When Robert Yarr left secondary school, he viewed university as purely a necessity. However, with the help of the Swansea Employability Academy (SEA), he has been able to study whilst developing his passion for sports journalism.
After successfully securing a place to study BA (Hons) Spanish in 2016, Robert ensured he took advantage of every opportunity available, including a SEA iBroadcast placement.
This placement allowed Robert to build on his network of contacts and enhance his already impressive CV.
Robert said: "iBroadcast helped build my legitimacy and associate with the right people, ultimately getting me appearances on the BBC, Nation Radio and further afield.
"It was one of the first steps away from writing in an amateur capacity, towards producing varied content that would gain some more serious attention."
Shortly after, Guinness PRO14 reached out to Robert and arranged a work experience placement with Sportsbeat, leading him to write home match reports for the Ospreys, as well as an opportunity to meet and interview some of the biggest names in European Rugby.
Robert said: "This strong footing enabled me to have the confidence and profile to work as an official Press and Media translator when the Maori All Blacks visited Chile, the biggest match in Chilean rugby history, for my year abroad; it also allowed me to meet some huge names in the rugby world, like Akira Ioane, and to enjoy the luxuries that come with working with management!"
Robert soon befriended two Chilean rugby players, Pablo Labowitz and Ian Oterson, who play for Old Grangonians (Old Boys), the team the Old Christians Club was set to play when their plane crashed into the Andes in 1972.
Through these new friendships, Robert secured an interview with one of the survivors of the famous Andes disaster, ex-President of the Uruguayan Rugby Federation, Gustavo Zerbino.
The interview, published in Chile Today and Rugby World, is one of many high-profile interviews Robert has done over the last couple of years.
Most recently, Robert interviewed Argentina International Winger Sebastián Cancelliere for his popular rugby blog, The Rugby Scribbler.
For The Rugby Scribbler, Robert also interviewed Bolivian Rugby Captain Mark Camburn and learned of Bolivia's struggle to acquire specialist rugby kit.
This lead Robert to coordinate a donation to help the sport grow and become more inclusive, with the British Ambassador to Bolivia agreeing to help ship the kit.
Robert has also encouraged more donations from his local rugby club and helped arrange donations from Scotland head coach and British & Irish Lions attack coach Gregor Townsend and captain of the Wales women's national rugby union team and Head of Rugby at Swansea University, Siwan Lillicrap. Donations are still open for anyone who would like to help.
Along with his role as a freelance journalist, Robert spends his time studying for a postgraduate degree in Latin American Studies and working at the Swansea University Employability Academy, the same department that helped him secure that vital iBroadcast placement three years ago.
Robert said: "Having come through Swansea and taken advantage of multiple SEA opportunities such as iBroadcast and an Internship, it feels like a nice full circle to now help Swansea alumni to benefit from it too. SEA has loads of excellent opportunities; it's just a case of letting students and graduates know about them."
Although he already has an accomplished employment history, Robert is always looking for the next exciting opportunity.
Robert said: "Given the constraints on time that I have, I have managed to develop a solid professional network in the world of rugby media. That said, I'm a pretty driven individual, and I'd be lying if I didn't say that ultimately, I'd love to land a top job in broadcasting either in rugby or as a Latin America correspondent, but that feels a long way off yet.
"For now, I have to get my head down and focus on the job at hand and my PhD."