studies were particularly enriched by my work experience with an academic publisher in Oxford and a children’s publisher in Paris. I decided to move back to Geneva after graduating even though Switzerland is not the obvious choice for a publishing career. I was lucky enough to be accepted on an editorial internship at the ILO, which led to me securing my current role.
Why work abroad?
Working outside your home country is a golden opportunity to learn new languages and discover new cultures. I have learned to adapt to different ways of working – it is important to be aware of the cultural, as well as the professional, nuances from one company and country to another. In some places you have to make a real effort to get to know your colleagues – not because they are unfriendly but because it is normal for the ‘outsider’ to make the effort. In other cultures, the new person is almost ‘babysat’ until they settle in.
Living abroad forces you to be more sociable than you might be in your home country, where you have the cocoon of your family and childhood friends. I’ve found that it’s made me less hesitant – I don’t waste opportunities to meet and get to know people. It’s good for your CV, too: it shows employers that you’re versatile, confident and not afraid to try new things.
