Benedicte Friis Furulund
Subject:
Archaeology (bachelor)
Nordic Viking and Medieval studies
Now: Viking and Medieval Norse Studies
Degree:
Master's
Graduated:
2007
Position:
General manager/Owner
Employer:
Benedictes AS
– What are the most important aspects of your job?
– Daily operations, finances, customer contact and applications/reporting to public and private businesses.
– What do you like best about your job?
– The freedom to make my own decisions. I work a lot, but for me it feels far more satisfying to work a lot for my own company to succeed, than to work a lot for someone else.
– How is the education from the Faculty of Humanities relevant in this job?
– Many of the subjects I took are of the type that are not obviously transferable to jobs outside the humanities, but I would still say that many of the subjects and working methods we used are highly relevant in today's society. Within both cultural and medieval studies, we worked a lot with different types of sources: we learned how to relate to these and how to identify the essence of what is written. This is something that is required in all types of jobs, and something that I have benefited from in my current and previous positions.
I took my degrees in small subjects, where we were only a few students with a very good study environment across subjects, and with close contact with our professors and lecturers. There was an open-door policy, and a low threshold for discussing subjects and other issues. This felt completely natural to us, but after studying elsewhere, I came to understand how unique it actually was. In working life, you need to get different perspectives from people within different subjects and across positions. What I learned at the Faculty of Humanities about seeing things from several perspectives, and making room for other people's opinions and personalities, is probably what I have benefited most from in my working life.
– What is the best advice you can give new students who are thinking about job opportunities after completing their studies?
– An education from the Faculty of Humanities often gives you the ability to approach problems from several different angles, and this is a quality that is needed in working life. At the same time, knowledge about how we should relate to, and approach, different sources is becoming increasingly important in today's society. This is knowledge that most employers greatly appreciate.
All the education and experience you acquire throughout life helps to make you the person you are. Although you may not see the relevance of something immediately, that doesn’t mean that you don’t bring it with you into both your work and life in general.