Enactus Sheffield

Enactus is an international non-profit organization that works with leaders in business and
higher education to mobilize university students to make a difference in their communities
while developing the skills to become socially responsible business leaders. Participating
students form teams on their university campuses and apply business concepts to develop
outreach projects that improve the quality of life and standard of living for people in need. An
annual series of regional and national competitions provides a forum for teams to present the
results of their projects, and to be evaluated by business leaders serving as judges. National
champion teams advance to the ENACTUS World Cup.

At The University of Sheffield, Enactus is one of the most active societies. Housed in the
University of Sheffield’s Enterprise Department, Enactus Sheffield has regular meetings every
week for different ongoing projects. In my first year at university, I thought it was a good idea
to join Enactus and I submitted my application for it. Shortly thereafter, I was called upon and
recruited in the Local Youth Project as an engineer. The project aimed to support the extensive
Somali community present in Sheffield by providing transferrable skills. We aimed at creating a woolen product, for which we designed a storm drain that incorporates woolen insulation to capture water pollutants before heading down to streams and rivers. Regular meetings were held every week in order to get updated on the project and provide key updates to the team regarding the work which was deputed to each member. This storm drain was taken to the Sheffield City Council in order to see if it could be implemented under the current infrastructure. However, our project was not successful as the council did not approve it due to some technical problems.

Nonetheless, Enactus proved to be a very rewarding experience, and one that looked very good on the CV too! It provided an opportunity to speak about the sort of work done in the project at interviews and assessment centres with prospective employers. Several big companies such as GSK ask whether you have been involved with Enactus at any point in your life, therefore it is really good to get involved with Enactus as it provides you with an edge over other applicants.