I didn’t realise how much support was on offer!
Just over a month ago I handed in my dissertation and my last ever uni assignment. After three years of hard work I could finally relax.
I strolled home with my headphones in, listening to some cringingly embarrassing feel-good playlist, and spent the rest of the day doing absolutely nothing, simply because I could.
But then the inevitable thoughts of ‘what next?’ started to creep up on me. Something I bet a whole load of other third years are panicking about right now.
One thing led to another, and part of my next chapter turned out to be writing for this blog, to advice, reassure and offer support to other students in the same scary situation of finishing uni.
So, what was my discovery?
Before working with the careers team, I never actually realised just how much support was on offer, not only for students, but also for graduates.
I was previously panicking that I needed to seek any advice I wanted from the careers team before I was no longer a student. But I couldn’t have been more wrong! Turns out, the careers team work throughout summer, and offer support all year round, to students both past and present.
You can ask for assistance with your CV and cover letters, your interview skills – everything to make job applications that bit easier! You can meet with a member of the careers team in person, or you can browse the resources on Moodle, such as the CV and cover letter templates. No word of a lie, I would now not even dream of applying for a job without referring to these resources.
Even if you don’t have the foggiest idea what you want to do, and you’re feeling completely stuck, they’re so friendly, and will happily just talk through ideas with you. Whether you fancy a conventional career, or you want to become self-employed or start your own business, they’re constantly here to help you achieve your own personal goals.
They’re also constantly organising events, contacting employers, updating the daily jobs board and putting programmes in place to make the transition from university to the working world as easy as possible. Take the Professional Mentor Programme for example, you can have your own personal mentor to guide you through the working world and help you expand your business contacts!
Don’t make the same mistake I did!
I didn’t realise just how much support was on offer, if I had, I would have made the most of it sooner. Whether you’re in your final year and you’re experiencing the same panic I did, or you’re a second year planning ahead, don’t make the same mistake I did and think you have to figure it all on your own, because you don’t!
Contact the careers team for help and support, and they’ll give you as much friendly and professional advice as you need. I can honestly say, having worked with them, they could not be a friendlier bunch!
