// Archives

Chronological CV vs skills based CV

By Caroline Nolan, Employability Officer A good CV is a powerful tool. In less than 30 seconds it should be able to truthfully sell your achievements and secure you an interview. Your CV is the first point of contact with an employer for a specific type of role. From the employer’s perspective, it’s the only …

Applying Academic Focus to Wider Careers

By Imogen Worrall, Archaeological Science student blogger From GCSE onwards, we are taught to specialise. Narrowing down the number of subjects further and further until at university we are left, usually, with just one. From there, focus shifts into specialisation, commonly in the form of a dissertation. Continuing along the academic path, it becomes easy …

A Camp America experience: what I’ve learned

By Annie Brown, MA Creative Writing student blogger The ‘summer of a lifetime’ at Camp America can be incredibly fun. It is also a fantastic opportunity that can transform your career prospects. Alongside getting to travel and meet lifelong friends, it boosted my employability skills greatly. It helped me become more confident, positive and ambitious, …

Why Volunteering Should Be The Next Thing You Do

By Andrew Hunter, first year mathematics and economics student blogger It is becoming increasingly more difficult to attain valuable work experience with well-known firms in your chosen industry of work. That’s why volunteering is important as it can play such a big part in standing out from the crowd, helping you to succeed in applications …

What job will make me happy?

By Jennifer Balloch, Employability Officer Let’s imagine you start full-time employment when you graduate. If we stop to think about this level of commitment, then asking if you will be happy in your job seems quite reasonable. Happiness in work is a scale and will mean different things for different people. For some people being …

How to turn your interest in sport into valuable career skills

By Joss Hillary, Information Officer You don’t have to be an elite athlete to boast about the benefits of your sporting experience to an employer. Students are gaining valuable experience through schemes such as the Leadership Academy, set up with UoN sport. Read about their experiences and the important skills they developed. Develop a range …

Talking to the right people is a career ‘must do’

By Joel Kaziro, medicine graduate  Having been a teacher for the last five years, I walked into Medical School as a mature student. I figured that at the end of my four-year stint, I’d be a doctor. What I failed to realise was ‘being a doctor’ was not enough; they come in many different shapes and sizes and …

The rise of perfectionism

By Joanne Workman, Employability Education Projects Officer A student asked me recently if I thought ‘perfectionism’ was a good response to the interview question, ‘what’s your biggest weakness?’ This really got me thinking about the perceived value of ‘being a perfectionist’, and how this might impact on careers and employability. Particularly in light of recent …

On a professional course? Tips on self-development, building your portfolio and decision making

By Fady Anis, medicine graduate and junior doctor on the Academic Foundation Programme At the beginning of Medical School, I was fairly adamant that I wanted a career in one of the surgical specialties. My experience and understanding of what it meant to be a surgeon was purely based on the few weeks’ work placement …

5 Job Hunting Tips For Graduates With A Disability

By Christian Jameson-Warren, Employability Education Projects Officer   1. Be clear about the possible implications of your disability in the workplace Managing a disability or health condition in employment may require thinking about strengths and challenges in a different way to at university. Employers have a legal responsibility to make reasonable adjustments so that a …