Do You Really Want That Job? - Social-Hire

Do You Really Want That Job? - Social-Hire

Employers raise UCAS tariff for grads | GradTouch

Employers raise UCAS tariff for grads | GradTouch

Top Websites for Students

• StudentBeans: is a website full of student offers and articles: http://www.studentbeans.com/student-money/a/8-jobs-you-can-easily-do-from-home-4752.html
• Targetjobs: is a careers/employability website: http://targetjobs.co.uk/
• WikiJobs: is a great site to gain insight for placement/internship interviews and processes: http://www.wikijob.co.uk/
• Bright Futures: is a society were you can network with top employers: http://brightfutures.co.uk/home/index.php
• The Guardian: has a great newsletter and student blog section: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/students
• Employability Award: a way to recognise and record non-academic achievements: http://www.worcester.ac.uk/careers/1592.htm
• VInspired: a way to find volunteering opportunities and record your hours: http://vinspired.com/
• Just-do-it: a way to find volunteering opportunities: http://www.do-it.org.uk/

Inspiring Interns.com

Excellent website for internships in London visit: http://www.inspiringinterns.com/interns/internship-offers/?utm_source=Candidate+newsletter+15+07&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Vacancies+?page=2?page=2

During the Holidays

During the Holidays

Graduate jobs, schemes, internships, recruitment: TARGETjobs UK

Graduate jobs, schemes, internships, recruitment: TARGETjobs UK

Far too many competing graduates: FMCG tops applicant rates, finds AGR | Business intelligence for recruitment and resourcing professionals

Far too many competing graduates: FMCG tops applicant rates, finds AGR | Business intelligence for recruitment and resourcing professionals

TARGETjobs Bloggers: What part of your CV matters most to employers

TARGETjobs Bloggers: What part of your CV matters most to employers: What part of your CV matters most to employers Last week we ran a poll asking you ‘what part of your CV matters most to employers.’ We ...

The Worcester Award

The Worcester Award – A Student's Perspective by Alexa-Jane Moore

I first heard about the Worcester Award from a recruiter, at Enterprise-Rent-A-Car, who praised the award as a way to collate and reflect on your experiences whilst at University. Knowing how competitive the graduate job market is, I thought it would be a good way to stand out from the crowd as the award is recognised on your degree transcript. I looked into starting the award, in the careers department, and I attended the introductory session. The first thing I noticed was all the opportunities, that I did not know about, that could be used in the different sections of the award. The award entails showing involvement in activities that can aid personal and skills development, show a contribution to society, show that you have learnt how to promote yourself to employers and work experience.

The experiences I chose to use were:

• Bright Futures Society Treasurer
• Student Academic Representative
• Mentor for the charity Mentor Link
• Sales assistant for The Co-operative
• Endsleigh workshop
• 'Finding student placements' workshop

I undertook these activities, during my second year, and I collated my hours in the activities log. When I had completed it, I reflected on my experiences in the personal statement. I learnt that I had strengths such as: good communication skills, problem solving abilities, the ability to build relationships and good time-management skills. I also learnt that my weakness was the ability to work well in a team. This gave me the chance to highlight this weakness and think of ways to improve it. Doing this, has enabled me to come up with answers to those dreaded competencies questions asked by employers! I have a set of examples ready, using the STAR method, that could be used in any interview. I was given the chance to use these in the final panel interview for the Worcester Award. It was a new experience as I have never had an interview with more than one person before.

I would recommend the Worcester Award to any student. It gives you the chance to collate your experiences in a way that can be presented to employers. I think most students are already doing activities that can be used in the award and do not realise you can get recognition for it. You can learn about your strengths and weaknesses and it will definitely get you more involved in student life. This is an excellent way to set yourself apart from other candidates to get your dream job!  

How to Gain a Placement

How to Gain a Placement by Alexa-Jane Moore

The graduate job market is tougher than ever and the process of gaining your first job can be nerve racking and laborious. A starting point to this process can be gaining a placement in your second year. 75% of graduate jobs are awarded to students on summer or year long placements. I have gained such a placement and here are my top tips to get through the very long application process!

Refine your job search- you have to think; what do I really want to do? Don’t just apply to every job you see. I would apply to ten jobs maximum. This way you can really spend time tailoring your covering letter and C.V.
Visit the careers department- First Point has just opened in the Pierson Centre. This is an excellent place to visit to get advice on how to create a C.V. and possible local opportunities.
Create a ’punchy’ C.V.- I would keep your C.V. to a maximum of two pages. Recruiters are extremely busy and may receive a thousand applications per position. You really need to focus on the skills that the company are looking for and really highlight these. I tend to explain my experiences using the STAR method. Situation, Task, Approach and Result.
Practice psychological reasoning tests- so you have passed the initial application and now it is time for the tests! These tests could include: a personality test, numerical reasoning test, verbal reasoning test, diagrammatic test and situational judgement test. All of these tests are used to make sure you have the right skill level for the company. I practiced these tests on www.assessmentday.co.uk and I found lots of books in the careers department.
Research potential questions- so you are now onto the telephone interview. If you have got to this stage, firstly well done! When I reached this stage, I used Wiki Jobs to research potential questions, that could be asked, and I prepared answers to the dreaded competency questions.
Relax - when I reached the assessment centre, I just thought how well I had done to get this stage. I asked the recruiter and there were eleven of us chosen from one thousand applicants. The aim of the assessment centre is to see how you work as part of a team. My main piece of advice would be to talk! If you do not say anything, how can the assessors assess you? However, this does not mean talk over people! Ask others what they think and if someone says something good, acknowledge it.
Don’t be afraid to talk about yourself- I found this really difficult. The final interview is extremely nerve racking. My advice would be to have some answers prepared to questions like, “Why do you want to work for us?” This means you will not be put on the spot. I would also advice trying to guide the interview so you can talk about all the achievements you have. If you don’t, then how will they know how you can bring certain skills to their team.

I have gained a placement to be an Assistant Merchandiser at George. I have found all of this advice extremely helpful. Out of the ten jobs I applied to, I was invited to eight assessment centres. I would say, be persistent and don’t give up. If you don’t get the position, review the feedback and try to improve. Otherwise, maybe that job wasn't the right job for you!