Careers and Employability Service
What can I do with a degree from SSPSSR?
Nicola Urquhart
Careers Adviser
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/slides.htm
What we will cover
• The graduate labour market
• What do employers want?
• What skills do SSPSSR graduates have?
• What do SSPSSR graduates do:
the jobs they get
their typical employers
the further courses they study
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/slides.htm
The graduate labour market in 2013
• Approximately 30% - 40% of
vacancies are open to graduates
with a degree from any discipline
• Employers increasingly focusing
on professional attributes in
addition to transferable skills
• Relevant work experience
increasingly important
• Need for students to think earlier
about their employability
• Employers are expecting to
increase their graduate
recruitment by 2.7% in 2013
What do employers want?
Commercial Awareness
Work Experience
Professional attributes
Extra-Curricular
Activities
Employability skills
Degree awarded at 2.1 or above
What skills do SSPSSR students have?
• Able to appreciate the diversity and complexity of social
situations
• Sensitivity to the values and interests of others
• Researching, judging and evaluating complex information
• Making reasoned arguments orally (in tutorials and
presentations) and in written work
• Able to develop opinions and new ideas on societal issues
• Able to organise work and meet deadlines
Skills and attributes that graduate recruiters are
looking for?
Communication
Adaptability
Self awareness
Leadership
Energy
Contextual/cultural awareness
Report writing
Problem Solving
Adaptability
Numeracy
Positive attitude
Reflection
Confidence
Team working
Integrity
Capacity to develop
Reliability
Drive and resilience
Project management
IT skills
Business and
customer awareness
Enterprise
Enthusiasm/passion
Planning and organisation
Maturity
What are the options?
• Employment with training
• Employment with study
• Further academic study
• Structured time out
Jobs directly related to subject
Jobs Directly related to your degree
Sociology
•
Social Researcher
•
Community Development Worker
•
Lecturer/Teacher
Criminology
•
Police Officer
•
Probation Officer
•
Social Worker
Jobs Directly related to your degree
Social Policy
•
Government Researcher
•
International Aid /Development worker
Cultural studies
•
Communications Officer
•
Media Planner
Health and Social Care
•
Health promotion specialist
•
Child Protection Officer
Researching Careers
www.prospects.ac.uk
• Overview of the sector
• Job descriptions
• Salary and conditions
• Entry requirements
• Training
• Career development
• Employers and vacancy sources
• Related jobs
Jobs where an SSPSSR degree useful
www.prospects.ac.uk
•
Adult Guidance Worker
•
Arts Administrator
•
Community Development Worker
•
Further Education Lecturer
•
Housing Adviser/Manager
•
HR Manager
•
Police Officer
•
Prison Officer
•
Probation Officer
•
Public Sector Administrator
•
School Teacher
•
Social Researcher
•
Social Worker
•
Solicitor
•
University Lecturer/Researcher
•
Youth Worker
Jobs that are not directly related to your
subject
Many employers value the skills
you have gained more than the
subject
• Communication
• Teamwork
• IT
• Research
• Analysis
• Ability to work under
pressure
Graduate Schemes
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/graddirectories.htm
• www.prospects.ac.uk
• www.get.hobsons.co.uk
• www.targetjobs.co.uk
• www guardianuk300.com
• www.top100graduateemployers.com
• www.kent.ac.uk/ces/vacancies.html
Graduate Schemes still open
• Accenture
• Ernest & Young
• Aldi
• EU Careers
• Arcadia
• IBM
• BAE Systems
• L’Oreal
• BBC
• Mars
• Bloomberg
• McDonalds
• British Sugar
• MI5
• Cancer Research UK
• National Grid
• Deliotte
• Penguin
• DIFD
• TeachFirst
• Diageo
• BBC
Example Graduate scheme (Bloomberg )
• Finance
• IT
• Media
• Sales
Example graduate scheme: DFID
• Engineering
• Finance
• General Management
• IT
• Purchasing
• Research and
Development
Postgraduate Study
• Approx. 20% of SSPSSR grads do PG study after graduation
• MA taught – 1 year Sept to June – lectures,
June to Sept – dissertation.
• Research MA 1 to 2 years – often part-time
• PhD – 3 years. Nearly always a MA first.
• PGCE (teacher training) 1 year:
• See www.kent.ac.uk/careers/postgradmenu.htm
Postgraduate study
• Not much funding available
for MA. Fees are about £5,000.
At Kent get £1,000 graduate
school scholarship reduction
• Many students work for a year
to fund it or do it part-time
whilst working
• Consider vocational MA –
journalism, publishing,
business, HR etc.
• Normally apply middle of final
year. No UCAS can apply to
as many course as you wish
to – 3 or 4 is normal
Study Abroad
• Many postgraduate courses
are now taught in English,
especially in the Netherlands
and Scandinavia
• No course fees in Sweden and
about £1,000 in Germany and
Denmark
• See
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/postgr
admenu.htm#PGAbroad
What do SSPSSR graduates do?
In broad terms (recent destinations)
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/fdrbases/destinations.htm
• Employment 68.7%
• Further Study 18.9%
• Not available 6.5%
• Seeking employment 5.9%
SSPSSR Employers
• Criminal Justice system
• Education
• Finance
• Health & Social Work
• Other community, social & personal services
• Property, business & research activities
• Government, Public Administration & Policy
• Retail
• Charities and NGOs
• Others …..
Jobs - Criminology
Criminal Justice Related
Health & Welfare
Centre for Social Justice-Intern/Researcher
Ealing Hospital NHS Trust-Clinical Audit
Her Majesty's Court Service-Court Clerk
Assistant
Kent Police-Crime Reduction Clerk
Kent Social Services-Personal Support Worker
Kent Police-Police Officer
The Leap-Community Worker
Kent Police – Communication Officer
National Centre for Young People with Epilepsy-
Kent Police-Police Officer
Residential Support Worker
Metropolitan Police-Police Officer
Ministry of Justice-Admin. Officer
Northern Trust-Fraud Investigator
Northumbria Police-Administrator
Pitman Solicitors-Receptionist
Surrey Police-Crime Management Unit Officer
Youth Justice Board-Strategy Support Officer
NHS Princess of Wales Hospital-Admin Assistant
NHS Professionals-NHS Admin Temp
Surrey Council-Employment Support Officer
Sutton Ramp Events Ltd-Admin & Volunteer Coordinator
Youth Services/East London University-Youth
Worker/MA
Jobs - Social Policy
Administrative
Human Resources
Administrator - Civil Service
Equal Opportunities Officer - Benefits Agency
Administrative Assistant - Pensions Mgt Inst
HR Administrator - Ealing Housing
Caseworker - House of Commons
Association
Housing
Customer Services - Swale Housing Assoc
HR Assistant - NHS
Recruitment Executive – Capita, JP Gray
Housing Adviser – Dover District Council
Housing Officer - English Churches
Libraries/Education
Homeless Officer - Swale Council
Archive Assistant - Birmingham City Library
Rural Housing Enabler - Sussex Rural CC
Development Officer - University of
Media
Greenwich
Exhibitions Organiser - PR Company
Library Assistant - Kingston University
NVQ Learning Support Tutor - Mid-Kent
Information Officer - Age Concern
College
Marketing Assistant - BBC
Research Assistant - University of Kent
PR & Marketing Officer - Rolex
Jobs - Social Policy
Management
Social/Welfare
Chalet Manager – Ski World
Care Management Asst - Surrey CC
Committee Services Mgr - Milton Keynes Council
Care Manager - Cambridge Soc Services
Management trainee - Stagecoach plc
Community Care Worker - All Seasons
Manageress - Espresso Deli Café Bar
Co-ordinator - Cool Catz Parents Group
Manager - Six Continents Hotels
Crime Management Unit Officer - Surrey Police
Managing Director - Enchanted Sun Ltd
Intern/Researcher - Centre for Social Justice
Project Mgt trainee - Swan Housing Assoc
Restaurant Manager - Dominoes Pizza
Trainee Manager - Enterprise Rent A Car
Police Officer (x2) - Kent Police, Met Police
Prison Officer - HM Prison Service (x2)
Revenue & Benefits - Thanet District Council
Social Work Assistant - Kent C.C.
Social Work Trainee - Suffolk County Council
Strategy Support Officer - Youth Justice Board
Support Assistant - St. Martin's Hospital
Victim Liaison Officer - West Kent Mediation
Youth Worker - KCC
Jobs - Sociology
Education/Health/Social/Welfare
Admissions Assistant - Kingston University
Caseworker - Kent Police
Clinical Auditor - Addenbrooks Hospital
Employment Support Officer - Surrey Council
English Teacher – Japan
Language Assistant - British Council
Learning Support Assistant (x2) - The PACE Centre, Parkside Primary School
Paralegal - Jameson & Hill
Personal Adviser (Trainee) - Connexions
Police Officer (x3) - Kent Police, Metropolitan Police, Thames Valley Police
Prison Officer - HM Prison Service
Project Worker - Stonham Housing Association
Residential Support Worker - National Centre for Young People with Epilepsy
Social Worker - East Sussex Social Services
Student Activities Assistant - Canterbury College
Support Worker - Caretech
Courses - Criminology
BSc Mental Health - Canterbury Christ Church University
Counselling Certificate - South Downs College
Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) - BPP Law School
Graduate Diploma in Law - College of Law
Graduate Diploma in Law - College of Law
MA Criminology - Kings College London
MA Criminology - University of Kent
MSc Psychology - University of Hertfordshire
PGCE - Canterbury Christ Church University
PGCE Primary - UWIC Cardiff
PGCE Primary - Roehampton University
Postgraduate Diploma in Psychology - East London University
Courses - Social Policy
Certificate in Counselling - South Kent College
Dip/MA Careers Guidance - Reading
Graduate Diploma in Law - College of Law, London
Legal Secretaries Course - COMSEC
LLM Criminal Justice - Kent (x2)
MA Criminology – Kent, Nottingham
MA Development Studies - Sorbonne, Paris
MA Gender Studies - Leeds
MA Health Studies - Kent (x7)
MA Personnel & Development - Westminster
MA Politics - UEA
MA Social Policy - UEA
MA Social Research Methods - Kent
MA in Social Work - Warwick
MA Training & HR - Warwick
MBA (x2) - Kent, University of Wales (Cardiff)
Courses - Sociology
Graduate Diploma in Law - College of Law (x3)
MA Criminology - Middlesex University
MA Criminology - University of Kent
MA Development Studies - Sorbonne, Paris
MA European CLS - University of Kent
MA Gender Studies - University of Leeds
MA International Conflict Analysis - University of Kent
MA International Relations (BS) - University of Kent
MA Propaganda Persuasion & History - University of Kent
MA Social Work - Canterbury Christ Church University (x3)
MA Sociology - University of Kent (x7), Egyptian University, University of Brighton, University of
Reading
MSc Development Studies - SOAS
MSc Media & Communication - Goldsmith's College
MSc Medical Sociology - Royal Holloway (x2)
MSc Social Research - University of Kent
MBA (x2) - Swansea Institute, University of Kent
PGCE Citizenship - Newman College, Canterbury Christ Church University
How the Careers and Employability Service can
help you.
What we do
• Careers Talks and Workshops
• Careers Library: Employer Directories, Occupational Profiles, Books etc
• Comprehensive Web Pages
• Careers Employability Award (CEM) on Moodle
• Vacancy Database
• Alumni Careers Network
• Annual Careers and Recruitment Fair
• Drop In - Quick Query
• Careers Guidance Interviews
Careers and Employability Service
Web Site: www.kent.ac.uk/ces
Careers and Employability Service Web Pages
• I want to work in ….
http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/siteach.htm
• What can I do with my degree in …
http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/Sociology.htm
• Choosing a Career
http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/Choosing/ChoosingCare
er.htm
• Interviews (includes assessment centres and
psychometric tests etc.)
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/applicn.htm
• Example CVs & Covering Letters
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/cv/cvexamples.htm
• Employability Skills
http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/sk/skillsmenu.htm
Careers Employability Award
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/moodle.htm
 The module takes about 12 hours to complete
 But this can be done at your own pace
You do this by completing:
 9 quizzes
 3 short assignments
 1 feedback form
Comments from students who have completed
the award.
• “I liked the fact that the assignments relate to how you
would fill in answers on a graduate job application step
by step and provides examples of how to fill it in.”
• “I really enjoyed the quizzes. They effectively
highlighted the gaps in my knowledge, as many of the
answers surprised me. I also found the module on
creating my own CV very useful, these skills will be
invaluable for tailoring my CV to particular jobs.”
• “There is a wealth of information about everything; I
especially liked the individual information about
specific job types and the advice given about interview
skills.”
Attend Careers Talks and Workshops.
• Choosing a Career
• Using Social Media in your Job Hunt
• Environmental Careers
• Forensic Science Careers
• A Career in Sales
• http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/casev
ents.htm
Vacancy Database
• All vacancies sent to the Careers and Employability
Service by employers, whether for graduate jobs,
sandwich placements or vacation
work/internships are entered on this database
which offers:
• Email alerts of new vacancies which may interest
you
• Employers notifying vacancies are often
specifically targeting Kent graduates, so
competition for jobs is lower than on other
vacancy sites
www.kent.ac.uk/careers/jobs/index.htm
Speak to an adviser:
• Quick query, drop in and
speak to an adviser
10.30am -12.30pm and
2.00pm-4pm Monday to
Friday.
• E mail
careerhelp@kent.ac.uk and
an adviser will respond to
your query.
• You can also book a longer
career guidance
appointment over the phone
or pop in.
Action points
• Use www.prospects.ac.uk, including Prospects
Planner, to research options available
• Use www.kent.ac.uk/ces
• Get relevant work experience
• Think beyond the stereotypes of organisations
e.g. NHS, Asda
• Find out how the sectors you are interested in
recruits
•
Have a back-up plan
• Make use of the Careers and Employability
Service
Careers and Employability Service
You can download a copy of this presentation
at www.kent.ac.uk/careers/slides.htm