How To Get A Job

Okay admittedly this post is not going to give you everything you need to know on this subject. The University has a brilliant Careers Development Service which will give you so much help with your great and courageous job hunt (finding part time work and internships while you’re at uni, and graduate jobs when you leave). However, since it’s the beginning of the year, I thought I’d give you a few start of year pointers regardless of whether you’re starting or finishing uni.

1). Apply early

It might seem like you should wait until you graduate to start applying, but most graduate schemes open for applications in September. It pays to start applying ASAP, before you get bogged down in work.

2). Get newsletters

You may have seen people trying to get your email at fresher’s fair. You might have given in and handed it over, or you might have ignored them, but I would definitely recommend signing up to a few. Prospects, TargetJobs, and Bright Network all send you tailored emails for jobs and placements that you might otherwise miss on your great and courageous job hunt. Also, it pays to get in on their early application schemes.

3). Get your CV checked over

Believe it or not, your CV could look great, even if you’ve never had a job. Charity shops are always taking on volunteers for flexible hours if that end is looking a bit thin, but I’m talking about the other stuff. Things you’ve done but never even realised the significance, like group projects, or running a blog. Being a member of a society, giving a presentation, or any extra curricular activities. The trick is to pick out the skills you’ve shown. Even handing in ordinary coursework a bit early shows good time management. Get it checked over at the Careers Development Service before you apply for anything, just to really make sure it’s at its best.

So there are my three basic tips for the start of the year. It’s best to get this kind of thing out of the way, so take a deep breath and plunge. It’s not as scary as you think.