It's never too early to start thinking about what’s next. You don’t have to figure out exactly what you want to do or where you want to work straight away. But like any decision, thinking about it in advance can help when the time comes. The first step may be as simple as thinking about your interests or coming up with potential career ideas.
We have broken this down into three stages, start now by clicking on the links below to find out more.
Stage 1 Generate Ideas
Start with you, understand yourself
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A clear understanding of how your interests, motivations, skills, values and personal circumstances all relate to your career can go a long way towards finding work that you enjoy.
There are lots of ways to do this, we recommend you start with the activities below using two different platforms; Career Planning Toolkit - a GCU bespoke suite of online career planning tools and Prospects – a UK wide Graduate Information website.
Motivation at Work - motivation insights can help you to understand what you need from a job to find it motivating and fulfilling
Strengths - understanding your skills and strengths is key to your career development. This exercise allows you to assess your own strengths.
Personality Insight - gain a better idea of what you want out of life and deepen your understanding of the types of roles that would suit your personality.
What Job Would Suit Me - match your skills, motivations and desires to potential career ideas (remember these are only ideas, no test can decide what you should do!).
What’s out there? Use what you’ve discovered to research career ideas
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We have all heard of the most common jobs and professions, however taking some time to research different career areas can introduce you to occupations you didn’t even know existed.
Once you have some ideas about what interests you, start to research different jobs to determine what would suit you or not – sometimes knowing what you don’t want can be just as helpful when thinking about your next steps.
What can I do with my degree? - what you study does not always correlate to the job you do; this resource shows you what many people from your degree background go on to.
Job descriptions by sector - browse 100s of graduate job descriptions and see what fits with your interests.
Researching Employers - research employers to find the right fit for you as well as gain insights into how they recruit
Attend An Event and Careers Service blog – there are lots of events both on and off campus where you can speak directly to employers about their organisations and opportunities.
Set up an informational interview - an "informational interview" is a meeting in which you find and meet with a contact for career and industry advice rather than asking for a job.
Further study & Research – you may already know you want to do more study, explore the options open to you after your degree
Your own business – if you have a business idea, whatever stage you’re at, find out how to develop your idea further.
Stage 2 Ways to develop your skills and experience
Figure out your career priorities and possible career paths
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Once you start to figure out your career priorities and possible career paths, you can work out what you need to get you there.
We all have different skills, strengths, knowledge and experience, do not underestimate the skills you have already developed, perhaps from your part-time job, voluntary experience or other responsibilities.
Skills employers look for - Look at what employers typically want and identify the areas you want to work on further.
Develop Yourself - will find some ideas that will help you get started.
*Remember there may well be specific skills relevant for your career interest that are not listed here.
Stage 3 Finding and Applying for Opportunities
Finding Advertised Opportunities
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There are a lot more ways to find opportunities than just scrolling through Google or Indeed, there are job boards and sites aimed at specific sectors or groups as well as the ‘hidden job market’ where jobs aren’t widely advertised or posted on the larger job boards.
Sources of Graduate Jobs – links to the large graduate job sites as well as links to popular jobs boards in the UK
Sources of Internships – links to formal internship sources as well as alternatives
Global Careers and Further Study – find out about different options for work and study abroad
Jobs in the UK for International Students - as an international student there are a number of ways you can gain work experience to develop your skills and experiences, for example: part-time jobs, placements and internships, volunteering and GCU’s Common Good Award. You may also want to explore the possibility of working in the UK after your studies.
Finding Speculative Opportunities
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The Hidden Job Market - it’s commonly recognised that a significant number of vacancies are not widely advertised, these are secured through applying speculatively and developing your contacts and networks. This link will give you an overview of the hidden job market in the UK
Applying for Opportunities
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Applying to Advertised Opportunities - employers use a range of methods to recruit, including CVs, Cover Letters, Psychometric Testing, Interviews, online CVs and Assessment Centres. It is never too early to start preparing.
Applying speculatively - this means proactively approaching an employer to seek out opportunities that have not been advertised.
CVs, Applications & Interviews section of our website where you will find useful resources for each stage of the process, including making speculative applications.
Finally, the GCU Careers Adviser Team are here to support you through all stages of this process, you can book an appointment online.
Make an appointment
Find out about our different appointment types and how to meet with a Careers Adviser
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