Career Success Guide

Career planning

The information in this leaflet is designed to get you started. It gives some ideas on strategy and tactics, lists some of the resources available and provides suggestions on what to do next.

How do people make career decisions?

For some it is a matter of making the most of opportunities that happen to come along. For others it is the end product of a lengthy process which includes building a detailed personal profile, conducting in-depth research into jobs and carrying out an effective matching exercise. The second approach gives you far greater control over your destiny and provides an excellent platform when applying for jobs and attending interviews.

What’s the connection between skills and career planning?

Employers demand a great deal from graduates and place major emphasis on skills. In order to make a good career decision you need to make the connection between the skills you have, the skills you want to develop and the skills needed in your chosen career. Employers will ask you to provide examples of how you’ve used certain skills as evidence of your employability.

A career planning model to get you started

The next sections refer to a four-stage model:

Section 1 Helps you to build a profile of yourself - your skills, motivation and personalitySection 2 Focuses on ways of gathering information about possible options - jobs, further study, etc.Section 3 Looks at how to match yourself to opportunities and begin to make decisions Section 4 Examines ways of finding opportunities and making effective applications.

Section 1 - About you

Past experience

Consider what you have liked or disliked about your experience in work, education or leisure activities. Can you see any potential links when considering your future career path?

Interests and values

Can you describe your personal and professional interests? What would really matter in your working life? Is status important to you? Are you interested in making a contribution to your local community or society in general? What type of working environment would you like to be involved in? What are you motivated to achieve?

Abilities and aptitudes

Abilities and aptitudes are often defined by the activities that come naturally to you. Do you have something that you’ve always been naturally good at doing? Try listing them and thinking about how they might connect to career options.

Personality or personal style

Your personality or personal style may be reflected in the way you approach tasks. Do you look at the ‘bigger picture’ or concentrate on detail? Are you driven by personal values or logic?

Skills and qualities

Employers expect a great deal from graduates. In addition to qualifications they want you to have a broad range of skills and personal qualities. These will differ according to the job but the following are often in demand:

Team working Verbal and written communicationProblem solving Planning and organisationFlexibility Time managementInitiative Interpersonal skills

Your skills profile will match some jobs better than others. When applying for jobs you will be required to write and talk about your skills profile. This means developing evidence, drawing on examples from your employment, education, voluntary and leisure activities.

Interest and personality guides

You might also like to use the following online questionnaires:

Prospects Career Planner: http://www.prospects.ac.uk/myprospects_planner_login.htm – a guidance tool for evaluating your interests and skills in order to generate a list of suggested careers for further consideration.

Target Jobs Careers Report: https://targetjobs.co.uk/careers-report – uses questionnaires and psychometric tests to explore your interests, strengths, personality and abilities and matches you to jobs that would suit you.

Section 2 Research occupations

Once you’ve built a personal profile and identified the factors which are most important to you in a career, the next stage is to find out what’s available and develop an in- depth knowledge of occupations using a range of methods.

Researching occupations is an important part of:

Making decisions about the career you wantHow do you know you want a career, or if it plays to your strengths, if you do not know what it involves?

Planning your continued learningWill you need postgraduate and/or professional qualifications to progress in a career and, if so, what experience will you need in order to take them?

Applying for jobsResearch will tell you where vacancies are advertised, which organisations to target and the knowledge and skills required for that career.

What do you need to know?

The items listed below will help you to target your research and may well raise some issues that you had not considered when making your career choice:

The questions you could answer, to give you a clear picture of an occupation, are:

What does the occupation involve? What skills, knowledge, experience, qualifications and personal qualities does it

require? What further training and development will be necessary? How do people progress in the occupation? What type of organisations recruit people in this occupation (e.g. public or

private sector? Size of organisation?) Where are these organisations located? What lifestyle will this occupation give me? (i.e. hours, financial reward, stability) What organisations recruit staff in this occupation? Where are vacancies advertised? What do recruiters want from candidates?

How do you get started?

You can start exploring careers using the following resources available on www.prospects.ac.uk:

Job sectors provide a good introduction to a wide range of sectors such as Accountancy, Education, Health and Information Technology. They include information on types of jobs, entry routes, training, professional qualifications, typical employers and overseas opportunities.

Under the ‘Jobs and work experience’ heading you will also find information about different types of jobs. The job profiles are listed alphabetically and by sector.

The job profiles provide information on most graduate careers and include information about entry routes, training, potential employers and salary data.

Graduate careers websites

The following websites contain information about graduate careers and graduate job search.

www.prospects.ac.uk is the UK’s official graduate careers website; www.careerplayer.com graduate jobs and career advice on video; www.icould.com view real life career videos; www.targetjobs.co.uk check out their section on employer insights; www.insidecareers.co.uk ; www.fish4.co.uk/graduate/ ; www.totaljobs.com/graduate ; www.grb.uk.com The Graduate Recruitment Bureau.

Take a look at our bookmarking site Diigo - https://www.diigo.com/user/Dmugateway and browse through the site resources, using the relevant tags and tag bundles to narrow your search.

Other sources of occupational information

Professional bodies

Professional bodies such as the Royal Institute of British Architects or the Royal College of Midwives produce a range of information on careers within their profession, particularly on training and development issues. Whilst you may have to become a member to regularly receive their journal or vacancy bulletin, a great deal of information is available free of charge and usually posted on their websites.

Careers fairs and events

Careers events are a good opportunity to meet employers, find out what they are looking for and start building up your own network of contacts. Regularly check our pages: http://www.dmu.ac.uk/dmu-students/employability-and-careers/ upcoming-events.aspx to see what events are planned.

Employers and occupations

In addition to finding out about occupations you need to explore which employers or employment sectors offer jobs in your target career field. Many careers such as information technology, accountancy and marketing will have opportunities in a wide range of organisations in the public and private sector.

To find out about the occupations offered under structured graduate training schemes check the graduate careers websites listed above.

Take a look at local and national newspapers; for example jobs appear in the Leicester Mercury every Wednesday and can also be viewed online at www.leicestermercury.co.uk

Networking

There is great merit in talking to people who are working in the career field you are considering. If you don’t have a contact it may be worth seeking advice from the relevant professional body.

Attend career fairs and events to meet and talk with employers. Check for upcoming events here: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/events/search.

Alternatively, use www.yell.com to research and contact local professionals by phone or email to find out about different careers and to ask them about potential work experience. Also use social networking sites (Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter) to broaden your employer contacts and to keep up to date with sector news and developments.

Work experience

Relevant work experience is invaluable for a number of reasons. It provides you with the opportunity to test your understanding of the job and also, if you decide to pursue your interest, the experience can be highlighted on your CV to demonstrate your motivation and commitment. If you can’t get a part-time or vacation job you could enquire about the possibility of work shadowing. Taking the initiative and thinking creatively is essential.

Work placements

A placement is a period of time spent working for an external employer as part of your studies. Many courses at DMU offer the opportunity of a sandwich year placement or shorter placement, fully supported by the university. A placement is the perfect way of discovering how your studies relate to the real world and may lead to you securing your first graduate job even before you graduate. Each of our faculties has a dedicated Work Based Learning Unit to help you source, apply for and carrying out your placement as part of your studies.

Mandatory placements

If you’re studying a programme in the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences (HLS), it is likely you will have placements embedded throughout your studies as part of your professional qualification. The Work Based Learning Unit in HLS will provide you with information, advice and support about placements and your employability from your first week onwards.

Internships

The schemes listed below provide an opportunity to gain relevant experience and skills by working for local or regional employers and may lead to permanent employment. Many of the placement opportunities are likely to be with Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

DMU Frontrunners: www.dmu.ac.uk/frontrunners

This is our popular and highly successful internship scheme where students work on paid projects at the university, supervised by academic or professional services staff. Students work between 8–12 hours a week over a period of months, fitting this around their study timetable.

DMU Graduate Champions: www.dmu.ac.uk/graduatechampions

This scheme supports recent graduates in securing graduate-level employment by providing high quality short internships within and outside DMU.

Step Enterprise: www.step.org.uk

Offer placement and recruitment programmes for students and graduates.

Knowledge Transfer Partnerships: www.ktponline.org.ukOffer graduates 12 to 36 month placement opportunities across the UK generally in business, technology or design.

Graduate Talent Pool: http://graduatetalentpool.direct.gov.uk/Placements or internships last from a month to 7-12 months. Search by career and region.

Inspiring Interns: www.inspiringinterns.com/

Enternships: https://enternships.com/

Voluntary experience

Voluntary work is particularly relevant if you are considering public sector roles such as social work or careers in voluntary organisations. The latter may include opportunities in fundraising, marketing/promotions work, database development, directly helping people in need, or contributing to a particular cause such as environmental/conservation work.

DMU has a dedicated office, DSU Volunteering, which advertises a variety of volunteering opportunities for students. More than 2,000 students get involved with DSU Volunteering every year. Register online here: https://www.demontfortstudents.com/getinvolved/volunteering/.

DMU Square Mile is another way students can make a positive impact by volunteering within the local community whilst gaining vital skills. This award-winning initiative utilises a network of student volunteers and academic experts to co-ordinate and run projects that make a positive impact on the local community in Leicester. Find out more here: http://www.dmu.ac.uk/about-dmu/dmu-square-mile/dmu-square-mile.aspx .

Macmillan Volunteering is a unique, award-winning partnership with DMU, which offers students the opportunity to volunteer on a range of initiatives supported by Macmillan Support. These include opportunities in palliative care, marketing and promotions and finance. Participating students also have the opportunity to be accredited for their volunteering by undertaking the Volunteering Module. Further details are available here: http://www.dmu.ac.uk/dmu-students/employability-and- careers/volunteering.aspx.

Working on any of these innovative volunteering projects would give you unique opportunities to put the skills you have learnt on your degree course into practice, and strengthen your CV while honing the skills employers look for.

You could also try approaching your local volunteer bureau such as Voluntary Action LeicesterShire on Newarke Street in Leicester - they have lots of opportunities in a number of areas. Visit www.valonline.org.uk. If you wish to find voluntary work elsewhere in the UK try the following links to find your nearest local volunteer centre:

England: www.volunteering.org.uk

Scotland: www.projectscotland.co.uk

Wales: www.volunteering-wales.net

Voluntary involvement will not only help you to develop relevant skills but can also build personal confidence, allow you to network with like-minded people and may give you insights into the demands of related job areas.

Global Experience

#DMUglobal is a unique international experience programme for De Montfort University students which aims to enrich your studies and expand your cultural horizons – helping you become global graduates, equipped to meet the needs of employers across the world.

Through #DMUglobal, the university offers a wide range of opportunities including on- campus and UK activities, overseas study, internships, faculty-led field trips and volunteering, as well as Erasmus+ and international exchanges. Find out more here: https://www.dmuglobal.com/.

Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) is a popular choice for people wanting to work abroad - a TEFL qualification is not essential, but it is useful if you want to arrange a job before you leave the UK rather than approaching language schools on your arrival. Check out www.tefl.net for suitable courses.

There are numerous opportunities advertised for overseas voluntary work and expeditions to many developing and third-world countries. Assignments can include projects relating to the environment, conservation, social welfare, development, education and teaching - to name but a few! You will almost always need to pay a fee and/or your travel and living costs for these projects, so it’s important to research these voluntary opportunities carefully.

Section 3 - Making career decisions

Making good career decisions

Some people decide intuitively - they respond to what feels right to them. Others postpone decisions or let other people decide for them. If you have worked through Sections 1 and 2 of this guide you should be better placed to make a rational, informed decision about what to do next. Some of the resources will have given you career suggestions and it may be a matter of working through these, researching the opportunities, gaining relevant experience and being prepared to explore alternatives.

Decision-making strategies

If you need help in making decisions there are a range of strategies you can adopt. Talking to a careers adviser can also help you to work through your decision-making strategy and you are welcome to make either a telephone or face-to-face appointment via The Student Gateway for guidance. Please see the contact details at the end of this guide.

Section 4 - Finding opportunities and applying successfully

Once you have a clear focus in your career planning you will be well placed to start identifying the opportunities available and to make successful applications.

Looking for a job can be a full-time activity in itself. To be effective, you need to be positive, carry out a great deal of research and, most importantly, have a clear plan of action.

Looking for job vacancies

Internet searches

The majority of graduate employers now use the internet to advertise their vacancies and many ask applicants to submit online applications. As with any information on the web, the big challenge is to locate the data you want quickly and efficiently. Most large employers now have their own careers website and if you have a specific address there’s no problem. Search engines such as Google or Yahoo! are helpful when searching using ‘employment’ or ‘jobs’ as a starting point.

DMU’s jobsite MyGateway https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/ gives access to national, regional and local opportunities in full-time, part-time, placement and vacation work.

Vacancies are also promoted on Facebook www.facebook.com/dmustudentgateway and Twitter www.twitter.com/dmugateway

Other useful job-seeking websites include:

www.prospects.ac.uk ; www.targetjobs.co.uk ; www.insidecareers.co.uk ; www.fish4.co.uk/graduate/ ; www.milkround.com/ ; www.topjobs.co.uk ; www.totaljobs.com ; www.reed.co.uk/graduate ; www.monster.co.uk ; www.jobseekers.direct.gov.uk ; www.adzuna.co.uk/ ; www.gradcracker.com/ (Engineering and Technology jobs).

Also check out www.realworldmagazine.com for advice and contacts for online job searches.

Employment agencies

These organisations handle vacancies for other companies. They deal with temporary work or permanent positions, and often concentrate on their own specialist markets. You can register with DMU’s recruitment agency Unitemps online at www.dmu.ac.uk/unitemps.

Recruitment agencies vary in their usefulness for initial career positions, as many of the jobs are for people with experience. They are certainly worth investigating in areas such as medical sales, laboratory work and computing and for those with some relevant work experience. The Recruitment and Employment Confederation has a useful website at www.rec.uk.com where you can search for agencies by type and location.

Recruitment and information fairs

These events take place throughout the year, particularly the autumn and summer terms, and are popular with large employers and professional organisations. Check for upcoming events here: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/events/search. Many careers fairs are open to the public, but it’s best to check whether you are eligible to attend. It’s also best to do some research prior to the day, discovering which employers will be attending and updating your CV for distribution to interested parties. For up-to-date information on national fairs see www.prospects.ac.uk and click on ‘Careers advice’ then ‘Careers events’.

National press newspapers

Different types of job vacancies are featured on specific days. Although some graduate jobs appear in the national press, many positions will be for people with experience. Newspapers alter these listings from time to time and you should check their current position.

Local evening papers

Local papers often have one particular day on which they carry the majority of vacancies. Jobs appear in the Leicester Mercury on Wednesdays and are also published to be viewed online at www.leicestermercury.co.uk. Many of the positions will be for experienced personnel, but it’s worth taking a look because if a smaller, local company is searching for staff, this is the most likely place for them to advertise. Also check out the weekly job vacancy bulletins on sale at newsagents. For the newspaper covering your local area check www.wrx.zen.co.uk or www.fish4jobs.co.uk .

Local authority/NHS job sheets

These organisations often produce their own weekly or fortnightly job bulletins, usually available in local libraries and job centres. There are also useful websites (including Leicester City Council at www.leicester.gov.uk and the NHS at www.jobs.nhs.uk) where you can search for current vacancies.

Specialist magazines

Many of these magazines carry job vacancies and are available through newsagents or relevant professional organisations. Examples include New Scientist, Marketing Week and Computer Weekly. Vacancies are often for those with experience, but the publications are useful for keeping up to date with developments in your field as well as for job hunting.

The creative job search

Jobs are frequently filled via contacts, word of mouth, and speculative enquiries. This is particularly the case in popular occupational areas including media, advertising and the creative industries. Creative job searching requires you to take control and involves sending out tailored CVs with a covering letter to the employers in which you are interested. Tenacity and persuasiveness are qualities that are very much in demand, as you gradually build up a network of contacts in your chosen area.

Self-employment and business start-up

You may decide to create your own opportunities by working for yourself. If you have a business idea or just want to find out more about starting up your own business, the DMU Campus Enterprise Opportunities team will be able to help you. See www.dmu.ac.uk/ceo for information.

The application and interview process

The competition for graduate jobs is increasingly fierce each year. Employers have to process more and more applications for each post and as a result they are using sophisticated selection methods.

Written applications

Written applications, whether in the form of a CV and covering letter or an application form (online or in paper form) are your first opportunity to ‘sell yourself’ to the employer. They will use this information to formulate their first impression of you, determining whether your skills and experience match the criteria and competencies

they are looking for. It is vital therefore that you prepare this document with care and attention and that the end result presents the best case for the employer to invite you to an interview.

The CV

‘Curriculum vitae’ or CV stands for course of life. It is more accurate to describe it as a marketing document, selling your skills and experience to a prospective employer by customising them to the job you are applying for.

Confidence is vital to do this successfully. You need to be convinced that what you say on the CV highlights your strengths or you will not be able to persuade an employer. The type of CV, content, language you use, the visual presentation and the formatting of the sections will all contribute to the effectiveness of your message.

How do I get started?

In the UK, the length of a CV is usually two A4 pages.

There is no standard format for a CV and employers’ preferences can be quite subjective. However, it allows you, the candidate, to choose what information will market you best to the employer, enabling you to play to your strengths. The guiding principle when writing a CV should always be ‘What areas of my experience would persuade an employer to interview me?’

Given the competitive nature of most jobs, it is vital that you make an instant impact by putting the strongest evidence of your suitability for the role on the front page.

You can find out about the different types of CV by looking at the resources section of MyGateway and searching for “CV”: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/resources/search#?order=Relevance&topicsUs eAnd=false.

What about covering letters?

These have a specific part to play in the application process. They can be used effectively to demonstrate your enthusiasm for and interest in the job role or industry area as well as customising your application to that particular organisation. They are particularly important in speculative applications (ie. applying to a company where there are no advertised positions at that time) and also can be used to explain any anomalies or weak areas within your CV. If you email your CV as an attachment you should prepare your email using the same format as you would for a covering letter.

You can find out about the different types of covering letter by looking at the resources section of MyGateway and searching for “cover letter”: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/resources/search#?order=Relevance&topicsUs eAnd=false.

Application forms

Many larger organisations require applications in a more standardised format using an application form. Most of these are now online, and will have sections requesting information on your personal details, education and employment experience. However, a key difference between forms is how the employer requires information about how you meet the requirements for the job. This generally occurs in one of two formats, either a series of competency based questions or a supporting statement.

For the competency style application form, the employer will ask questions, often with a word limit, requiring you to demonstrate how you have utilised particular skills by referring to specific examples.

For the supporting statement, there is usually no structure given to you and so you will have to refer to the job advert, job description or person specification (whichever is provided) to identify the requirements of the job and ensure you include examples of how you meet all the requirements for the role. Further information can be found in the Resources section of MyGateway: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/resources/search#?order=Relevance&topicsUs eAnd=false.

How can I prepare effectively?

Preparation is the key to a successful application. It is worth investing time and effort into creating good answers and not just cutting and pasting from your CV or a previous application form. Following the instructions will enable your application to be scanned and copied by the employer without affecting the quality. The key steps of the preparation stage are:

ResearchAnalyse the job advert, the website, brochure, job description and person specification to gain an understanding of the organisation and the role plus the COMPETENCIES and SKILLS required.

Self-marketingMatch examples of your strengths and abilities to the questions and prepare the answers using positive language. Be concise and use examples from your work experience or course. The STARR format is a good one for structuring your

answer: Situation, Task, Actions, Result, Reflect. Further information can be found in the Resources section of MyGateway: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/resources/search#?order=Relevance&to picsUseAnd=false.

PresentationCheck the form thoroughly for spelling and grammar mistakes before you submit your application.

Interviews

If you have been offered an interview it means that you have met the employer’s initial requirements and as a result, they want to interview you to find out more. The interview process can vary greatly between organisations, so it pays to find out about the type of interview you may face and prepare yourself well. Interviews may be by telephone, Skype, video or in person.

Preparation

Whatever the type of interview you encounter you need to make sure your preparation covers three main areas: yourself, the job role and the company/industry. Before your interview review your CV or the application form you submitted to remind yourself of what competencies are required and what examples you gave to demonstrate them.

Further interview preparation information can be found in the Resources section of MyGateway: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/resources/search#?order=Relevance&topicsUs eAnd=false .

Practising how you deliver your answers will help combat your nerves and make you aware of your body language.

The final step is to ensure you have prepared all the practical elements for the day. Checking the best route to the building, having your contact’s telephone number stored in your mobile phone in case of an emergency, dressing smartly and having clean shoes, and getting copies of educational certificates if required, can all help to ensure you give a professional impression to the employer and result in a calmer day for you.

What are assessment centres?

These are becoming a more popular method of recruitment and may involve a mixture of tasks, psychometric assessment (aptitude tests and/or personality inventories) and interviews.

In-tray exercises

Group discussions and/or activities

Business simulations or scenarios

Presentations

Role plays

Written exercises

Informal question and answer sessions or lunches

Preparation for these is similar to a standard interview in addition to any specific tasks you may have been asked to do e.g. developing a presentation. Further information can be found in the Resources section of MyGateway: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/resources/search#?order=Relevance&topicsUs eAnd=false.

Psychometric/aptitude testing

Psychometric assessment is a generic term that encompasses both personality and aptitude testing. Aptitude tests, in particular, are often used by the large graduate employers as part of their selection process. They may be completed as paper and pencil exercises or, increasingly, as online assessments which may be completed on any computer (but which will be followed by a shorter test under supervision if you are short listed!) They are strictly timed and you are not normally expected to answer all the questions.

They typically measure verbal and numerical reasoning, and sometimes diagrammatic and spatial reasoning or a combination of all four. For business related jobs you are most likely to complete verbal and numerical tests, and for computing and technical positions you may also be asked to complete diagrammatic and/or spatial tests.

Aptitude tests aim to measure your ‘natural’ ability to do things and do not require specialist knowledge, experience or skills; however the verbal and numerical reasoning tests do assume a certain level of prior knowledge. Further information can be accessed in the Resources section of MyGateway: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/students/resources/search#?order=Relevance&topicsUs eAnd=false.

Practice aptitude test websites

The following websites contain general information, advice and sample questions relating to psychometric tests:

www.shldirect.com ; www.morrisby.com ; www.assessmentday.com .

Additional tips on completing psychometric tests can be obtained from the websites of professional bodies and larger employers.

Disclosure

Many people worry whether they should disclose personal information to potential employers for fear of how the information will be perceived. There is concern that they will be automatically rejected, even if the information disclosed has no bearing on their ability to do the job. This is often a worry for those who have a disability or health problem. The decision to disclose a disability, and if so, at what stage of the job hunting process, is a personal one. You may find it helpful to discuss the reasons for and against disclosing your particular needs with a careers adviser. There are considerations relating to the timing of disclosure which can, on occasion, be dictated by the selection process itself. It may also be useful to discuss tactics for marketing yourself effectively within the job market.

Why disclose?

It’s against the law for employers to discriminate against you because of a disability. The Equality Act 2010 protects you and covers areas including:

application forms interview arrangements aptitude or proficiency tests job offers terms of employment, including pay promotion, transfer and training opportunities dismissal or redundancy discipline and grievances

An employer has to make ‘reasonable adjustments’ to avoid you being put at a disadvantage compared to non-disabled people in the workplace.However, if you do not declare your disability, an employer may later have grounds for dismissal.

A large number of employers are keen to employ disabled people and have Equal Opportunity policies in place. Some job advertisements have the Employment Service ‘two ticks’ symbol on them, which means that they have made specific commitments towards employing disabled people and you will be

guaranteed an interview for the job.

Your disability may have implications for health and safety in the workplace or the need for adaptations such as a minicom system. There are a number of schemes available that can finance aids and adaptations to support you in worke.g. Access to Work.

You may be required to fill in a medical form. If you do, you must complete this truthfully.

If you disclose your disability to an employer, they will be able to make appropriate provision during the selection process to meet your needs. For example: provide extra time in psychometric tests if you are dyslexic.

Dos and don’ts of disclosure

Dos:

Be very positive about abilities and skills. Try to focus on those specifically required for the job

Provide information that is relevant to your ability to do the job Provide evidence of how your disability has not limited your academic or work

performance Provide brief information on your disability Provide examples of how you manage your disability Provide positive examples of how you have met challenges in the past Be prepared to make suggestions about any adaptations or adjustments you

would need to fulfil the duties of the job.

Don’ts:

Don’t allow your disability to become the focus of your application Don’t assume that an employer will view you in a negative way Don’t assume that the employer will understand your disability without further

information from you.

Further information

Disability and mental health: diversity matters (AGCAS): https://targetjobs.co.uk/careers-advice/equality-and-diversity/320153-disability- and-mental-health-diversity-matters ;

EmployAbility – organisation that provides free help and support to students and graduates with disabilities: http://www.employ-ability.org.uk/students/services ;

The Equality Advisory Support Service (EASS): Tel: 0808 800 0082Website: http://www.equalityadvisoryservice.com/ ;

Education Factsheets from www.disabilityrightsuk.org/ .

References

For the majority of graduate roles, you will normally be expected to provide two referees. Employers will expect that the first referee is a tutor, module or programme leader on the most recent course you have studied. The second referee is usually an employer, possibly a manager or supervisor from a part- time job or voluntary position.

Always ask whether someone is happy to provide you with a reference. Don’t assume that they are. Referees should be people in positions of responsibility who know your strengths and capabilities and can recommend you to a prospective employer.

For international students, it may be worth checking whether your referee is comfortable with providing a reference in English.

For the majority of jobs, unless otherwise stated, you will not need to specify the details of your referees on your CV. You simply need to write

References available on request

On application forms, employers will specify the details they require which will include:

name of referee job title organisation address post code telephone number email address relationship to you

Keep your referees informed. Once you have been short listed to interview, email your referees a copy of the person specification and job description so that they can target their reference appropriately.

In casual jobs, you may find that managers move on, so it’s advisable to approach a number of different people for their contact details including supervisors and more senior colleagues who could act as referees.

Avoid using family members or friends as referees.

Finally, once you get a job offer, thank your referees and share your success - they’ll be proud to hear from you.

How DMU Careers and Employability can help you

Careers appointments – Students and graduates can make an appointment to see a careers adviser for careers advice and guidance as well as career related matters such as CV writing and interview preparation. Please book an appointment here: https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/ .

If you are unable to come and visit us on campus, e-guidance and telephone support is available to all of our students, graduates and alumni.

See our online resources at https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/ .

Online jobsiteDMU has a jobsite called ‘MyGateway’ where students and graduates can search for paid and voluntary jobs. Organisations worldwide advertise here! See https://mygateway.dmu.ac.uk/ .

UnitempsAn onsite recruitment agency helping students to find work at the University and externally. See www.dmu.ac.uk/unitemps .

FrontrunnersAn internship scheme where students work on paid projects at the university, supervised by academic or professional services staff. Students work between 8–12 hours a week over a period of months, fitting this around their study timetable. See www.dmu.ac.uk/frontrunners.

Graduate ChampionsThis scheme supports recent graduates in securing graduate-level employment by providing high quality short internships within and outside DMU. See www.dmu.ac.uk/graduatechampions .

PlacementsEach of our Faculties has a dedicated Work Based Learning Unit to help you source, apply for and carrying out a placement as part of your studies. See www.dmu.ac.uk/placements .

Employability MentoringAn initiative that provides students with industry mentors offering support with career planning, job hunting preparation and networking practice. See www.dmu.ac.uk/mentoring.

Campus Enterprise OpportunitiesIf you have a business idea or just want to find out more about starting up then CEO is able to help. See www.dmu.ac.uk/ceo.

Contact the Careers and Employability Team

DMU’s Careers and Employability Team is based at The Student Gateway, Ground Floor, Gateway House 0.10 and opening hours are Monday to Friday, 9.00am to 5.00pm.

Telephone: 0116 257 7595 Email: careers@dmu.ac.uk Website: www.dmu.ac.uk/careers

Social Media

Follow or ‘like’ our social media channels for up-to-the minute, relevant information and details of forthcoming events:

Facebook - www.facebook.com/dmustudentgateway ; LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/groups?trk=my_groups-tile-

grpandgid=7498841andhome; Twitter - https://twitter.com/DMUGateway ; YouTube - www.youtube.com/user/DMUStudentGateway ; Pinterest - http://gb.pinterest.com/dmugateway/ ; Instagram - http://instagram.com/dmustudentgateway/ ; WordPress blog - https://dmustudentgateway.wordpress.com/ .

Career Success GuideProduced by De Montfort University Careers and Employability Division Updated March 2015