Career Development Centre
@LaurenF_Careers
lnferguson
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Understand the employability skills gained
from involvement in a club or society
How this experience can make you more
employable
Sell your experience in job applications and
interviews
Help and support available from the Career
Development Centre
Thought it would be fun
Wanted a new challenge
 An opportunity to be involved in how
the club/society operates
 Become more employable
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"A set of achievements, understandings and
personal attributes that make individuals
more likely to gain employment and to be
successful in their chosen occupations".
Peter Knight & MantzYorke
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“Identifying skills and poor interview
technique are the greatest challenges for
young jobseekers.”
HR Magazine, 2013
Think about:
 What you enjoy doing
 What you are good at
 Your strengths
 Identify weaknesses and areas for
development
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Academic studies
Work experience/Internships/part-time
jobs/placements
Voluntary work
Undertaking additional responsibility (class rep,
student ambassador, STEER mentor)
Hobbies/interests
Membership of university clubs and societies
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Communication
Team work
Leadership
Initiative
Problem-solving
Flexibility/Adaptability
Organisational skills
Time management
Tact/Diplomacy
Delegation
Numeracy
Project management/event planning
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What skills do you need
to be successful in your
chosen area of work?
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Recognise your learning to build on it and use
it to help you to manage your career in the
future
Think about your existing knowledge and
how you want to develop this
Reflect on situations where things didn’t go
as planned. What did you learn from this and
what would you do differently next time?
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Keep a journal or diary
Record your thoughts and feelings about
situations you have encountered
Record your achievements!
Consider your reactions to situations
What have you learned?
“If we recruited on the basis of degree level, we’d
just use a computer but we’re looking for examples
of leadership, teamwork and commercial
awareness which are usually found in extra
curricular activities and work experience. In short
your degree alone won’t get you a job. You need
work experience too.”
Tim Forster, Head of Resourcing
PricewaterhouseCoopers
“….we look for graduates who can bring more to the
table than pure academics. Typically, the graduates
who shine have work or life experience which
differentiates them from other applicants”
Gaynor Sykes, Graduate Resourcing Manager,
Vodafone UK
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Show the employer how you match their
requirements and can apply your skills in their
organisation
Give evidence
Use strong and positive language
Action words: created, delegated,
piloted, directed, initiated, researched,
developed, delivered, co-ordinated……
 Positive adverbs: successfully,
confidently, positively, accurately
 Avoid weak or negative words: only,
did, helped with, although….
 Think about your competition!
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Good qualifications
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Well developed transferable skills
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A range of experiences
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Commercial awareness
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Motivation!
 Situation
 Task
 Action
 Result
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Career advice and guidance
CV & application advice
Interview practice
Assessment centre advice
Job searching strategies
Employer talks
20 minute bite-size skills workshops:
interview techniques, social media, online
testing, applications , CVs etc
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3A1 Cottrell Building
9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday
Drop in careers advice, 11am to 3pm, Monday
to Thursday
Bookable appointments also available
www.stir.ac.uk/careers
www.facebook.com/cdcstirling
@cdcstirling
@LaurenF_Careers
Lnferguson