#CareerPlanning: Action Plan for each year at university

...from our last post

Second Year

This is a vital year for developing career plans and for testing them out through work experience to make sure that they are right for you. If you spend time on this during your second year it will save you a lot of work during your final year.

• KEEP DEVELOPING YOUR SKILLS- Students who get involved in clubs and societies or hold posts within the Students Union have lots of opportunities to use communication, negotiating and similar skills which are valuable ammunition for your CV. This will also help you to complete competency-based application forms for internships and graduate jobs.
• RESEARCH YOUR CAREER OPTIONS. This web site is a good starting point for this espcially our I Want to Work in ... pages. Also use www.prospects.ac.uk
• ATTEND CAREERS AND EMPLOYABILITY SERVICE EVENTS. We put on a variety of talks each term and these are a good way of starting your career planning. 
• WORK HARD TO GET A GOOD DEGREE. Many large organisations require an Upper Second Class Honors degree (2:1) which normally equates to about a 60% overall mark, so it pays you to work hard academically to try to achieve this. If you are applying for jobs during your final year, employers will normally ask for a predicted degree class – the results of your second-year exams and assessments will be used as evidence to support your prediction.
• UPDATE YOUR CV You will have new things to put on your CV, such as summer jobs, so keep it up-to-date. This will save you much effort later, and put you ahead of the crowd.
• PRACTICE FILLING OUT APPLICATION FORMS. Most employers’ application forms require you to demonstrate that you have the competencies needed for the job by showing how you have used these skills in other situations. If you start to think about your employability skills now, and to practice answering these questions, it will save you a lot of time in your final year!
• APPLY FOR INTERNSHIPS. There is tremendous competition for summer internships with major graduate recruiters and, although most closing dates for these are in December and January, you should not leave it until the last minute to research employers and make applications: start in the Autumn Term!
• PLAN POSTGRADUATE STUDY ABROAD If you want to study abroad, then you really need to begin gathering information 12 – 18 months before you intend to start your study. This is especially true for the USA where deadlines for entry and scholarship applications are likely to be early in your final year

Final Year

Most of the dates and deadlines during the Autumn term relate to large corporate graduate recruiters. Not all students will be interested in these recruiters (and, as they are very competitive, not all of those students who are interested will be successful). In fact, the majority of graduates going into employment join smaller or more diverse organisations such as small businesses, public sector employers, media organisations, software houses, etc which may not recruit until after you have graduated.