KENT EMPLOYABILITY NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 2012
MAKE YOURSELF EMPLOYABLE
EMPLOYABILITY AT KENT
Welcome to the first Employability Newsletter of the new academic year. While your academic results are important, they are only the first hurdle – it takes more than a degree, however good, to make you ‘employable’. The CBI defines employability as ‘a broad range of non-academic or softer skills and abilities which are of value in the workplace’. These include the ability to work in a team; initiative and original thought; selfdiscipline in completing tasks to deadlines; communication and problem-solving. Graduate recruiters look for evidence of these skills through your vacation and part-time work and extracurricular activities as well as through your studies.
This applies just as much to internships and placements as to graduate programmes – employers use these short-term opportunities to select their graduate talent of the future. The University offers many opportunities for students to get involved in activities outside their studies. These activities may relate to your future career plans (such as involvement in student media, or volunteering in a local school), but any sport, society, employment or volunteering activities will help you to improve your employability skills. Your paid work is also valuable – even casual parttime work in retail or hospitality says something about you to employers. A recruiter in a major London law firm says: “If you have been employed scrubbing pots in a hot sticky kitchen we can see that you have resilience,” while HSBC Bank looks for a minimum of two months customer-related work experience in its graduate recruits. Employers know that the best, most organised and most motivated applicants for graduate training schemes, year-in-industry placements and internships tend to apply early. Major companies may have very early closing dates for these programmes (sometimes even in October or November) so don’t miss out! Use our vacancy database http://kent.prospects.ac.uk/ to search for these opportunities.
DEVELOP YOUR SKILLS WITH THE CAREERS EMPLOYABILITY AWARD
The University of Kent Careers Employability Award is an online careers programme developed by the Careers and Employability Service on Moodle.
It comprises a number of quizzes and assignments on: • Identifying your employability skills, learning how to develop these and to ‘sell’ them to employers • Learning to identify your interests, values and personal styles and finding out which careers these relate to • Finding out about a particular career • Preparing a quality CV and learning how to perform well at interview
important to future employers. Also, developing a greater understanding of what the employers want to see and hear on a CV and during an interview has given me confidence. The relaxed nature of this course to do assignments and quizzes at your own leisure makes this module very appealing as both a learning process and personal development.”
On completion, students get a certificate and 40 University of Kent employability points.
“The researching and choosing career assignments were nothing short of fantastic. For ages I have been worrying about the options I have with this degree and fell into the trap of thinking I was limited to teaching. However those two modules helped me establish what skill sets I have and how these can be utilised for different jobs. My goal now is to become an Advertising Copywriter and I know exactly how to approach getting a job like this. I would recommend anyone do this module.”
“I have enjoyed learning how to sell myself, tapping into my skills I previously was unaware were so
For more information see www.kent.ac.uk/careers/moodle.htm
Open to all Kent students it gives a head start with your career planning. It can be taken at any stage of the academic year and takes about 12 hours to complete.
+44 (0)1227 823164
With so much going on, follow us on Twitter and ‘like’ our Facebook page to keep up-to-date with the latest advice, industry developments and events on- and off- campus.
Stay tuned for dates of talks hosted by advisers on interviews, CVs and options with your subject; employer presentations and top tips and opportunities to help you land that dream job.
Canterbury Campus www.facebook.com/ukces www.twitter.com/unikentemploy
Medway Campus www.facebook.com/ukmemployability www.twitter.com/ukmemploy Remember also to check out the employability website www.kent.ac.uk/employability
How to become a Student Ambassador The University of Kent Student Ambassador Scheme offers paid opportunities to work with school students from local primary and secondary schools in Kent and Medway. Aside from the financial benefits, the scheme provides a range of skills necessary to succeed in the world of employment. Additionally, those involved in the scheme in recent years have praised the rewarding nature of the role and expressed satisfaction in their employment. Applications for the Student Ambassador Scheme are processed in September and January and include completing an application form and interview. Forms and a detailed job description are available upon request. Interviews and training occur in two phases with applicants being invited to the nearest applicable session. Applications are welcomed from students on both the Canterbury and Medway campuses. For further information, or to request an application form for either campus, please contact the Partnership Development Office on outreach@kent.ac.uk, or call 01227 824149 to speak to one of the team.
www.kent.ac.uk/employability
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