March 6, 2019, by lzzeb
Careers with Geography Event
A blog by Cordelia Freeman
The School of Geography’s largest careers event of the year took place in February. This was an informal, networking style event where ten alumni who studied in the School of Geography came back to speak to our students about their career experiences.
Over some drinks, over seventy students were able to chat to the alumni about the career they are in, how they got there, and what advice they have for our students.
The format was a brief introduction from the alumni followed by a ‘speed-dating’ style event where the students moved around the room in groups to chat to each guest for around ten minutes. The student attendees really valued the format of the event saying:
“The informal networking style made it so there was a lot less pressure to be active in asking questions. Questions felt easier to ask as it was more of a conversation rather than a Q&A. The informal nature made the whole event a lot more comfortable to be at.” – Attendee
“I really enjoyed the chance to speak to them in smaller groups, it meant we could ask a lot more questions than we do at other career events. Also, the fact that they were Geography alumni meant that we had something in common and so the comments made by them were more personal and relevant.” – Attendee
The alumni came from a wide variety of careers with the following guests returning to Nottingham:
- Reshaad Durgahee- Department for International Trade
- Sarah Starkey- Surveying
- Conor Ryan- Cultural Heritage Consultant
- Sarah Begg- Advisor on Renewable Energy for Refugees with Practical Action
- Adrian D’Enrico- Fund Manager
- Lizzie Bushby- Landscape Architecture
- Omar Clarke- Consultant
- Catherine Waite & Kieran Phelan – Postgraduate Studies
- Jonathan Moon- Graduate Analyst with HSBC
All of the guests were School of Geography alumni, some of whom had graduated from Nottingham as early as last year. This meant that the guests were in an excellent position to provide friendly advice about career options, employability, and applying for jobs after graduation. The range of careers covered by the event was valued by the student attendees who said:
“The range provided was wide, there were some alumni there in certain careers I had no idea geographers could get into.” – Attendee
“The range of careers the alumni came from was “very diverse, and really opened my eyes to what kind of careers are available to me once I graduate – and not immediately, the alumni had a multitude of careers individually too.” – Attendee
“I very much appreciated the range of careers as it reminded me of the several areas I could go into after I graduate, e.g. property, consultancy, banking. I thought the range of careers was substantial for the nature of the event!” – Attendee
In a survey filled in by students who attended the event, 100% said that the event helped them to think about what they need to do to improve their chances of employment after University and 100% said they would attend a similar event in the future.
“It was a great evening and provided lots of information to all students. I would love to attend more of these events as I feel like a lot of my options are wider now thanks to speaking to some of the alumni.” – Attendee
“I really enjoyed the event and would attend again to gain a valuable insight into the different career options available to me.” – Attendee
Funding for the event was generously provided by the Careers & Employability Service and the Faculty of Social Science Learning Community Forum.
Hi Cordelia,
I am Akash from LearnPick, I have read your blog and find it a great endeavor by the School of Geography, students really got great career advice from this kind of event, tutor job is also a good career option for a Geography student.