Support at university isn't only about responding when something has gone wrong.
University is also an opportunity to think about where you want to go next, develop your confidence, build experience, and prepare for your future.
The University's Careers, Employability & Success Team can support you throughout your studies and beyond, whether you already know exactly what you want to do or have no idea where to start.
You don't need to wait until your final year to use Careers.
In fact, starting earlier can give you more time to explore opportunities, develop experience and work out what matters to you.
You Don't Need to Have a Career Plan
It is completely normal not to know what you want to do after university.
You might have:
- a very clear career goal;
- several ideas but be unsure which direction to take;
- chosen a degree without knowing what career it might lead to;
- changed your mind since starting university;
- lost confidence in your original plans;
- decided that your original career is no longer right for you;
- returned to education after time away from work;
- no idea what you want to do next.
Careers advisers can help you investigate your options, develop a career plan and identify the skills and experience that can help you move towards it.
You don't need to arrive at an appointment with the answers.
Sometimes the useful starting point is simply:
“I don't know what I want to do next.”
One-to-One Careers Support
You can book a one-to-one appointment with the Careers Team to discuss your individual circumstances and goals.
Appointments can be provided:
- in person;
- by telephone; or
- through Microsoft Teams.
A conversation with a Careers Adviser might help you:
- explore possible careers;
- make sense of your options;
- identify your strengths;
- think about what you want from work;
- develop a career plan;
- identify gaps in your experience;
- prepare for applications;
- work through a change in career direction;
- plan your next steps.
Help With CVs, Applications and Personal Statements
Knowing that you want a particular opportunity and knowing how to present yourself successfully for it are different things.
The Careers Team provides practical support at different stages of the application process.
If you already have a:
CV • application form • personal statement
you can send it to a Careers Adviser for feedback. The service currently aims to respond to these requests within five working days.
This can be useful whether you are applying for your first part-time job or preparing for your first graduate role.
Work Experience, Placements and Opportunities
Your employability develops through more than your qualification.
Experience can help you:
- understand a particular career;
- develop workplace skills;
- build confidence;
- make professional connections;
- discover what you enjoy;
- identify what you don't enjoy;
- develop examples for future applications and interviews.
The Careers Team can help students explore:
- part-time employment;
- sandwich placements;
- work experience;
- international opportunities;
- graduate opportunities; and
- volunteering.
Part-Time Work While You Study
You may be looking for part-time work because you want to:
- earn money alongside your studies;
- build experience;
- develop your CV;
- increase your confidence;
- meet new people;
- explore a particular type of work.
The Careers Team can support students looking for part-time employment and other work opportunities.
If your main reason for seeking additional work is because you are experiencing financial hardship, it may also be worth speaking with the Student Money Team.
Working very long hours alongside full-time study can sometimes create additional pressure. If financial circumstances are significantly affecting your ability to study, tell us so that the wider situation can be considered.
Placements and Professional Experience
Placements and work-based learning can be an important part of developing your career.
The University has placed increased emphasis on providing students with opportunities for real-world professional experience as part of its career-focused curriculum.
Depending on your course and circumstances, Careers support can help you explore placement and work-experience opportunities and think about how that experience contributes to your longer-term plans.
Volunteering Counts Too
Paid employment isn't the only way to develop employability.
Volunteering can help you:
- gain experience;
- develop transferable skills;
- demonstrate commitment;
- meet people;
- explore an area of interest;
- build confidence;
- contribute to something you care about.
It can be particularly useful if you feel that you have “nothing to put on my CV”.
A Careers Adviser can help you recognise the skills you have already developed through your studies, employment, volunteering and wider life experience.
Thinking About Starting Your Own Business?
For some students, the next step isn't applying for an existing job — it is creating something of their own.
The University's wider careers and enterprise provision supports students and graduates to develop entrepreneurial skills and explore starting a business. University information describes support including business development resources, workshops, networking and opportunities designed to help students develop enterprise skills.
If you have an idea but don't know whether it could become a business, you don't need to have a finished business plan before asking for advice.
Career Confidence Matters
Employability isn't only about technical skills and qualifications.
Sometimes the barrier is confidence.
You might think:
“Everyone else has more experience than me.”
“I don't know what I'm good at.”
“I've never had a professional job.”
“I don't know how to talk about myself in an interview.”
“I'm worried employers won't choose me.”
Those are things you can work on.
Careers support can help you identify the skills and attributes you already have and develop the confidence to communicate them to employers. The University's careers provision specifically includes helping students identify the skills and attributes needed to achieve their career plans.
My Circumstances Have Affected My Confidence or Career Plans
Sometimes life circumstances change how you feel about your future.
You may have experienced:
- mental health difficulties;
- disability or ill health;
- bereavement;
- caring responsibilities;
- pregnancy or becoming a parent;
- financial hardship;
- homelessness or housing difficulties;
- harassment or abuse;
- a difficult placement;
- an interruption to your studies;
- a period away from University;
- another significant life event.
You may worry that this has “put you behind” other students.
It doesn't mean your future opportunities have disappeared.
A Careers Adviser can help you think practically about where you are now, what experience and strengths you already have, and what next steps may be realistic.
Disability, Health and Employment
If you have a disability, long-term health condition, mental health condition or are neurodivergent, you may have questions about moving into employment.
For example, you might want to think about:
- whether and when to disclose a disability;
- reasonable adjustments in recruitment;
- reasonable adjustments at work;
- identifying accessible employers;
- talking about gaps or changes in your experience;
- building confidence around applications and interviews.
Careers support can sit alongside support from Accessibility, Disability & Inclusion where appropriate.
Your disability does not reduce the academic standard of the qualification you have achieved, and reasonable adjustments are about removing disadvantage rather than lowering standards.
I've Had a Difficult Experience – What Happens Next?
If you have experienced harassment, sexual misconduct, domestic abuse, discrimination, a safeguarding concern or another difficult experience, much of the immediate support may understandably focus on what has happened.
There may come a point when you also want to think about:
“What happens next for me?”
That could mean rebuilding confidence, returning to placement, thinking differently about your career, finding work, developing independence or simply beginning to look forward again.
Careers support can be part of that process.
You do not need to talk about everything that has happened to you to ask for careers help. You can decide what information you want to share and focus on the career goal you want to work towards.
Your Career Starts Before Graduation
Career development is something you can work on throughout your time at University.
You might use Careers in your first year to explore what is possible, later to find work experience, and again when you are ready to apply for graduate roles.
The University's current approach explicitly describes career development as beginning from the start of the student's academic journey rather than only at graduation.
That means Careers isn't simply somewhere to visit when your degree is almost finished.
Support After Graduation
Your relationship with the University does not necessarily end at graduation.
Published University guidance states that graduates can continue to benefit from Careers support for up to three years after graduation, with lifetime access to the University's mentoring programme.
That can be valuable if:
- you don't move immediately into graduate employment;
- your first job isn't what you expected;
- you want to change direction;
- you need help with applications after graduating;
- you decide to explore another career.
Building Your Future Can Be Part of Your Wellbeing
There is a useful connection here with the other Student Life support we're presenting.
Wellbeing isn't only about reducing distress.
Having:
purpose • confidence • skills • experience • relationships • independence • goals for the future
can all contribute to feeling more positive about what comes next.
You can therefore use Careers support proactively, not just because you have an immediate job application to complete.
You might set yourself a goal such as:
“I want to understand what careers my degree could lead to.”
“I want to feel more confident talking about my skills.”
“I want to get some experience before I graduate.”
“I want to be ready to apply for my first graduate job.”
Those are all good reasons to make contact.
Ready to Take the Next Step?
You don't need to have your future mapped out before contacting Careers.
The team can help you explore your options, develop your plans, build your skills and take practical steps towards what comes next.
The service is currently available Monday to Friday, 8:30am–4:30pm, with support available through telephone, email, video and face-to-face appointments.