Career Planning Through Your Course
From a careers perspective there are certain things you can do throughout university to help you when you graduate - this applies whether you know what you want to do after graduating or not. We have put some general suggestions on this page with specific timings for your final year further down.
In general we encourage you to start thinking about what you want to do after university as early as possible because it gives you time to consider your options and to work towards any specific requirements and deadlines. If you come to this page later on in your course however, don't worry: you will be able to assess your previous experiences and current skills and make decisions from there.
The suggestions on this page complement the pdp process.
First / Second / Penultimate Years
| Develop general skills | Developing skills that will complement your academic work and enhance job applications is something you can do throughout university. There are lots of opportunities to develop generic skills like team-working and using initiative. Getting involved with volunteering, sports clubs and doing work experience are examples. Employers look for more than your academic qualifications. A further option is a European or international exchange. |
| Research specific careers / sectors / options | It may seem early to start doing this during your first and second or penultimate years. The advantage is in finding out if there are any skills or experiences that you will need to demonstrate later on. In an application for a PGCE, for example, you need to have experience in a school. Deadlines for some course applications and jobs can be early in your final year. Navigate from our homepage to research your options. |
| Gain experience and skills in a specific area if relevant | Follows on from the above. If there is an area you are particularly interested in then getting experience will be really useful. If it confirms your interest then it will be a good, possibly crucial, addition to job applications. If it changes your mind then it will mean you will be able to start looking at alternatives. Finding work experience in itself demonstrates your motivation. |
| Develop computing skills | If you think it's an area you need to work on then developing your computing skills will be invaluable. Key Skills Online may help with this. The Internet is an important resource for job hunting and online applications are increasingly common. |
Final year
All of the suggestions in the table above can also apply in your final year. In addition there are some specific dates you need to be aware of:
Applications for some PGCE courses are subject to closing dates. See the applying for teacher training page for more information. Generally applications should be made early in your final year.
For those in their final year of teaching courses the University's Teaching Fair takes place during the October half term. It's an opportunity to meet with organisations recruiting teachers and to hear their tips on applying. More details are on the NQTs page.
If you want to apply for postgraduate courses make sure you are aware of any closing dates for the courses themselves or for applications to be considered for funding. More information is on our postgraduate study page.
If you are interested in applying for graduate schemes with large employers make sure you are aware of any closing dates. They can be early in your final year. Remember that graduate schemes are only one source of jobs after graduating. See the jobs after graduating and creative job hunting pages for more information.
Careers at the University is open throughout the year (there may be occasional closures outside term-time). Our aim is to help you market yourself to employers and develop the career management skills and insights to enable you to succeed on your own terms. You can contact us at any time. Don't worry if you haven't been in touch before. Although we recommend you start thinking about your options after university as soon as possible we know it's not always the case.