Welcome to War wick
A Guide for PhD Employers
Why choose Warwick?
The University of Warwick is one of the UK’s
leading universities with an acknowledged
reputation for excellence in research and
teaching, innovation and links with business
and industry. The University was founded
in 1965 and is consistently ranked in the top
ten UK universities and is ranked as one of
the world’s top 50 universities. Located in
the centre of England, it attracts the highest
calibre students from across the UK and abroad.
Warwick is made up of four faculties: Arts,
Science, Medicine, and Social Sciences, with
over 30 different departments.
Warwick has a student population of over 23,000
and, as a result of our global reputation, nearly one
third is international. Warwick attracts the most
able students from over 142 countries – a major
proportion of which are from the UK’s largest
commercial partners including China, India,
Malaysia, Nigeria and Russia, as well as the USA,
EU and Middle East.
“
Warwick has over 10,400 postgraduate students
studying for a range of higher degrees. Each year
some of the brightest Undergraduates at Warwick,
particularly those with a first class degree or 2.1,
will go on to postgraduate study at the University.
Many career professionals will also seek out
additional qualifications at postgraduate level to
extend their specialist vocational knowledge and
satisfy their drive for higher study.
Our talented and highly skilled postgraduate
students are some of the most sought after
individuals by employers, both in the UK and
internationally.
At Tessella, we value PhDs – over half of our employees have
them. The problem solving skills gained during academic
research play a vital part in understanding our customers'
requirements and translating them into practical solutions. By
working with the Employer Connect team at Warwick we have
been able to reach and attract a large postgraduate audience
and recruit some of the best candidates in the field.”
Neil Barrett, Recruitment & HR Executive, Tessella
Student Careers and Skills
Employer Connect
We offer an integrated service
providing everything students need
to develop their skills and plan
for the future. Skills development
opportunities covering academic,
personal and career management
skills are tailored for undergraduate,
Masters and PhD students. We
work proactively with employers,
external organisations and academic
departments to provide resources and
opportunities for work experience and
graduate employment.
Employer Connect is the principal
point of contact for employers looking
to engage with Warwick students. We
work with over 3,000 organisations
large and small, international and local.
We encourage you to work closely with
us so that we can then recommend
the most appropriate services for your
organisation.
Other innovative approaches
include:
» our online development tool
» Warwick Volunteers – our active
volunteering programme
» myAdvantage – our online portal
for students, graduates and
employers
As part of Student Careers and Skills,
Employer Connect works closely with
colleagues to help deliver an effective,
personal approach to your recruitment
needs. We offer a portfolio of tried and
tested services which enable you to raise
your organisation’s profile, communicate
your opportunities effectively to
students, and facilitate a strong and
successful relationship with Warwick
students. Many of the services that
Employer Connect offers to employers
seeking to recruit our Undergraduate
students are also well suited to
postgraduate recruitment.
Understanding
Postgraduate Qualifications
Higher education qualifications can
broadly be divided into three main stages
– the first stage is the undergraduate
degree, followed by the Masters and
then the PhD level. These three levels
all build on each other with the PhD
level representing the highest available
qualification.
What is a Masters?
A Masters is a first level postgraduate
qualification. Masters courses generally
involve one year of fulltime study, but can
be longer if they are part time or research
based courses.
What is a PhD?
A PhD is achieved after three to four
years (or longer if part time) of fulltime
academic research into a particular
subject area. It is the highest level of
degree that a student can achieve.
Services guide
Employer Connect offer a portfolio of services
which enable you to raise your organisation’s
profile, communicate your opportunities
effectively to students, and facilitate a strong and
successful relationship with Warwick students. We
encourage you to work closely with us so that we
may learn about and understand your business. We
can then confidently suggest the most appropriate
services, ensuring a reliable and successful
experience.
Advertising services
Many of the services we offer for recruiting our
undergraduate students are also valuable in targeting
postgraduates – we’ve highlighted these below.
You may advertise by adding opportunities to myAdvantage directly,
and these can include:
myAdvantage
Our online careers portal – myAdvantage – provides
a communication link between students, employers
and the Employer Connect team.
All students at Warwick have access to myAdvantage
and regularly use it to view company profiles,
search vacancies, book careers events and guidance
appointments, and browse our careers resources.
In addition to current students, Warwick graduates
have access to myAdvantage for three years after
graduation.
Creating an account is the first step to a successful
recruitment campaign here at Warwick.
Through myAdvantage you will be able to:
» Join our directory of employers searchable by all
Warwick students
» Maintain your contact details and company
information
» Add and manage your vacancies
» View detailed information and book additional
recruitment services
There is no charge for registration or posting vacancies
and registering your organisation on myAdvantage
only takes a few minutes. To register please visit:
myadvantage.warwick.ac.uk/employers
Advertising is the foundation on which to build your organisation’s
profile here at Warwick, to help you reach the student and graduate
talent you require. We offer a range of advertising services to ensure
that your recruitment campaign meets your needs.
Online vacancy advertising
All Warwick students have access to opportunities posted within
myAdvantage and will receive a weekly newsletter informing them of
new jobs matching their chosen criteria.
» Fulltime opportunities
» Internships and work experience opportunities
» 12 month placements
» Short term placement opportunities
» Work shadowing
» External events
» Competitions and open days
» Volunteering opportunities
» Opportunities to secure funding and scholarships
Targeted email services
Target students by degree type, faculty or nationality. Emails are sent
directly to a postgraduate student’s Warwick email account and can
draw attention to your specific vacancies and recruitment initiatives,
competitions, or to publicise your events both on and off campus.
The more targeted your emails, the more effective they will be. We
recommend that you make the content as tailored and relevant as
possible to the student groups receiving the email.
Web banner advertising
Employers wishing to promote their organisation within myAdvantage
can do so through the use of our web banner advertising service. Web
banners provide a visual prompt to students as well as an online link
to further information about your organisation and opportunities.
Banners can be set to appear to specific student groups and be
targeted directly to our postgraduates.
Event services
PhD networking event
Employer Connect offer a wide range of events across the academic year that will
provide you with the opportunity to meet with Warwick students and graduates
face to face to effectively promote your organisation, employees and culture.
The PhD networking event is an
excellent opportunity for you to
meet some of our talented, highly
skilled PhD students who strive
to achieve innovation and work
on cutting edge research in their
individual fields. Throughout their
PhDs, our postgraduate researchers
will have developed excellent problem
solving and analytical abilities, and
strong project management and
communication skills.
Careers fairs
Careers fairs are the highest profile recruitment events on campus and offer the
ideal setting for you to showcase your opportunities. They consistently attract
large numbers of talented students, including postgraduates, and offer you both
maximum exposure, and selective targeting. They provide students the chance to
meet a variety of organisations offering employment opportunities, internships
and work experience placements.
Sector events
These events bridge the gap between students and occupations that are not
always strongly represented on campus. The atmosphere is informal and the focus
is on providing information with speakers talking to students about their personal
experiences and careers to date.
Interview and meeting rooms
Many employers use our on campus meeting rooms either for follow up meetings
after a careers event or for interviews to take advantage of the momentum gained
at an event.
Virtual services
Unable to visit Warwick? Interact with students face to face without leaving
the office. Our virtual services include the delivery of webinars and online
presentations, as well as telephone and video conferencing all of which can be
arranged to suit your needs, whether you want to speak to a single student or a
larger group.
“
As an organisation that targets recruitment
towards PhD students, and Warwick students in
particular, this event is a great opportunity for us
to meet with potential applicants."
Richard Hill, Recruitment Manager, ATASS Sports
By attending you will have the chance
to promote your organisation, and
discuss future job opportunities,
highlighting the skills and
competencies required. To highlight
your organisation further, there is also
an opportunity to sponsor this event,
ensuring your name is visible to this
specific student group.
The aim of this event is to give PhD
students at Warwick an insight
into non-academic employment
opportunities while at the same time
offering them a way to network directly
with a wide range of organisations
interested in speaking to them.
The event will provide you with an
opportunity to talk to students about
their experiences and answer their
questions about your organisation and
opportunities available to them.
We encourage you to involve any
alumni or employees that have a PhD
themselves as your representatives at
this event. Our students particularly
value hearing from others who have
attended Warwick or can relate to their
personal experience as professional
researchers.
Benefits of recruiting a Warwick postgraduate
Our talented and highly skilled
postgraduate students are some of
the most sought after individuals
by employers, both in the UK and
internationally.
Masters postgraduates
PhD postgraduates
Warwick’s Masters programmes develop
both a student’s in depth knowledge in
a particular subject area and core skills
which can be directly transferred to the
workplace.
During their study, our PhD students
are essentially working in a project
management capacity and are expected
to meet deadlines, achieve goals and
report to their supervisor. Many PhD
students are keen to apply their skills in
a wider job market, although some will
want to remain in academia.
Throughout their studies, Warwick
Masters students will have learnt to:
“
As well as their strong academic
performance, they continue to enrich and
develop their skills through a wide range
of extracurricular activities. The skills
that they gain through these channels are
highly transferable and in great demand.
»
manage an intensive workload with
tight deadlines
Warwick PhD students offer employers
highly developed skills, including:
»
develop self-discipline and selfmotivation
»
enhanced organisational skills and
excellent problem solving abilities
»
work as part of a group and
communicate effectively
»
an analytical approach to working and
in depth research skills
»
deliver presentations to a variety of
audiences
»
project management experience
gained from managing large scale
research projects
»
»
excellent communication
ability to work collaboratively with
networking expertise and contacts
As a company that is engaged in research, the skills PhDs bring are invaluable.
In addition to the obvious benefits of a few more years of academic study, their
involvement in presenting at conferences and in undergraduate teaching bring
communication skills that are not always found in undergraduates. Also, don’t
forget that they will have been through a rigorous selection process to have even
got onto a PhD course in the first place! Whilst PhD students may be less easy to
target in numbers than undergraduates, the strengths they bring are certainly
worth the effort." Richard Hill, Recruitment Manager, ATASS Sports
Raising your profile
Competition amongst employers
to recruit the best talent is fierce.
Raising your profile on campus is
key to your success.
We cannot overstate the importance
of a long term commitment to
building your employer profile with
Warwick. The most successful
recruiters have developed their image
and employer brand over many years.
Our postgraduate community
will engage in similar activities
on campus as our undergraduate
students and are fully integrated into
university life even though the nature
of their study may differ greatly
from the traditional perception of
a student’s rigid lecture schedule.
Postgraduates will also be involved
in a wide range of extracurricular
activities including student societies,
our active volunteering programme
– Warwick Volunteers – and other
university lead initiatives including
our prestigious Warwick Advantage
award.
Working with academic
departments
The University is vast and often a very
confusing landscape to navigate for
organisations seeking to connect with
different departments. To help you
reach the correct people, our Careers
Consultants are assigned to specific
departments to ensure communication
is effective for all. This assists you as an
organisation to work effectively with
busy academics and departmental staff.
Student societies
There are over 200 student societies
active on campus offering a wide variety
of extracurricular activities. These range
from academic based societies to those
involved in sports, social or business
and volunteer based work. The skills
that students develop through activities
of this nature are highly transferable.
Engagement with students through this
channel is highly complementary to your
recruitment campaign here at Warwick.
Alumni
Throughout your student marketing
and recruitment process we would
encourage you to involve recent
postgraduates, experienced hires
and your Warwick alumni. Students
appreciate the chance to talk to a range
of professionals that can offer a wider
and in depth perspective in addition to
the HR advice that they may receive.
Postgraduates particularly value
hearing from others who have attended
Warwick and can relate to their
personal experience as professional
researchers.
There is tremendous value in
adopting a mix of approaches
tailored to your own circumstances.
According to your requirements
and budget, we can advise on the
best strategy to help you raise your
profile through the most appropriate
channels.
Contact details
Employer Connect
Student Careers & Skills
t 024 7657 4087
e employerconnect@warwick.ac.uk
w go.warwick.ac.uk/careers/employers