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    Mature Students - Advancing Careers

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    la
    This session provides information to mature students about advancing their careers. It will cover graduate outcomes for mature students, exploring career options, telling your career story, presenting experience in applications and interviews, and how the Career Services office can support students. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Mature Students - Advancing Careers

    Uploaded by

    la
    24 views18 pages
    This session provides information to mature students about advancing their careers. It will cover graduate outcomes for mature students, exploring career options, telling your career story, presenting experience in applications and interviews, and how the Career Services office can support students. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions.

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    © © All Rights Reserved

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    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

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    This session provides information to mature students about advancing their careers. It will cover graduate outcomes for mature students, exploring career options, telling your career story, presenting experience in applications and interviews, and how the Career Services office can support students. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    24 views18 pages

    Mature Students - Advancing Careers

    Uploaded by

    la
    This session provides information to mature students about advancing their careers. It will cover graduate outcomes for mature students, exploring career options, telling your career story, presenting experience in applications and interviews, and how the Career Services office can support students. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 18

    Mature Students:

    Advancing your career

    This session will start at 1800 BST

    Inspiring futures
    Audio Check
    Can you hear the presenter talking?
    Please choose Yes or No

    Inspiring futures
    Asking Questions
    There will be time at the end of the session to ask
    questions.

    You can type a question in the “Text Chat Area”

    Inspiring futures
    Session will cover:

    • Graduate outcomes for mature students


    • Exploring options
    • Telling your story
    • Presenting your experience in applications
    • Presenting your experience in interviews
    • How the Careers Service can support you
    • Q and A

    Inspiring futures
    Graduate outcomes
    In 2016-17, mature graduates continue to do slightly better than young
    graduates: 77 per cent of mature graduates are in highly skilled
    employment or further study compared with 73 per cent for young
    graduates. Office for Students

    HESA data has found mature grads of undergraduate degrees earn,


    on average, 25 per cent - or almost £4,400 a year - more than those graduating
    under 25.While the average starting salary for graduates under 25 is £20,009,
    older grads typically start work earning £24,529. The Independent

    Inspiring futures
    Exploring options
    • Career planner; Job match; career assessment exercises
    www.ed.ac.uk/careers/your-future/career-planning

    Occupations www.ed.ac.uk/careers/occupations

    • Destinations www.ed.ac.uk/careers/your-future/options/degree-options

    • Alumni via LinkedIn/Platform One


    www.platform-one.ed.ac.uk

    • Vacancies
    www.hub.ed.ac.uk

    • Networks (friends, colleagues, family, classmates, friends of friends…)

    Inspiring futures
    Making career decisions: what to consider
    About you
    • What do you want from a career? Values, skills, needs, interests
    • Career change?
    • What do you have to offer an employer (or admissions tutor)?
    About opportunities
    • What’s out there and how to access it
    Decision making
    • What can you do after your degree?
    • Navigating your path

    Inspiring futures
    Effective preparation:
    Conduct an audit - map your career so far and what your
    experience has given you

    Education / Professional experience / CPD/training / Extra-curricular


    activities / Volunteering / Care responsibilities

    Don’t take your experience and development for granted!

    Chart your knowledge, experience, skill development, challenges and


    achievements from each of your experiences.

    But this time – also consider the rationale and your story….

    Inspiring futures
    What’s your story?
    • Take control of your narrative

    • Connect

    • Own your challenges

    Inspiring futures
    “Tell me about yourself”
    How to pitch yourself effectively..

    • Think from their perspective – what do they need to know?

    • Relating your experience to the role

    • Address a shift in direction/any CV gaps

    • Make the story cohesive and keep it concise


    • How have you got to where you are?
    • How did you decide on your degree and what do you offer now?
    • How does it fit in to where you would like to go?

    Inspiring futures
    LinkedIn and your online presence
    Utilise your biography - Let recruiters know what type of roles you're looking for and
    share your current location, as well as your course, key modules, dissertation, work
    experience, interests, hobbies and key accomplishments.

    Follow relevant companies - they'll post company- and sector-wide updates, so this is
    a great way of staying clued up on what's happening in the industry.

    Look to people you admire - thanks to the 'Experience' section of LinkedIn profiles,
    you can see the steps taken by people in the roles you're aspiring to enter.

    • Job hunt through Facebook? Find a career on Twitter?

    Inspiring futures
    Presenting your experience on applications
    • Remember you CV is not an autobiography

    • Be upfront about the reasons for any gaps

    • Use your cover letter or personal statement to explain experiences and/or choices in more depth

    • When changing career think about the elements of previous experience which are transferable eg
    team work, problem solving, report writing, relationship building…

    • Focus on results/outcomes/achievements not just responsibilities

    • Consider using a short profile to set the tone of your CV


    eg Final year sociology student with over 10 years of experience in the retail sector and a strong track record of effective management and
    excellent customer service. Looking to combine existing experience with analytical and research skills developed during study to move into a
    career in social research.

    Inspiring futures
    Skills based CV
    • Focuses more on your potential

    • Pick the skills which are key to the role you are applying for and provide
    evidence
    eg
    Communication
    • Dealt tactfully with members of the public whilst working in the council planning department and
    liaising with council staff to resolve problems
    • Confident presenter having given team and individual presentations throughout my degree
    course

    Organisation
    • Excellent organisational skills developed through managing academic deadlines whilst caring for
    elderly parents
    • Collaborated with 3 others to organise the first Christmas social for mature students in School of
    Biological Science, which resulted in a successful event attended by around 40 students

    Inspiring futures
    Preparing your interview answers…
    Motivation
    Why do you want this job? What attracts you to our organisation?

    Skills
    • Tell your story so it ‘makes sense’ and shows your commitment
    • Know about their sector – who they are – why they fit
    Articulating your journey
    Sell your experience – work or life
    Congruent with CV/ application/ statement
    What you bring
    Talk about specific experiences

    Inspiring futures
    Competence-based
    Tell me about a successful team you have been a part of? What was your role in that team?

    Tell me about a time when you have used your interpersonal skills to influence a positive outcome.

    When have you used a creative approach to solve a problem?

    • Past performance predicts future performance


    • Give evidence – specific, relevant and recent
    • Draw on examples from all of your experience

    Inspiring futures
    Summary
    • Plan your career
    • Explore options
    • Understand the context
    • Take control of your narrative
    • Make your experience relevant
    • Be creative

    Inspiring futures
    How do I use the Careers Service?
    • Our Welcome desk is staffed by student engagement advisers who can signpost you depending on
    individual need.

    • You can Ask a Question via on MyCareerHub.

    • Come along to our daily drop-in where you can meet with a Careers Information Adviser. You can find
    the times on our website.

    • Book a 1:1 appointment with a Careers Consultant or attend a drop-in within your School

    • Use MyCareerHub to book appointments, view vacancies, find out about events and access careers
    resources

    • Browse our extensive website, www.ed.ac.uk/careers including www.ed.ac.uk/careers/diversity-


    equality/age

    • Visit our office in the Main Library Building, George Square which is open through office hours and
    late on a Tuesday, or our office in Murchison House, King’s Buildings.

    Inspiring futures
    Questions?
    Ask your question by typing it in “Text Chat
    Area”

    We would welcome your views on the session today and


    there is the opportunity to do this via the following link:
    http://bit.ly/CareersSession
    All submissions are anonymous
    Inspiring futures

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