This document provides information on how you can make the most of your time at university.

Studying for a degree or postgraduate qualification is a first step in preparing for your future career.  However a good degree or postgraduate qualification is not enough.   

Here are some examples for you: http://go.le.ac.uk/international-voices

Succeeding in the graduate employment market also requires you to be clear about your career goals and plans, and know how to achieve them.  Thinking about the type of work that will suit you will help you clarify what type of experience to aim for. The Career Development Team provides information, advice and guidance to help you identify your career direction and plan what you need to do next.  For further information visit the website at www.le.ac.uk/careers.  

Let’s look at what you can do to develop your employability.

Getting in shape for the Graduate Employment Market

Work Experience
Work experience can include:

• Work placements or internships during vacations and after your course finishes; some courses have the option of spending a whole year in industry between their second and third year. 

• Part time and temporary work during term time and vacations; this includes opportunities on and off campus in areas like bar, catering, customer services, clerical, social care, sales and marketing, IT, retail, and call centre work.

• Work shadowing involves observing someone in the workplace to give you an insight into the job/organisation.  It is often an informal arrangement and can last anything from one day to a week.
• Workplace visits – usually short visits to an organisation that can be undertaken either as part of your course or arranged independently.  
• Business simulation, business exercises which recreate the type of situations you might encounter in the workplace e.g. ‘Tomorrow’s Managers’, a two-day insight into management course organised by the Careers Service.
• Qualification schemes like the Leicester Award programme are designed to help you make use of your experience in part-time work, societies and/or volunteering and gain an accredited qualification. 
• PULSE, Promoting University of Leicester Student Enterprise provides the opportunity to get involved in a range of student enterprise activities, great for developing your personal skills and commercial awareness. www.le.ac.uk/studententerprise

Work experience has many advantages including:

• Gain course and career related experience.
• Experience a commercial environment.
• Develop your language skills in a business context.
• Develop the employability skills that graduate employers look for.
• Work with others including professionals
• Put theory into practice
• Try out a particular type of work to see whether it is right for you.
• Earn some money.

Where to look for work experience?

You will find further information on our website www.le.ac.uk/careers in the section 'Gain Experience' and under W in the A-Z.

Graduate job search increasingly takes place on line so in addition to checking employer websites for details of their graduate recruitment and work placement programme check out the following:
• www.le.ac.uk/jobsonline
• www.prospects.ac.uk
• www.targetjobs.co.uk
• www.e4s.co.uk
• www.insidecareers.co.uk
• www.grb.uk.com
• www.milkround.com
• www.fledglings.net
• www.step.org.uk
• www.yini.org.uk
• www.gradcracker.com

Recruitment agencies: advertise vacancies and provide recruitment services for employers.  Information on recruitment agencies is available on the website (see ‘Job Hunting’ section) and details of local recruitment agencies can be found on www.yell.com

University of Leicester: opportunities are advertised on the website, www.le.ac.uk – see Job Vacancies and on the Student Union website,  www.leicesterunion.com/yourunion/recruitment.  Vacancies are also advertised on notice boards in departments and around the university e.g. David Wilson Library.

Local newspaper: the Leicester Mercury advertises job vacancies in the Wednesday edition including details of part time and temporary work. Jobs are also advertised on line www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/jobs

Job Centre – provides details of part time vacancies (at Charles Street in the city centre) and online www.job-centre-vacancies.co.uk

Network and make speculative applications:  if you know of specific employers you would like to work for contact them in person and/or by letter giving information on the type of work you are looking for and the skills that you have that would make you suitable.  Provide a copy of your CV targeted to the type of work you are looking for.  For information on how to compile a covering letter and CV look at our website  and/or attend one of the central workshops on creating a professional looking CV.

Shop windows: some shops advertise part time and temporary vacancies in their windows especially in the lead up to Christmas.

Volunteering
Volunteering provides valuable experience including the opportunity to meet people and develop your English language and employability skills.  You can offer as much or as little time as you wish and you can get support with organising your volunteering through the Volunteering Team based in the Student Development Zone (Careers Service).  There are many types of volunteering opportunities available including.

• Community Challenges – one-off, team challenges in the local community, such as mural painting, conservation work or school activity days.
• Law and Criminal Justice e.g. Victim Support (one to one support for victims and their families), or support young people at risk of offending.
• Education e.g. help in a classroom or after school club, work with children in primary school on literacy and reading projects, assist with a Young Enterprise programme helping children to understand the relationship between business and education.
• Health e.g. Social Work and Caring Professions such as local hospitals, Age Concern (works with the elderly), or Mencap (works with those with a learning disability).
• Arts and Culture e.g. ‘Embrace Arts’ at the Richard Attenborough Centre, other local arts and cultural events.
• Environment e.g. The Wildlife Trust, Groundwork (practical conservation tasks), or recycling projects. 

Further information on volunteering in Leicester is available from:

• www.le.ac.uk/volunteering and the Student Development Zone for information on volunteering in the UK and overseas.
• The Volunteering Team, Student Development Zone, David Wilson Library or email: contact@le.ac.uk
• Voluntary Action Leicester, Leicester Active Community Centre, 9 Newarke Street, Leicester LE1 5SN, Tel: 0116 257 5050or visit website at www.voluntaryactionleicester.org.uk 

University Student Societies
You can pursue your interests whilst at University (there is a club or society covering most interests; if not you could set one up) or you might choose to try something new. Taking up a new interest provides the opportunity to meet people, learn new things, make friends and for personal development.  Employers look for people who have a range of skills and abilities developed through different experiences.  Having interests outside academia helps to demonstrates this. For information on the range of clubs and societies at the University of Leicester visit www.leicesterunion.com/clubs

Other opportunities on campus include:

• Student Ambassadors - outreach@le.ac.uk (Summer Term)
• Student Communication Team - advertised on JOBSonline (Summer Term) - www.le.ac.uk/leicesteraward
• Student Union Representatives - www.leicesterunion.com
• Student Assistants (International Welcome Programme) - recruited via the Student Welfare Service (Summer Term).

These all provide the opportunity to gain valuable experience in delivering important projects.

Services and support provided by Student Development
We provide a wide range of services and support to assist you with your career planning and development.

• Careers consultations - a one to one appointment to discuss your career goals and plans.  If you have no idea what you want to do you can get help to explore careers that might suit you. You can also get advice on job hunting, the recruitment and selection process and how to approach interviews and assessment centres.
• Application Feedback - receive feedback on how to develop your draft CV, covering letter, personal statement and/or application form. If you do not have a draft CV and covering letter then we recommend you attend a Careers Skills Workshop to learn how to create one prior to booking a one to one feedback appointment.
• Employer presentations and careers fairs – employer presentations and careers fairs provide the opportunity to network with graduate recruiters on campus.
• Career skills workshops – find out about the UK graduate job market and the recruitment and selection process; learn how to create professional looking CVs, covering letters, personal statements and applications, and how to approach interviews and assessment centres.

For further information visit the website at www.le.ac.uk/careers. You can book an appointment by contacting the SDZ Helpdesk located in the Student Development Zone (second floor of the David Wilson Library) or by telephoning 0116 252 2004 between 10.00am and 4.00pm Monday to Friday. 

>>Further help for international students