Posts Tagged ‘CV’

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How to move on from rejection – guest blog

December 14th, 2011

Written by guest blogger, Jenna Birks who blogs at Decent Online Presence and tweets @jenloubee

It’s a funny thing, rejection. It can set you back a long way. After spending many weeks in my final year of university, pointlessly applying to jobs that I was not qualified for and didn’t want to do, I finally came to realise that it is about the quality of your applications not the quantity. Each job application should be tailored, aimed specifically for that job role and emphasising exactly how you meet the person specification. I only apply to jobs now that I absolutely 100% want to be doing.

I know all the rules. I’ve applied to enough jobs by now to know exactly how it’s done. So when I applied for an internship at The Guardian I was incredibly hopeful that I would at least get an interview. Having received the generic rejection email a few days ago, it’s clear that I did not. The email states that I am unable to reply, and unable to ask for feedback – leaving me with no idea where I went wrong. Obviously, as we all keep hearing, the jobs are very competitive, but you have to wonder what it is that is making other people stand out when you get overlooked?

During an assessment day at an advertising agency last year, us interviewees were waiting to go in for our second interview when the conversation got round to what other interviews everyone had coming up. It was graduate scheme season in advertising, and we were all comparing applications and stand-out tricks. I remember this one girl telling me that she had got an interview by sending her application by courier, in a shoe box with an old shoe so that – and I quote – she could at least get her foot in the door. Now, if I were a recruiter, that would scream cliché, desperation as well as the fact that the girl is obviously rich enough to send every job application hand-delivered by courier. But hey, it’s not my advertising agency.

But, not every recruiter would have given shoe-girl (as I so fondly call her) an interview, and not every interviewer will want to see a job application that perfectly presents and ticks every box of the job description. Maybe in a bid to show off my skills and make them obvious and clear to potential employers, I have made applying for jobs a science, stupidly believing that I have found the formula that will get me interviews. But it’s not that simple, really, or we’d all be doing it.

In the end, I guess that’s the point. The graduate job market is tough, and as much as we don’t want to face this reality, there really are tens of people going for every job advertised. If everyone applied in the same precise and organised way that I did then it becomes much harder to distinguish between them. Job applications aren’t a science, they aren’t even an art or a talent. Ultimately, they are down to luck.

You need to be lucky to have figured out exactly what skills the job really requires. Lucky to have that little bit of previous experience that you happened to mention to tick that invisible extra box. Lucky to have the recruiter read your application just after their morning coffee, and just before reading all the others the same as yours. Lucky to have someone who finds you readable, who relates to your experience, who can follow and be drawn into your narrative. Or just lucky to have found someone that finds your old shoe-in-a-box routine original and enjoyable.

But if job hunting is just about luck, then shouldn’t we be trying to increase our odds? Surely we should play as many hands as possible, on the off-chance we might just get lucky. Logically, it makes a lot of sense, but I don’t think it’s the way to go. Better to play the hands we know, the ones we have faith in to do well and can follow through on even when the house raises the stakes. Gambling analogy-aside, it’s important that we keep focused and channel this passion and self-belief into our job search so that when we finally reach our goal, and finally find ourselves in a graduate job, that it is still absolutely the job we always wanted.

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A room of one’s own: coping with moving back home post-university – guest blog

November 15th, 2011

Written by guest blogger Olivia O’Brien.

For most graduates, moving back home feels less like a convenient arrangement and more like a living nightmare. Gone are the days of cooking pizza in the early hours, having last minute house parties, and leaving cups around the house to grow impressive mould that looks like what can only be described as a national forest.

But are these changes such a bad thing?

Although we all like to believe that university is a place for us to grow, learn and develop as young adults, we are probably less house trained post-higher education than we were as freshers. So relish the fact that moving back home reminds you that washing up liquid does exist and that a Hoover is not part of an extravagant ghost busters costume but instead cleans your carpets. Enjoy living in a nice, comfortable, and draft free home once again and take pride in your personal space. Re-decorate your bedroom, create a replica of your university digs within those four walls and own them. It’s that place you can go to when it all gets too much.

You might have also noticed that the mundane such as forgetting to put the lid back on the biscuit tin or not picking your sister up from school sits at the forefront of conversations at home. It’s a far cry from “I have never” and “Ring of Fire” on a Friday night right? So change them. The only way to deal with boredom is either stimulate your surroundings, or alter them. But with very little cash flow as a graduate, trips to the cinema or nights out are hard to fund, so think about ways to bond with your parents. Watch a film together or even dust off the monopoly-you’d be surprised at how much fun you can have with a board and a couple of counters.

Another thing you might have noticed dwindling as you say goodbye to the summer months and days spent leisurely working at Wimbledon, is your parent’s patience. Although they may be the most understanding of parents, you will soon enough see a glimmer of resentment in their eye as they’ve funded your education and you’ve ended up still at home watching Jeremy Kyle three months down the line. In your mind, you’ve spent months scouring the internet for internships, grad schemes and potential post grad courses. In their mind, they’re funding a continuation of your lazy university lifestyle. So what you need to do is show them your progress. Let them take a look at your most recent application, show them your personal statement or CV­- I can guarantee they’ll be more than impressed with your achievements so far, dispersing any potential animosity.

And if you are looking to pursue a creative career such as journalism, publishing or entertainment, do not waste your time sitting at home scouring every inch of your town for paid work with nothing in return but cash; start writing a blog of your own. It’s something that ultimately represents you, something that a bog standard CV is missing and something that employers will appreciate. Not only this, get volunteering or help out with an event in your community. Although this might not seem to be directly linked to your chosen career, your CV will be padded out with things that show that you are not a time waster and you possess initiative; something that every employer is looking for.

Last but not least, do not feel disappointed in yourself that you’ve moved back home after three years of fun. Yes, lots of people are able to move out straight away and yes, way back when people were likely to leave home before the end of their teenage years, but like fashion, times are constantly changing. You should embrace it. When you were at university living on canned goods, I guarantee that all you wanted was a home cooked meal. Now is your chance to have one every evening.

So make yours and everybody else’s life a little bit easier and pick up that wet towel off the floor. It might not be a huge deal to you, but you not going out on a week night isn’t important to your parents either. There’s a gap which will have been created since you left home that needs to be bridged and it’s all about compromise. Once you’ve got that down, life living at home will be a breeze.

Don’t stop dreaming about that penthouse looking out over London however; it’s just around the corner. I promise.

You can read Olivia’s own blog here or follow her on Twitter @LondonLadybird

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How to use unemployment to your advantage – guest blog

October 11th, 2011

Written by guest blogger, Danielle Furbert

Times have changed from when getting your most sought after graduate job seemed easy enough as long as you had a degree. There is now a combination of factors affecting a graduate’s ability to land their dream job and the reality is that someone will have to face the inevitable rejection. For those of us who are on that end of the spectrum, we may feel extremely discouraged and disappointed and wonder “what is it I am missing?”

I am sure many of you reading this blog post know that the word “experience” seems to appear in every graduate job advertised. You think to yourself – I need a job to get experience and experience to get a job…a vicious cycle indeed. While you ponder this thought, you are left unemployed and feeling as if you are in a hopeless situation. You may think that the only way to move forward is to continuously apply for job after job after job and hope that something will come of this. However, there are other ways to reach your employment goals other than getting too bogged down on submitting application after application.

There are various opportunities for using unemployment as a way to do things you might otherwise not be able to do if you were currently employed.  One of the opportunities I would most recommend is volunteering. There are so many organisations, both in the private and public sectors who are always willing to utilise a free hand. While you may think, well what’s the point, I’m not getting paid – in the long run a volunteering experience could prove invaluable to any potential career prospects and even land you a job with the organisation for which you are volunteering with.

As an example let’s say you have an interest in pursuing a career in marketing but you lack the experience needed to get a job; you could look at what organisations or companies would like to utilise the services of someone interested in this field and as a result enquire about a volunteering position. Whatever career path you wish to take, volunteering can be a fantastic way to acquire new skills, demonstrate a strong sense of character and most importantly enhance your CV.

Not only are you volunteering, but you are consequently networking with people and getting your name and interests out there, which brings me to my next point. Who you know can have a huge impact on getting the right job – the job you want. With the free time you have, you can make the connections you need to with the right people. For example if there is a company you are interested in working for, most have websites and the emails of various personnel that you can contact. In cases where they don’t you can simply call the company and express your interests and seek advice. While this may not lead to a job immediately it is important that you are putting yourself out there and building connections.

While the above mentioned advice is important to consider, what is even more important is that you combine your job hunt with your own personal interests. Looking for a job is a job in itself and therefore combining the things you love to do along with searching for a job is definitely required.

Remember that you are in control of your future and you can make your dreams into reality – as cliché as that may sound, it is true. However, there are two very important rules to follow; one – you must stay positive, and two – be patient.

I have personally done a combination of things written in this blog and am now working in the marketing department of a global company. The unemployment days may seem endless, but with the right attitude you can embark on your chosen career path before you even know it.

If you have any questions for Danielle you can find her on Twitter @DFurbert.

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How to write a stand out CV with little to no experience – guest blog

August 23rd, 2011

Guest Post written by Sachin Shah, Director of International at www.SimplyHired.co.uk

Recent graduates are often faced with this problem: you need experience to get a job, but you need a job to get experience. Getting your CV to stand out from the hundreds of other graduates is challenging with little to no work experience under your belt. To compete, you’ll need to show a future employer what you have that the others don’t.

You may have more experience than you think. Making a list of everything you have done and what you learnt from each activity is an excellent way to remind yourself about the amount of transferable skills you have. Your CV needs to be professional as a graduate, but coursework, volunteer opportunities, summer jobs and even involvement in extra-curricular activities can show what skills you already hold; even singing in your university choir can give you some great transferable skills. Here are four ways to identify your transferable skills and build out your CV!

1. Coursework

If you took part in research as part of your degree at university and it‘s relevant to the job you’re looking for, include this on your CV. You may not have hands on experience, but your research will show that you have background knowledge that other applicants may not.

2. Summer Jobs

Summer jobs of any sort will have transferable skills. You may not think that your brief summer job at the local restaurant will help you when you start your job search.  However, when you work in a restaurant you will learn great customer service skills; working as waiting or bar staff is all about making the customer happy. Many roles involve you dealing with clients who will want the same treatment as someone eating at a restaurant – great service and meeting their demands!

3. Volunteering

It is very attractive to potential employers to see that you’re the type of person who is interested in contributing to the greater good. Volunteering will teach you skills such as team work and allow you to get a sense of work place environments. Having different volunteering initiatives on your CV also shows that you are proactive and aren’t treating graduation as a long-term holiday.

4. Extra-Curriculars

Extra-curricular activities are a confusing area when it comes to your CV. Graduates may not think it, but even being in a choir or a member of a sports team are great activities to include when job hunting for the first time. They show you have commitment; creativity and that you can work well with a team. These are great transferable skills and including these experiences on your CV will show a prospective employer that you have great background knowledge and specific skills, even if you’ve never spent time working in an office.

For more job search tips and advice, visit blog.SimplyHired.co.uk and begin your job search on www.SimplyHired.co.uk.

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Don’t overlook skills from a temporary job

August 12th, 2011

If you have you graduated this summer and are currently updating your CV then make sure you don’t discount any work experience you have already accrued. This may be a summer or weekend job that has nothing to do with your degree or field of interest, but you will have  gained important skills that are transferable to positions within your chosen career path.

You may have taken temporary work simply in order to fund your studies or while you look for your first graduate internship or job, but don’t overlook the invaluable skills it will have taught you. In almost all positions you will be required to work in teams, communicate with others and use your initiative to solve problems. Employers regard these soft skills very highly. It also proves to future employers that you have the motivation to find a job during your holidays as well as a strong work ethic. If you have maintained a job during your studies then this shows that you have great time-management and organisational skills.

When updating your CV, writing cover letters, and preparing for interviews don’t overlook the experience you picked up through your part-time job.  You need to think about how the skills you have learnt can be transferred to the role you are applying for. You should then use examples of when you have put these skills into practice in your cover letter or at an interview: e.g. “I showed initiative when developing a process to streamline customer ordering process, which increased the restaurants overall efficiency.”

If you have spent summers working in a restaurant then you will have learnt great customer service skills as this role is all about making the customer happy. In many roles this skill is invaluable as you may have clients or managers requiring great service and meeting their demands.

You may have spent every Saturday since your were 16 working in a clothes shop or supermarket which means you are sitting on a wealth of experience. Working within retail helps you develop some impressive traits: not only unbelievable customer service and team work but handling stock and dealing with money on a daily basis. When applying for a job in areas such as merchandising, buying, selling and even marketing then employers will be happy to see retail work on your CV as it will prove that you have certain brand awareness.

Perhaps you spend your summers volunteering, which can provide some amazing skills. For example if you are working with children you will be able to prove your leadership skills by taking charge of groups of kids. You will have to use initiative and creativity to keep them excited and engaged, and this will help you in the future when you need to produce exciting ideas for projects at work. By volunteering you will also prove to a potential employer  that you are happy to help others in your own time.

Therefore don’t neglect the skills you have gained from a temporary job. Any experience is good experience even if you don’t think it is relevant to your chosen career path. Employers think very highly of soft skills but make sure you tailor the experience to the job you are applying for.

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9 ways to beat those ‘graduate blues’

July 20th, 2011

It’s that time of year again, when thousands of graduates are donning their mortarboards and gowns to collect their certificates. This has been the day all students have been working toward for the past 3 or 4 years. So why aren’t they all happy?

That sense of loss some feel between leaving university and finding out what you want to do next is normal. It may be because they feel nervous and anxious about the road ahead, especially in an uncertain graduate job market. It could also be because they have put so much effort into their studies they just feel exhausted. Whatever the reason, here is some advice to beat those post-university blues.

1.      Set new goals and a new plan to attain them. After 3 or 4 years of being challenged at university there is nothing like a new challenge to excite and motivate you out of the graduation blues. Break your goals into smaller, more manageable tasks so instead of just saying “get a career” break this down into “updating your CV,”“finding two referees” and “signing up to a recruitment agency.” Then put these goals in chronological order and focus on one at a time until you have achieved it.

2.      It will be weird leaving university and having no structure to your days so make sure you start a routine and set your own schedule. This will help you stay motivated and productive. You don’t want to wake up every day with no point to it; this will only bring you down.

3.      Don’t stop learning! Learning doesn’t stop once you graduate, this may include learning a language or developing your IT skills in MS Excel or Photoshop. Something that is relevant to what you want to do and will make you stand out against the other 150,000 students leaving university this year.

4.      Keep busy and use your time effectively! Update your online profile, start a blog about your area of interest which will enhance your writing skills and demonstrate a passion for your chosen career and keep your CV up-to-date.

5.      Stay active! Join the gym or a club, volunteer, travel etc. Healthy is happy!

6.      If you don’t know what you want to do then why not try out a career with a graduate internship? An internship is a great way to test the waters without having to commit to a role.

7.      Another way of keeping busy, enhancing your CV and getting some pocket money is  through temporary work. You never know where this may lead.  Employers don’t often let valued, trained workers go.

8.      You will almost certainly conclude that the most treasured aspect of your university experience was the friends you made. Make it a priority to stay in touch with those who mattered most to you during your university career.

9.      Your graduation is a once-in-a-lifetime moment so make sure you enjoy every second!

If this is something you are going through then don’t freak out too much! Stay positive and things will fall into place.

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Itchy feet, itchy feet! – guest blog

June 14th, 2011

I graduated a while back now…in fact I can hardly believe that it will have been two years this summer which is already more than half the time I spent studying in the first place! So what have I been doing during all of this intervening period of no ‘real job’ and ‘no studying’?  Well I spent six months doing something which I would recommend to anyone and everyone who is about to graduate; go travelling.

In the summer of 2009, we were in the height of recession and the future really was looking bleak for those of us about to enter the big, scary, real world.  For me, it presented the perfect opportunity; the chance to travel the world and see something outside my own horizons.  In the months leading up to graduation, it was becoming more and more apparent that things weren’t going to get better anytime soon and so the plan to take off was borne.

It took a while to get there and a great deal of work but by May 2010 I was ready to set off on my big adventure.  In order to get there I slaved away in retail working full time in a management team for a clothes shop and also in a supermarket.  On top of this, I took on two GCSE English students to help bring in some cash to live off of.  On an average week, I’d clock up 65 hours of working (plus at least another 8 travelling) but at the end of the tunnel, the brightest light was shining and I had no doubt that it would be worth it.

In hindsight, this hard work was part of the joy of the experience and has also added greatly to my CV; at least I show I’ve got stamina and dedication to achieve!  I am a bit of a workaholic but that is rather another story.

So finally, with enough money in the savings and flights all paid for, I was off on my trip of a lifetime.  My route went like this:

London – Los Angeles – Las Vegas – Fiji – New Zealand – Sydney – Singapore – Malaysia – Malaysian Borneo – Thailand – Cambodia – Vietnam – Hong Kong – Japan – Korea – China – India

Phew!  Writing it all down like that makes me feel tired just thinking about it.  So perhaps it is time that I got to the point of this post.

I could sit here and go on for hours about why I think that everyone should travel when they finish university.  But here is the general gist of why if you are umming and ahhing about what to do next, then this could be an option.

If you aren’t sure what you want to do with your life, travelling can buy you some time.  It gives you the opportunity to be free and to get to know yourself better and hopefully along that way you will discover something that you will love and want to turn into a career.

If you are scared about joining the ‘real world’, then again travelling will buy you some time and allow you to gain some different experiences.

Working beforehand in order to save up to go away, feels really good!  When you’ve got that little nest egg in the bank, you genuinely feel proud.  Personally, I think it was one of the best things I have ever managed to achieve and yeah I could have put a down-payment on a house…but this way I had much more fun!

If you choose to work while you travel, you will grow as a person as you have to experience everything from way beyond your natural comfort zone.  Especially if you choose to work in a country where English is not the main language…

…which leads me onto another point.  If you were to go out and volunteer (and I am not necessarily saying pay to go on one of those overpriced volunteering trip things…organise it yourself through a charity) then that will look great on your CV.

You will learn so much more than you ever thought possible.  You will learn about yourself, about other cultures, languages, people…I learnt more in six months travelling than I did in three years studying my degree.

It will change you…more than likely for the better.

And my advice not to do?

Don’t just go away and get drunk for your whole trip.  There is so much more to do than that.  If you are going to travel, ensure you have something worthwhile to discuss with a future employer.  Make the trip work towards your employability and don’t make it work against you.

As for me…I’ve well and truly got itchy feet.  Bring on the Euro Road Trip this summer!

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Graduate salaries down by 6%

November 15th, 2010

It is something that we know will come as no surprise: graduate salaries are on the decline.

XpertHRs annual graduate recruitment survey showed that starting salaries offered to graduate recruits are 6% lower than in 2009; indicating that they are not keeping up with pay rises across the economy.

Following the student riots over university tuition fee increases last week; this news – though not good – could act as some justification for the protesters. Part of the rationalisation for the substantial tuition fee increases was because it was alleged that graduate salaries were becoming more generous, something the XpertHRs survey disputes.

Half of the 190 employers surveyed offered graduates starting salaries of between £20,000 and £26,000. Overall however, the starting salaries varied greatly: with the lowest graduate earning £12,000, and the highest receiving £42,500.

As the cost of living continues to rise, it is feared that graduates will face further financial pressure in the future, particularly in the context of increased student fees to initially contend with.

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The 40-Year-Old Intern

October 8th, 2010

The knock-on effect of recession means graduates aren’t just competing for entry-level jobs against experienced workers: they’re now competing against them for internships too.



If you’ve been living in a distant galactic bubble for the last couple of years then you still might not have heard the news – we are currently suffering from a severe global economic downturn.

Yet it seems that as well as all the obvious effects occurring; national cuts, increased unemployment rate, higher numbers of university applicants etc, there have also been a few less expected outcomes, like the increase of older people seeking internships.

A survey conducted last month by CareerBuilder.com discovered that the struggling job market has sparked a surge of older people in the US applying for internships as a way to re-enter the employment sector.

The website, which surveyed more than 2,500 hiring managers across America, found that 23 percent of employers are receiving applications from people who either have more than 10 years of experience, or are aged 50 years and older.

“This economic downturn has really redefined what an internship is” said Mike Erwin, senior career advisor for CareerBuilder. “(People) need to make sure that they’re filling in the gaps while being unemployed, so they’re going ahead and taking these internships whether they’re paid or unpaid so they can get more experience, and hopefully land a full-time job.”

Traditionally, internships have been seen as a way for young people to get work experience on their CV. However, as the recession continues to kick in, and more and more graduates struggle to get the jobs that so many other more qualified individuals are also applying for, internships have taken on a much more important role. They are becoming that vital stepping stone between university and permanent employment.

However, the new statistics could mean that such graduates have an even greater fight on their hands as they find themselves competing against experienced people not only for pre-entry jobs – but also for internships.

Furthermore, the websites findings showed that many companies were just as keen to hire the older applicants as the more common younger ones;

“They know they’ve lost a lot of intellectual capital when they’ve had to lay people off,” Erwin explained. “So you’re going to find they’re going to bring back mature and experienced workers for internships as well as entry-level and college students who are going to bring a whole new feel to the job.”

Although this internship redefinition has only been reported in the States as yet, it leads to wonder how long it will take until economic desperation leads to a similar fad this side of the water.

And what would happen then? Will graduates need to do work experience to be able to get an internship to be able to get a job? Where will it end? Let us know your thoughts now!

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Guardian Cover Letter First Aid Web-chat

April 21st, 2010

via: career-builders-club.com

Finding it hard writing a cover letter that truly represents you? It’s always said that you never get a second chance to make a first impression and a carefully written cover letter can be the turning point when it comes to snaring that all important internship or job. It will be where the prospective employer will hope to see some of the specific qualities that you hold and how you can help move his company forward. Above all it’s where you can really put across your personality and prove that you can fit seamlessly into any operation.

Fear not as Inspiring Interns, in conjunction with The Guardian, are holding a live web-chat in which our illustrious CEO Ben Rosen will be fielding any questions that you may have. It is being held on the Guardian website from 1 – 4 pm on Thursday 22 April. So if you need any help with format, length, register or what to leave in or out, then head over now as you can post questions in advance that will be answered on the day.

Cover Letter Q&A

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