Melisa Najafi Raouf is a Career Ready alumna from Westminster Kingsway College in London. Here, she shares her Career Ready story, her experience of participating in Miss England, and leading the #BareFaceTrendMovement on social media.

Becoming Career Ready

I joined the Career Ready programme in 2019 whilst  completing my A-Levels at Westminster Kingsway College. I took part in the hope that I could develop new skills and become better equipped for my future.

I worked with a fantastic mentor named Christine, who helped me develop the skills I was looking for and advised me on how to better equip myself for the future. She supported me with things like writing a CV that would standout to employers, and she made me feel more ready to start building a career for myself. Christine’s support was amazing and really boosted my confidence, which was something I had struggled with for so long.

With the help of Christine, I wrote a personal statement which led to me being given offers by all five universities I applied to. And I’m now in my second year studying Politics (BSc) at King’s College London.

Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, my year group were unable to complete our internships. Nonetheless, participating in the Career Ready programme was probably one of the highlights of my time in college. I was able to discover more about different places to work, including a visit to the London branch of the American bank Wells Fargo, where we learnt how to network and build professional relationships with others. Experiences like that really helped me gain an insight into how useful networking can be as a source of new perspectives and ideas for your career. 

Before Career Ready, I had no idea what I would do after college. I knew I wanted to go to university, but I didn’t know how I would be able to achieve this goal.

#BareFaceTrendMovement

Since starting at King’s, I’ve had the opportunity to participate in the Miss England pageant. It really pushed me to challenge myself and be confident in who I am, something which started with Career Ready.

Getting to know all of the different women involved, I found that it didn’t feel like a competition at all, I realised that we all had a strong shared desire to help empower other women and because of this, I challenged myself to participate make-up free in the semi-finals.

I never expected my story to resonate with the world  like it did and cause such a media stir. I am so glad it did though, as it meant that my message has reached many women of all ages and, I hope, helped them feel more comfortable in their own skin. 

To grow this movement even further, I started the #barefacetrendmovement on Instagram, to provide a space and platform for women across the globe to post pictures of themselves without makeup or camera filters.

The aim of the #barefacetrendmovement is to prove that it doesn’t matter what age, race, or background you are. We are all beautiful in our own way and should be able to celebrate that.

This movement has resonated with so many women. I’ve had girls of all ages message and thank me for opening the conversation. They feel they have more confidence and freedom to present themselves in a way they feel comfortable.

Participating in Miss England and creating the #barefacetrendmovement have been some of the best moments of my life! Words can barely express my pride, and I have become so much more confident from these experiences.

Before, I was just a shy girl from South London who couldn’t even speak to others without being self-conscious. Now I’m speaking to media outlets across the world. In many ways, the skills and experiences I have gained through this stage of my journey have been a continuation of what I learnt on the Career Ready programme.

My Next Steps

As for the future, my aim is to complete my degree at Kings College London and build a career as a diplomat. But, in the near future, I am delighted to have been invited to represent Iran and Kings College in World Miss University, held in South Korea!

Being proudly of Iranian heritage, I am honoured to have the opportunity to represent a place which means so much to me. I’ll be there in solidarity with all women who believe they do not have the choice to present themselves the way they want, both in Iran and across the world.

I also aspire to work with a variety of mental health charities to raise awareness about the rising mental health problems associated with the use of social media, especially the pressure it puts on women to fit a narrow standard of beauty. After all, it’s our individuality that makes us beautiful.

I will forever aim to be a voice for women and girls, and will endeavour to promote the #barefacetrendmovement to encourage constructive conversations to take place, and support other women in their journeys.

Career Ready has played such a big part in my journey, and I cannot thank them enough for making me realise that nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it.

Get involved today and help more young people kickstart their futures.