Advertising and Public Relations Management MSc graduate Daisy Peberdy is hoping her experience of setting up a marketing consultancy and landing a graduate role can be an inspiration for other students at De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) with learning differences.
Daisy was diagnosed with dyslexia and dyspraxia – a condition that affects a person’s physical coordination – during the second year of her acting undergraduate degree in Cornwall.
The diagnosis was a shock initially but, as Daisy admits in hindsight, made sense as she always questioned why it took longer for information to sink in during her school days and made learning lines for performances particularly difficult at times.
However, having discovered her passion for marketing during her final year, Daisy didn’t want to let her learning conditions stop her from pursuing a new dream of helping brands grow. After leaving Cornwall, she moved back home and enrolled for a master’s at DMU.
“Deciding to study a master’s wasn’t an easy choice for me at first,” Daisy said. “The work would need to be done quickly and in greater depth than my undergraduate course, so that prospect felt daunting initially, but I’m so glad I went through with my plan because DMU was so incredibly supportive.
“I aired my concerns that I felt I might not be able to keep up, but the course team were very understanding, asking if I needed any extra support and allowing me more time to go through concepts.
“I was also pointed to the Disability Advice and Support team (DAS) and they provided me with a one-to-one support tutor who, if needed, could break down assignments. At first, I felt I wouldn’t need to take part in any of the organised support but there were so many virtual workshops exploring timekeeping, organisation and studying techniques, that I ended up taking something away from most of them.
“If you feel that you need that learning support then I would definitely advise getting in contact with the team. They have been very helpful for me.”
Inspired by both her course and ambitions to land a marketing graduate role, Daisy set up her own marketing consultancy during lockdown, Daisy Peberdy Marketing, to build on her base branding and social media skillset.
Her consultancy worked with small and medium-sized businesses to help companies improve their social media presence, engage with their audiences and increase traffic to websites.
These skills and experience helped Daisy stand out amongst the applicants when Everything Global, a renowned Leicester-based marketing agency with subsidiaries located in Dublin and Las Vegas, advertised for a content creator earlier this year.
Already equipped with an array of knowledge and not letting her dyslexia or dyspraxia hold her back, she impressed the marketing team with a well-rounded social media strategy for one of its clients on top of her interviews.
Daisy started her role with Everything Global in August and is not looking back.
“It was just before I started my master’s that I joined an online community of businesses that operated through Instagram. It inspired me to set up my own consultancy as I could see how many small companies could improve their website traffic through social media.
“I worked for free initially to build my portfolio, reaching out to potential clients and offering my services. I would create mailings lists; help organise Instagram grids and even help design new websites. It must have impressed people because clients were keen to come back to me and that’s how I grew my client base. It was a huge boost to my confidence and I landed two big clients after a few months.
“When I saw a position was open at Everything Global, I applied straight away. It’s a very creative and vibrant agency where they trust my skills enough to let me get on with things - I’ve been left in charge of TikTok as one of my projects.
“There are a lot of DMU alumni working here and it’s been great to bounce our university experiences off one another. It’s a great, vibrant team with a fun office and I feel I’m going to be very happy here.
“My dyslexia and dyspraxia haven’t hindered me climbing onto the career ladder and I would like to think there is no reason why they should hamper anyone else’s ambitions.”
DMU provides a range of services and guidance for students with a wide range of learning differences. Students can book appointments for screenings and one-to-one sessions through My Gateway, the university’s online booking service.
For students that may be unsure if they have a learning difference or have noticed symptoms, DMU’s SpLD Officers can discuss potential access to support services and specialist equipment. They can be contacted at SPLD spld@dmu.ac.uk. They can also help students apply for the Disabled Students Allowances.
Posted on Monday 6 September 2021