Career readiness
At enrolment and re-enrolment each year, the Careers team asks all students “what stage are you at in your career planning?”. Depending on your answer, you may be looking for different things from us.
Generally, you’ll fall into one of our three Career Readiness stages: Discover, Develop or Compete. And it’s all fluid. You may move between the stages and no one is the right or wrong place to be at any time.
To make sure you are getting the best support from us that we can offer, as easily as possible, we try to tailor the information we give to you and the events we offer to these three different themes.
Discover
Exploring career options
In the Discover stage, we may encourage you to attend careers fairs or to book an appointment with an Adviser to talk about what interests you and what your degree can prepare you for. You could consider trying some volunteering opportunities or part-time work, to get a taste of a certain industry or interest area. Our Meet the Employer events could give you an insight into the roles that are out there and the work some companies do.
Our Extra Edge Award is ideal for you to get involved with us you can Discover and explore different activities to help you move into the Develop stage of Career Readiness and get an award at the same time
There is a whole world out there. This stage is about discovering the careers, occupational roles, and different opportunities you are interested in.
Develop
Enhancing skills and developing experience
At the Develop stage, you may want to consider volunteering, part-time work, or undertaking a placement, to develop your skills and enhance your CV – ready for when you are competing. Look into attending careers fairs and insight days for the careers paths you are interested in. Why not attend some of our Meet the Employer talks or Alumni Panel events to hear what the career journeys of others look like.
Our Extra Edge Award helps you in the Develop stage by giving you a range of different activities you can get involved in and you receive credit for doing so!
Let’s build your confidence about your future. This stage is about developing your skills to help you stand out and increasing your knowledge on how to progress.
Compete
Focusing on getting ready to secure highly skilled employment or further study
During the Compete stage, we encourage you to meet with an Adviser to help you find the perfect graduate opportunity for you. We can check your CV/application to make sure it’s showing how you are the best candidate for the opportunity. And we can help you to explore postgraduate study options if you need a higher qualification to follow your chosen career path. Attend our workshops on application advice, interview techniques, and many more.
If you haven’t already then you can still get involved in the Extra Edge Award to give yourself the edge above the competition. The award is great recognition of your proactiveness and desire for self-development – two skills employers look out for
It’s time to put yourself out there. This stage is about competing against other candidates to secure your graduate role or get into postgraduate study.