Karis left The Abbey in 2013, having been one of the Ducat House Captains. She is now a Sales and Marketing Manager at SilkFActoryAV, a creative content agency, as well as hosting her own podcast, ‘UncerTwenties‘. Hear her thoughts on what she misses the most from The Abbey, to what she’s achieved since leaving. 

Tell us a little bit about what you have been up to recently.

 I have recently shifted jobs, from working as a sales coordinator at HanWay Films to becoming a Sales and Marketing manager for a creative content agency called Silk Factory, they predominantly work on trailers and digital campaigns for Film/TV. I’m also part of Creative England’s Market Trader Film Producing programme from 2019-2020 which has been a wonderful experience, meeting and working with a number of talented film producers. In my spare time I starred in a webseries on Youtube called ‘Live With It’ which is shortlisted for the Funny Women prize, and I’m writing my first TV script which I will be producing. 

You currently run a podcast, how did that come about/ what is that like? 

I host a podcast called The UncerTwenties which is essentially about how to navigate life in your twenties and grapple with the feelings of uncertainty in adulthood. I had been planning the podcast for about a year before it premiered in January 2020 but it has coincidentally struck a chord with audiences at a very prevalent time – as everyone can identify with feeling uncertain whilst we continue to exist during a global pandemic. It’s supposed to be a light-hearted look into the way we can both fail and succeed in life through candid conversations with friends. 

Fondest memory of The Abbey? 

The whole sixth form was so fun – the year 13 sleepover, performing in Oklahoma and Alice in Wonderland with all my friends and serving as a (very proud) Ducat house captain! 

What did you study at University and what was your University experience like?

 I studied English Literature and Language at the University of Leeds. I absolutely loved my university experience – being in a city that had 4/5 different universities meant that I met students from many walks of life. Many of my closest friends are the people I met at university. I was able to throw myself into a number of different societies to push myself out of my comfort zone but also engage in activities that I love like participating in musical theatre shows and creating my own society. 

Any advice for current Sixth Form students?

Don’t get addicted to the coffee machine in the common room (as I did). Follow your passions and don’t let anyone tell you what you cannot do/achieve.

 Karis Aldridge (2013)