TARGETjobs career advice roundup

Hello job hunters and internship-hounds: this is the TARGETjobs weekly career advice roundup. We’ve got all of our freshest advice here to help you as you climb the career ladder.

To start off, we have a set of articles about navigating some of the trickier application form questions.

Applying for a job at Siemens is going to be highly competitive. Make yourself stand out from the crowd by telling the recruiters why the role interests you with style. 

Do you want to start your career with a graduate scheme at BP? Here’s how to answer BP’s application form question about their core company values. 

Are you thinking about applying to EDF Energy? If so, then you need to consider how to tackle the motivation question on their online application form.

This week we’re also taking a look at the bigger picture with our article on small business employers. If you’re a graduate looking for a high degree of professional responsibility and an employer that values you, you should consider small business: here’s why. 

On the other hand, if big business is your thing then take a look at our article on postgraduate courses in retail. Further study can help you to get a foot in the door, and give you the advantage when you’re applying for roles in management, e-commerce and design. 

To finish up, we have all of our graduate jobs deadlines here for you to browse. There are plenty of jobs in plenty of sectors, so make sure you don’t miss an opportunity. 

I hope you all have an excellent weekend.

TARGETjobs career advice roundup

Hello and welcome to this week’s graduate career advice round up blog. This week we are focusing on career advice based on writing last-minute job applications - it is graduate scheme deadline time after all - and around work experience. If you are in your second year, or even first year, it is time to get serious about how you are going to spend your summer.

Let’s get going with job application advice:

Make sure you don’t send in rushed applications with this last-minute guide to writing graduate job applications.

Need to make sure you are ticking all the right boxes in a bid to make yourself employable? Use our application planner as a handy checklist to make sure you’re on the right track to getting a graduate job. 

And lastly, is the further interest section on your CV proving a little tricky? Read our suggestions on what to put in this part of your graduate CV.

With all this information make sure you know which jobs are closing next week. The last thing you want to do is miss the deadline after all your prep work!

Moving on to work experience:

Did you know that many banking and investment graduate recruiters view their spring insight programmes and summer internships as talent pipelines to fill the majority of places on their graduate schemes? Here is how to make it work for you. 

The New Year marks the deadline period for vacation schemes with law firms. Make sure you are getting all your prep work done now and make the most of your Christmas period by getting your applications in with plenty of time to spare. 

And for those not interested in investment banking or law, here is some general application advice for work experience placements and internships.

If you have already graduated and are struggling to get a job, find out where to look for graduate internships or placements. 

But if postgraduate study is where you see yourself going, then we have something that may interest you. Next week, on Wednesday 27 November, our first postgraduate fair of the season is taking place in London. This is an excellent chance to talk to uni representatives, financial institutions and agencies, and attend useful seminars.Did we mention there is also a free lunch and travel reimbursements?

Whatever you decide to do, best of luck : )

TARGETjobs Career Advice Roundup

Hello job and internship hunters. This is the TARGETjobs weekly career advice round up. 

We are doing things a little differently this week and focusing exclusively on one sector: law.

So what have we got to tell you?

If you are applying to CMS McKenna, you will be happy to know that we have some useful hints and tips on how best to answer the application form questions 

Is Simmons & Simmons your law firm of choice? Here is how to answer the competency questions on Simmons & Simmons’ training contract application form

Applying for summer vacation schemes in plenty of time for the January deadlines? Here’s how best to answer the competency questions on Simmons & Simmons’ vac scheme application form. 

And make sure you know what makes Simmons & Simmons tick when writing your application and at interviews. Being able to justify why you’re applying to a firm is an obligatory part of the recruitment process.

We also have the do’s and don’ts of applying to Macfarlanes. Whether you are applying for a training contract or a vacation scheme placement, here are some common themes you need to consider. 

Make sure you big up your digital savvy in your application and follow Bird & Bird on Twitter. Read this and more tips on applying for vacation schemes at Bird & Bird. 

Read our top tips on applying to Allen & Overy – we’ve tailored them both for training contracts and vacation schemes applicants.

Training contracts

Vac Schemes

Fret not! We are still ending the blog with next week’s graduate job deadlines. So whether you are interested in law or not, this is a must read for everyone! 

Have a good weekend. 

TARGETjobs career advice round up blog

Hello and welcome to this week’s career advice round up blog. This is the place you can find all the latest career advice published or updated on our site.

Today we are focusing on two employers: Tesco and Swiss Re. If you are applying or thinking of applying to these employers this is a MUST READ.

And even if you are not applying to Swiss Re – find out what it does. You may find yourself interested and even applying. 

Now that you are fully up to speed on what Swiss Re does discover how best to fill in their graduate application form

Moving on to Tesco

-       Find out how to impress on your graduate application form…

-       …and how to stand out in your interview - the approaches and strategies you can adopt.

If Swiss Re and Tesco are not for you, find next week’s graduate job deadlines for other graduate recruiters here.Hurry! Time is running out to apply to the all important graduate schemes.

And, lastly, some internal announcements:

If you are attending our Asia and Middle East Graduate Careers Event we look forward to meeting with you – hope you find the event useful.

Over 1,000 students have already taken the plunge – test yourself against the nation with the National Student Challenge. This is your chance to practise typical online tests used by graduate recruiters to select employees, win cash prizes of up to £1,000 and the winner wins an internships with Siemens.

Talking of challenges – think you are the best undergraduate student in your discipline? Prove it! The Undergraduate of the Year Awards are back – yet another chance to practise online tests and assessment centres and the potential of winning internships with top employers – some of which may lead to a full-time role after graduation.

See what last year’s finalists and winners have to say about the awards plus tips on how to succeed.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend. 

Get into engineering. Laing O'Rourke's Anna Louise Wylie shares her journey.

Anna Louise Wylie attended Future Female Engineers with event partners Laing O'Rourke to talk to female undergraduates and share her experiences of working in this sector. Read below to find out more about how she got into it and what working at Laing O'Rourke is like. 

Anna Louise Wylie, Assistant Digital Engineer
at Laing O'Rourke

Introduction 
I am Anna Louise Wylie, and I am currently working as an Assistant Digital Engineer at Laing O’Rourke.
This role is part of Pricing and Digital Engineering, and I work within the post-win team (mainly covering projects where a contract has been awarded, rather than bids).
The team consists of around 15 people across the UK who provide BIM support, training and on site facilitation.
I am also on the Graduate Development scheme at Laing O’Rourke, part of a 50 strong cohort. We are working towards training and development goals, and towards our respective professional qualifications.

My journey 
I completed a Masters in Environmental Engineering at Southampton University. This is where I first heard of Laing O’Rourke, and subsequently applied to their undergraduate programme. After passing my assessment, I completed two summers of work with the company during my studies, and learnt as much in those eight weeks as I did in a year at University.
I had always been interested in BIM, and attend whatever lectures and events I could to learn more. I included it as an aspiration in my application to be a site engineer with Laing O’Rourke, and was very surprised when my contact came through with the title ‘assistant digital engineer’. They had also picked up on my interest in sustainability, STEM and leadership, as well as industry experience. Following a quick conversation with the team leader, I was relocated to Manchester and began in September as one of the first direct entries to the team.

A day in the life 
The role of Digital Engineers within Laing O’Rourke is varied, and depends on the projects they are involved in. Typically, about half the time is spent in the office, working to manage models, information and collaborative platforms. We also conduct in-house training with relevant disciplines. While on site we give hands on advice on how to improve works through the uptake and application of BIM, answering questions and helping solve issues, as well as assisting with hardware and software management.
As a woman within this company you are well respected, and given the chance to prove yourself just the same as any other employee. Construction can be a tough; however, it is highly rewarding and certainly moving in the right direction in terms of what it offers to women.

What about the Future Female Engineers event? 
The opportunities like the Future Female Engineers event are fantastic, as they provide a network of contacts, role models and lessons learnt. It isn’t easy to find support or experience of engineering, but these events can provide opportunities for discussion, learning and guidance. There are great opportunities within the industry for women to progress and these events ensure anyone who is considering a career in engineering has the best understanding to pursue it.

If you are feeling inspired, why not take a look at our Future Female Engineers event TARGETjobsevents.co.uk/future-female-engineers or the Undergraduate of the Year Award undergraduateoftheyear.com

TARGETjobs career advice round up

Hello and welcome to this week’s TARGETjobs career advice round up blog. The one place where you can find all of the career advice articles we have published and updated throughout the week.

As usual, I’ll start with some internal announcements:

Have you voted for your employer of choice yet? This is your chance to shape the 2014 edition of the Guardian UK 300 and influence how recruiters are regarded in the industry. There are also some great prizes at stake for those who take part, as we are doing a fortnightly prize draw. Prizes include: iPad minis, meals out, shopping sprees and much more.

Last week Hannah Murphy from the University of Reading won a shopping voucher from Asos. Next week it could be you. Take part in the trendence UK Graduate Barometer now for your chance to win and have your say.

Our Engineer your Future event is taking place on Monday... want to see what other events we have coming up this month, why not visit our TARGETjobs Events site?

And, if you are considering postgraduate study, don’t forget that on Wednesday 27 November we will be in London with our first postgraduate fair of the season. This is a great chance to meet representatives from universities across the UK, get individual advice, discuss funding and much more.

On to career advice now,

If you are applying to property firm Knight Frank this term, check out these tips on how to get your CV noticed.

Nationwide your employer of choice? Find out how to answer their tricky application form question.

And discover how to make your CVand cover letter shine in their application form

Talking about the banking sector, here is how to ace your online application forms for insurance and retail banking graduate jobs

And we conclude the blog with next week’s graduate job deadlines – lots of investment banking and IT schemes coming to an end. 

Hope you all have a lovely weekend.