You have spent the last few years in a blur of booze and books but now the end of your degree is drawing close. It is time to take a deep breath and consider your next big steps. 快猫短视频 runs through your options.
Get a job
Here鈥檚 a crazy idea: maybe you should just grit your teeth and get on with the job hunt. The sooner you start, the sooner you will find something, right? In June, the Association of Graduate Recruiters an increase in graduate vacancies 鈥� the first since 2008. But as the system plays catch up, you will be competing not only with your peers, but also several years鈥� worth of graduates. You need to be prepared, armed and ready for job-seeking war.
Start with your university careers service, says Whitmell. 鈥淎s well as advertising vacancies, they can also help you with your applications, give you CV feedback and help you practise interviews.鈥� Don鈥檛 leave job hunting too late: you should start looking for positions two to three months prior to finishing your course, says Gutsell. Avoid applying only to big companies with large graduate schemes 鈥� they will attract swathes of applicants and trap you in endless rounds of assessments. 鈥淔ind out about smaller employers in your chosen industry,鈥� says Whitmell. 鈥淭hey might not offer such structured training, but you could find yourself exposed to a much wider range of working experiences.鈥�
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Make sure you sign up to recruitment agencies, especially if you are interested in a niche industry. There are a number that specialise in science and technology and these will help you find careers you didn鈥檛 even know existed. 鈥淪pecialist recruiters have industry contacts and know their client companies well,鈥� says Whitmell. 鈥淭hey can give you gold-dust tips on how best to organise your CV or conduct yourself at interview.鈥�
It鈥檚 been said a hundred times before but the first step towards a successful application is a perfect CV. Your university careers service is best placed to help with this, and there are a number of online companies who you can submit your CV to for free feedback.
But it鈥檚 not just your CV you need to focus on 鈥� your mindset needs attention too. Research an employer before applying, looking closely at any values they provide on their website. 鈥淭hese will give a strong hint as to the way the organisation would like people to behave,鈥� says , a business psychologist and graduate assessment consultant based near Bath. Knowing this will help you pass the selection assessments some companies use, called Situational Judgement Tests. These pose a series of hypothetical scenarios and ask you to apply your reasoning and common sense to get through them. The only way to succeed is to practise, says Parkinson. There are many free tests and questionnaires available on the web, and books you can buy or borrow from libraries.
Some companies ask prospective employees to take a personality test to see if they would be a good 鈥渇it鈥�. Employers use these to guess how an applicant is likely to interact and behave with clients and colleagues. 鈥淭he best single piece of advice for these tests is to be yourself,鈥� says Parkinson. Under no circumstances should you lie or bend your answers 鈥� these questionnaires test for consistency, so they will be able to tell.
The reality is that these days it is not unusual for graduates to apply for many, many jobs before they are successful. But the best advice is to start looking for a job as soon as you can, while you still have some student loan left and before the novelty of having you home, rent-free, wears off on your parents. Whatever you decide to do, avoid succumbing to the numbing comfort of Neighbours and Countdown. Sitting around doing nothing to further your skills doesn鈥檛 look good to a prospective employer.