By Clarissa Martelli, MSc Computer Science graduate

I’m Clarissa and after four years at Nottingham, I didn’t know what I wanted to do after graduation as the idea of going into the real world always scared me.

Through my course I had the opportunity to learn about various branches of computer science, not only programming, which allowed me to explore different areas and helped me narrow down what interested me the most.

All I knew when looking for a job was that being a developer wasn’t going to be the role for me, so started to look for various job positions in fields that seemed interesting to me as I’ve always found it easier to enjoy the work I was doing if I found it interesting.

Attending careers fairs

After months of applying for jobs and attending careers fairs at university, I got a job offer as a business analyst for a company that specialised in technology consulting. The branch that I was hired in specialises in providing software for warehouses and improving their inventory management with more innovative technology.

My role

My role involves various things as it follows the full cycle of a project: the proposal of the project, gathering requirements from the client, testing the software, training the client and supporting them during and after the project goes live.

Straight from the start, I was involved with client meetings and site visits and even had the opportunity to be at the company’s stand for a few fairs. Although the pace was quite fast to begin with, it definitely allowed me to grow very quickly and become very knowledgeable about the system and what we do. There are new projects starting soon which allows me to learn from the previous one and put into action any new strategy.

Even if I don’t do any coding anymore, the knowledge and skills acquired during my course helps me on a day-to-day basis with solving problems, working in a team with both technical and functional users, and understanding the software and the system a lot easier.

Help from the Careers team

The Careers team at the university helped me a lot starting from applying for summer internships to gaining a full-time job. They helped me to gain confidence and believe in myself, highlighting my key strengths and teaching me how to value them during the application process. They were very supportive and I would definitely recommend asking for advice as that gave me the strength to continue to apply to more jobs.

My advice to you

Some advice for final years would be to keep applying and not rush the application process as it’s something that requires time and dedication. There is also no need to rush in sending many applications before January as you’ll always find some job openings throughout the year.

If you’re graduating this year, visit our Graduating in 2024 webpage for advice and key resources. Our advisers are available all summer – just give us a call on 0115 951 3680 or book an appointment through MyCareer.