TARGETjobs Weekly Round-up

Hello everyone, 

Welcome to this week's round-up post. Today I have a variety of career advice articles and of course our upcoming graduate job deadlines.

So, let me start off with our upcoming graduate job deadlines. 

 

Whether you're looking for a graduate job in management consulting, finance, engineering, property or another career area, you'll find plenty of vacancies with closing dates coming up on targetjobs.co.uk. 

Now, onto our careers advice

The majority of students say their parents play a major role in their decision-making about careers and study, according to a report published last week. More than half (54%) of students who took part said that their parents tried to exert influence over their choice of course or career, while 69% said their parents had tried to influence their choice of university. Find out more about our recent survey here.

Law

Calling all law students! Ever caught yourself saying 'I'm studying law but I don't want to be a lawyer'? If so, don't panic when it comes to career planning. The competencies your are developing during your law degree and legal work experience are relevant in many alternative careers. We list 12 of them here.

Updated every Thursday morning, we give you the essential information you need to keep on top of your applications and raise your commercial awareness for interviews and meetings with law recruiters. Check out the latest vac scheme and pupillage deadlines and stay up to date with all the stories you need. This week, read what the president of the Queen’s bench division had to say about a group of Cardiff law students, what the CIA had to say about torture and what a judge shouldn’t have said at Preston Crown Court.

Building

Are you interested in working for prestigious real estate company JLL? Well you will be pleased to know their applications open in the New Year. Read up on their internship opportunities and application hints and tips here to give yourself a head start.

Now that's all the career advice for this week. Make sure you visit our Facebook page to enter our daily Christmas competitions '24 Days of Christmas'. 

Have a great weekend!

Roxanne

Freshers Week : Six things to think about

It's almost that time of the year again: ‘FRESHERS WEEK’, the time to party, enjoy being young and take advantage of the 2 for 1 cocktail!

It’s safe to say as a first year student, you will use far too much of your student loan on alcohol, you will buy clothes you will never wear again and you will leave yourself little money for anything else so you survive on Super Noodles and baked beans for the majority of the year.

I remember those days, and as fun as it was, there are always alternatives to Super Noodles and baked beans. So here is my advice…

1.       Budget properly

You need to work out your finances. I know it’s thrilling seeing that large sum of money in your bank account. However, it’s there to pay your rent, buy your food and support you through your university course for the term. I know it’s exciting and you want to be out with your friends, but having a clear idea of where your money is going will enable you to have a great first year.

2.       Attend freshers fair

Now, I am not just telling you this because our marketing team at TARGETjobs will be attending, although we will be and we hope you say hello! I advise you to attend because you will be given a variety of freebies such as money off vouchers and even the odd kitchen utensil. You will also be able to join societies that may one day help with your career.

3.       The first year does count

You may have heard many people say ‘first year doesn't count, so my grades don’t matter’.

Your first year prepares you for the work load in your second and third year. Use it as a practice run and organise your work schedule. Balance your study and social life and you will have a great university experience.

4.       It’s not all about alcohol

Don’t feel the pressure to drink if you don’t want to. You can still have fun and not drink!

5.       What happens in freshers… stays in freshers

Don’t let drunken stupidity rule your year. We all make mistakes, and in freshers week there will be plenty of people doing things they will regret. But you will get over it, and move on. Of course, these foolish antics are best avoided, but if you happen to be in this particular situation just know you won’t feel embarrassed forever and it will soon be forgotten.

6.       Love every minute of university

Three years at university flies by, so make sure you enjoy yourself. Put your studying first and remember why you’re at university in the first place! That doesn't mean you can’t go out and have a good time, it just means you’re being responsible and prioritising your future. 

By Roxanne Chand
Digital Marketing Executive

Weekly Career Round-up

Hello everyone, I hope you're all enjoying your summer break! 

Welcome to this week’s weekly roundup post!

So, as always I am going to start off with the internship and graduate job deadlines.

Secure an internship: don’t miss next week’s work experience deadlines – Find out my here.

Don't miss out on this week's upcoming graduate job deadlines, find out how to apply here. 

Now, onto this week's career advice

Internships

Whether you're trying to turn your internship into a graduate job offer or climb the career ladder in a permanent job, know how to increase your chances of success. Have a read of our article 'Career tactics for women: from internship to job to promotion' to find out more.

You have landed the internship that you had been working towards since your first year. Well done! But what's the best way to ensure that your placement leads to career success? Check out our article 'How to make the most of your investment banking internship' to find out how to further your career.

Want to learn how to avoid those common work experience blunders? Find out more here.

Law

Before attending a law assessment centre this summer, make sure you've read our top tips on how to perform at the group exercise element of the assessment day. We dispel the myth that everybody needs to prove they are a natural born leader; you can shine in other ways. Have a read of out article 'Be your best self in a law assessment centre group exercise'

Finance

If banking is your career of choice, have a read of our recent article 'Deutsche Bank application: don't let the word count limit you' to learn more about the application form for a graduate scheme or internship at Deutsche Bank. 

Retail

Whether you want a retail graduate job with your part-time employer or to join another retailer's graduate scheme, read our advice article on how to make your experience shine.‘Turn your part-time shop work into a graduate retail career’

We asked two graduate retail managers from Tesco, Luke Hammett and Claire Pickthall, to share insider tips from their job hunting experience. Have a read of the interview 'How to get a job in retail management' to gain insight into how to get the career you want in retail.

Engineering

If you want to be hired as a graduate civil or structural engineer, there are three decisions employers expect you to make before you apply. Find out what these three decisions are in our article 'Want a civil engineering job? Three career decisions you have to make'

That's all from me this week, good luck with your applications.

Enjoy your weekend!

Roxanne

Skype interviews

Most of us will have a dreaded job interview at some point in our careers – probably several. The mere mention of an interview induces fear and panic in some people. But now there’s something new to get to grips with – the Skype interview.

Skype logo

You’re probably thinking that interviews over webcam would be easier than the traditional face-to-face kind. When I got an email offering me a Skype interview that’s what I thought too. What could be better than sitting in the comfort of your own room and being able to have multiple tabs open to help you if you get stuck?

In actual fact they present a whole new set of considerations. This only dawned on me once I’d experienced one. After answering my housemates’ questions about whether I was prepared with, ‘It’s a Skype interview – I can just read stuff off the screen’, it’s fair to say I thought I’d breeze through it.

I was under the impression that I would be able to see the interviewer and they would be able to see me, just as if we were in the same room. Yet when I answered the call I found that my interviewer had turned his camera off.  This was unsettling. I knew he could see me, but I couldn't see him. When he began to ask the questions, the connection began to fail and all I could hear were strange crackly noises.

On top of that, I suddenly became very aware that I was sat in the midst of my very typical student bedroom and that my friends were laughing loudly at something in the room next door.

Perhaps not the breeze I thought it was going to be.

Learn from my mistakes – make sure your room isn't a tip, you have a good internet connection, you’re not going to be disturbed and expect the unexpected.

By Katie Lloyd

Editorial intern

The power of an internship

Why are internships so important? You may be asking yourself this very question. Whether you’re a budding student or you’re embarking on your new career, landing an internship can better your chances of employment.

Here are my top reasons why internships are worthwhile:

1. You gain industry experience
2. You gain networking connections
3. You build on your knowledge and skillset
4. You differentiate yourself, making yourself more employable

Not everyone gets the chance to gain experience before graduating from university. If you’re a student, or a recent graduate, now is the best time to start interning. By starting work experience early, you not only build up your CV, but you also give yourself the opportunity to find out what the industry is like and whether it is right for you.

When considering work experience, do not expect everything to be exciting or interesting. A working internship requires humility because there may be times that you will be asked to perform menial tasks such as photocopying or running errands. However, even menial tasks can be a chance to learn and make a good impression on your employer. If you're asked to sit in on a meeting, write up a memo or even add your input, you will get a better picture of what the industry is all about.

There can be some downsides to interning. Money is always a key factor and some internships require you to travel. It can sometimes be an expensive decision. Check what’s on offer carefully, does the internship cover travel expenses? Some internships are well paid, but if you’re voluntary in the charity sector, for example the pay on offer varies.

You may be able to juggle your internship and part-time work to make it more manageable, some internships are very well paid, in such cases this won’t be an issue!

So why not start searching for that internship that could start off your career? Start today with TARGETjobs. 

By Roxanne Chand

Dos and Don’ts – the interview process

Over the past two months we have been recruiting for an Events Promotions Assistant. This particular role would see the chosen candidates increase their knowledge of student events, travel, hone their managerial skills and also enjoy the freedom of creativity. 

The interview process has been straight forward, phone interview followed by a face to face if you have successfully passed the initial first stage.

We have had numerous candidates apply for the role, and there have been some successful applicants that have gone through to the final face to face interview stage.

After listening and understanding the process of trying find suitable employees for the role from my colleague I decided to write a blog post about it.

When a company is looking for a potential new employee one personality trait seems to stand out above all others 'ENTHUSIASM'.

Being enthusiastic and confident makes you memorable.

We have had a variety of very diverse candidates all with different characteristics.

The collective issue that we have had is that they do not seem to be aware of the dos and don’ts of an interview. So I have decided to enlighten you all with a list.

The Dos 

• Dress appropriately – dressing professionally will help with your confidence, it also shows that you’re serious about the interview and will allow the recruiter to see you on a more professional level.
• Arrive 10 minutes before your interview – this will allow you to collect your thoughts and shake off any nerves you may have. Punctuality is important, but do not show up too early, you’re set a time for a reason.
• Offer a firm handshake – a firm handshake is a sign of respect and is a professional greeting.
• Maintain good eye contact – you may feel nervous or even shy but you need to express your interest and prove you’re listening.
• Be prepared – ensure you are clued up about the company, prove that you have done your research by being able to answer all questions thoroughly with confidence and backup statements.
• Ask for clarification if you didn't hear or misunderstood a question.

The Don'ts

• Don’t be late; if you think you might be late for your interview make sure you inform the person interviewing you.
• Don’t make negative comments about previous employers; you will appear to lack decorum with the inability to control your personal feelings.
• Don’t give the impression that you are only interested in the salary, this may be an important factor but your interest in the job should be more important.
• Don’t chew gum or smell of smoke.
• Don’t take your parents to your job interview. This shows a lack of independence.
• Don’t fidget or play with your hair, keep your nerves under control.
• Don’t lie about your abilities to make yourself look better. 

I hope you have found this useful!

Check out the TARGETjobs website for further career advice.

Written by Roxanne Chand

Publishing work experience: five things to think about before you apply

Meet Elizabeth Bingham

If you organise them well, work experience placements can be interesting, stimulating and informative. Get it wrong, and you may find yourself stuffing envelopes for days on end. It partly depends on luck; some employers are more clued up than others. But if you want to make sure you get the most out of your publishing placements, there are certain steps you can take before you apply. 

Here are five things I wish I’d known when I started out…

1.       Bigger isn't always better

It’s tempting to think that your career will be made if you get a big name on your CV. That’s definitely not the case when it comes to work experience. Generally you’ll learn more and take on a greater variety of tasks at smaller publishers, since job roles tend to be more fluid – editors may get involved with marketing, rights, or design and vice versa. At larger publishers you’re more likely to be restricted to a single department. Also, it’s easier to get a sense of the business as a whole when you go to a smaller publisher, which will help with your ‘commercial awareness’ – something that recruiters bang on about a lot. But if you do decide to go big…

2.       Keep your finger over the mouse

Or touch screen, or clicky thing on your laptop – whatever it may be. Some of the big book publishing houses’ placements, usually those advertised on Facebook and Twitter, only stay up for a day or so. Large publishers receive tons of applications – one entry level job I applied for got 400. It’s likely that the first, second and third applications received more attention than the 399^th and 400^th. When you get tired of refreshing your Facebook feed, it may be time to…

3.       Make speculative applications

Smaller publishers don’t advertise much. You’ll need go to them – do a quick Google search, find out what they publish, and send them a CV and covering letter stating your available dates and why you’re interested in them. It might feel a bit strange at first, but it does work. Just because they don’t have a careers page on their website doesn't mean that they don’t take on new staff or offer work placements. But wherever you go, make sure you...

4.       Buy a notepad

Keeping a record of what you've done will help you when you come to write CVs and prepare for interviews. It may also be a good idea to keep a glossary of key terms. Every industry has its jargon and while publishing may not be as bad as…say, law…there are a few things to watch out for. On one placement at an educational publisher I had to help make ‘flat plans’, which are documents editors use to map out the layout of a book. When I came to write it up on my CV, I couldn't remember what they were called. I eventually had to leave that bit off, because I didn't think it would sound too professional if I informed potential employers that ‘I made some things which tell you what page goes where’. Finally…

5.       Mix it up

Publishing is a diverse industry – it spans across books, magazines, social media, websites, academic journals, revision guides and so forth. To put it another way, any business which strings together some sentences for a general readership arguably has a publishing side to it. If you’re not sure which area of publishing interests you, doing a variety of placements will help you decide. Equally, if you think you are sure you may end up surprising yourself - for a long time I was adamant that I wanted to be a book editor, but since starting at TARGETjobs I've realised that there are a lot more options out there.

One last thing I would add is: keep it short and sweet. Work experience placements are rarely paid and you don’t want to spend too much time working for free. I’d recommend you don’t stay in one place for longer than a week; three or four days are really all you need to get a sense of how a business or department operates. Stick around much longer and by the end you may find that you’ve learned more about British postal services than about publishing or media.

Written by Elizabeth Bingham

GTI Media, Editorial Intern

TARGETjobs career advice weekly roundup

Welcome to the weekly graduate recruitment roundup. This is where you find the roundup of all the latest graduate career advice we have written this past week. 

Let's start off this week's roundup with the internship and graduate job deadlines.

Check out our roundup of upcoming deadlines for internships and placements, lasting from 12 week's to 12 months. There are placements available in engineering, IT and marketing, but you'll have to be quick as they all have deadlines coming up over the next week.

Don't miss out on these great graduate opportunities available from targetjobs.co.uk. There are vacancies with imminent closing dates within a range of sectors, including graduate schemes in IT and technology, retail and engineering. Popular employers with application deadlines coming up include the John Lewis Partnership and Royal Bank of Scotland Group. So if you think any of these jobs might be for you, don't wait around - be sure to apply this week!

Now on to the career advice section:

Finance

Would you like to start off you finance career working for a bank like Credit Suisse? Well, I am going to tell you how you can. Credit Suisse requests a covering letter to accompany its application form. This additional layer is intended to weed out the motivated candidates from the unmotivated; the well-researched from the uninformed; and those who genuinely want to join the team from those who just want a job. Read here how to write an impressive cover letter for Credit Suisse and what they expect to see.

To increase your chances at the next stage of the process find out how to tackle the Credit Suisse graduate interviews and questions. Have a read of our article which describes what they look for in a potential candidate and how to beat those interview nerves by researching the company. Preparation is essential with every interview. 

The deadline for the Royal Bank of Scotland Group’s Technology and Change Audit Graduate Programme has been extended until 30 June. This gives you a few additional days to decide what you’re going to include in your online application to persuade the bank to invite you for an interview. Have a read of our article 'RBS's Technology and Change Audit Graduate Programme: how to show you've a good grasp of technology risk'.

Law

Don’t miss that 31 July training contract application deadline! If you’re applying for a training contract that begins in 2016, you need to get your application completed. We’ve provided help on answering those tricky commercial awareness questions, presenting your experience and what you need to research about the firms. See the links below to get tailored help for RPC, Shearman & Sterling and Mayer Brown, or check out TARGETjobsLaw.co.uk for more information on how to get from application to interview and beyond. 

Calling future solicitors! As some of you will be all too aware, 31 July is the training contracts deadline for the vast majority of commercial law firms. We've had a look at the following firms’ application forms and offer our tailored advice on how you can best answer their questions: 

• Osborne Clarke
• Simmons & Simmons
• Jones Day
• Baker & McKenzie 

Retail

Interested in a managerial position at McDonald's? Have a read of our article 'Interview tips for McDonald's trainee manager job'.

Get the inside buzz

Get the inside buzz on what it’s really is like to work for top employers from those in the know. Recent graduate employees give their view on culture, training, salary and benefits and their overall satisfaction

• What employers say: their company information, jobs, internships and more
• What we say: our own top tips on how to get hired written by our expert careers editors
• What employees say: get the feel for working life from those in the know.

That's all from me this week, I wish you all the best of luck in your applications!

Have a great weekend.

Vocation, vocation... location?

It’s not something we really consider when we've got our eyes on the target. Job-hunting tunnel vision means we end up focusing more on that joy-upon-joy goal of actually getting a decent job when we graduate, rather than ponder the practicalities of which bus route we’ll need. 

On the move again, find my way around Scotland

These days, more graduates are taking the big steps, or rather several plane journeys, to go abroad for work and most of us wouldn't bat an eyelid at the thought of moving to a new town. I do think employers appreciate flexible candidates who will consider relocation, but for many jobs, it’s not a matter for consideration but a standard requirement: Oxford is the publishing ghetto and everyone knows London is the natural habitat of bankers and brokers. I guess I've been a bit unconventional by living abroad so much but I've learnt a fair bit about relocation along the way.

TARGETjobs career advice weekly roundup

Hello, and as always welcome to our weekly graduate career advice and news round-up. I have a few introductions for you today, to welcome the new editorial interns Jessica, Katie, Claire and Liz. 

The new editorial interns will be blogging for us so watch out for their posts.

Just a few words from our interns before I start on this week's roundup post.

"My names Katie, in between stressing about my dissertation and trying to get the most out of university while I still could, I spent a considerable amount of time trying not to think about life after my final exam.A lot of the friends I made at Nottingham Trent University already seemed so set on what they wanted to do post education, and this filled me with dread because I still didn’t have a clue. But that didn’t stop me from getting everything I could out of university.
Now, as an editorial intern at TARGETjobs, I’m finally okay with being undecided. I’m enjoying learning about publishing and I know that somewhere along the line I will have that light bulb moment.I might officially be in adulthood now that I’m a 21-year-old graduate, but I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up."            Katie Lloyd 

"My names Jessica, I've done a degree in Linguistics and Spanish Studies at Lancaster University. I’ve started a baking society. I’ve taught dozens of hyperactive children and hormonal teenagers – I even lost six of them in London for two hours. I’ve lived in Spain and the Netherlands. I’ve spoken at a Linguistics conference and used the ‘c’ word repeatedly (thankfully, the topic was the history of swearing in English). I travel to an excess, clocking up numerous hours on public transport and visits to world heritage sites. I love anything wordy and I’ve slept (pretty unsuccessfully) on a crab-infested desert island near Singapore. Despite all of this, I’ve never had a permanent, full-time job. Still, as an editorial intern working on TARGETjobs I think I’m on my way there. In an ideal world, I’ll be sailing up my career ladder to an editorial role working on educational, academic or language resources.
 For now, I’m enjoying my internship here; I spend a lot of time fact-checking, proofreading, writing and tweeting. I’m also trying to keep up my Spanish and my blog wordoriginstories.wordpress.com after my nine-to-five-thirty working day." Jessica Jennison

"Hello, I'm Liz. I've just finished my degree in English Literature at the University of York and I'm working as an editorial intern here at TARGETjobs over the summer. In my spare time at York, I wrote film and theatre reviews for the student papers, I got involved with an anthology which publishes students’ creative writing and I interviewed local residents for a community project.
I’ll be going on to do a Masters in 18^th century literature next year, which thankfully means I can put off making my career decisions for a little longer! That said, I have known for a while now that I’d like a career in publishing, and I've done work experience placements with a couple of book publishers. TARGETjobs is quite different from other places I've visited though; most of the content here goes online and there aren't any books in sight. I’ll keep you all updated about my experiences and I may also say a few things about the differences I've noticed between GTI Media and book publishing houses."                                                                Liz Bingham

Now, let me start this week's careers roundup with next week's internship and graduate job deadlines:

Let your graduate career start here! Next week's application deadlines for graduate jobs and schemes.

Teach First and many more: next week's work experience deadlines, apply here

On to our latest career advice articles...

If you’re looking for a glamorous career in PR, you’ll need to know how to get a foot in the door. Before you can really get stuck in to hosting major events, drinking swanky cocktails and schmoozing local journalists, check out what you can do as a bright self-starter with the TARGETjobs guide to entry-level routes into public relations. 

To all law students, before applying for 2016 training contracts by the 31 July deadline, make sure you fully research the firms you're targeting. We show you how in our article 'How to research training contract applications'

According to new research carried out by the trendence institute, male undergraduates are much more willing than their female peers to overlook a company's image if an attractive salary is on offer. Click here to read more.

Job opportunity

GTI Media are hiring! Marketing and PR assistant wanted.

The role:

The Marketing Assistant will work with all members of the Marketing Team to provide administrative support, as well as having the opportunity to take responsibility for their own projects. 

The successful candidate will need to demonstrate excellent organisation and time management skills, be a quicker learner and have a strong team work ethic. 

As you will be involved in both B2C and B2B marketing, you should be confident in both verbal and written communication, be a creative thinker and have an eye for detail. 

This role is an excellent opportunity to develop your marketing skills within a small, busy marketing team working across the GTI portfolio and TARGET product range.

If you think this role suits your career aspirations why not apply now.

That's all from me this week!

Enjoy your weekend and best of luck in your applications.

Roxanne