The big interview

At the start of November I heard about a job opening with the Office for National Statistics as a graduate statistician. For me, this was a pretty big deal since the ONS is one of the best places to work in my field and it’s essentially my dream job.

It turns out that applying for a real job is a lot harder than just handing round your CV and having a 20 minute interview. The application process for the ONS required days just to fill in the initial application. They were assessing us on six competencies, which we had to prove we were capable of in 250 word paragraphs.

I’ve spent my time at University taking part in so much, and working really hard in order to build experience relevant for jobs like this one. However, none of that really matters if you can’t get it across on the page.

I met with my personal tutor who helped me come up with ideas for what examples to give in the application, and then I spent three days writing and re-writing various parts of the application.

However, that work paid off and I was lucky enough to get through to the interview stage. At first I was thrilled that I got the interview, but then the reality that I would actually have to go to an interview dawned and I came back down to earth. Earlier this week I went to the interview, and it was absolutely terrifying, and I will be kicking myself for the questions that I messed up on for weeks. A competency-based interview is not something I have ever experienced before; they don’t ask the general questions you might expect such as ‘what are your core values?’ and ‘what can you bring to the team?’, but rather focus on the same six competencies that they assessed in the initial application.

I wish I hadn’t told anyone that I was going to an interview, because of course when I got back everyone was asking me how it went and I really didn’t want to talk that much about it. How do you tell people that it just didn’t go that well?

The best thing to come of the whole process really is simply the experience. As much as I wish that someone would just come along and offer me a job without me having to put any effort into applying, that’s just not going to happen. Without going along to interviews I will never be able to improve how I respond to them. There were definitely some key lessons that I picked up just from this first one:


1. Prep like crazy. I fell down on one part of the interview because I just couldn’t remember the answer to a technical question; not because it was difficult, but because it was easy. It was a topic that I hadn’t covered since first year and I just assumed I would be able to answer their questions, resulting in me feeling pretty foolish when I couldn’t remember the answer.

2. Prep some more. Thinking up decent answers on the fly to questions you could have prepared answers for is just silly and for sure highlighted my naivety in the interview.

3. Know the company you are applying for, and think about what kind of person they want to hire. That way you can tailor your answers to make sure you are including the really key things that they are looking for in an employee, and showing knowledge about what they do will get the point across that you really are interested in working for them, and not just applying for the sake of it.


Remember that if you are struggling with your application, the University offers a career drop-in service where they can help you with the application process and give advice for how to proceed.

If anyone else has any key tips or pieces of advice that they have learned from interviews please do share in the comments, because I’m still figuring out the best way to go about it and other people’s experience and insight would be very helpful!

Emma

My tips for video interview success

This week I had the experience of having my very first ever video interview. Video interviews are becoming a more common way of screening potential candidates for jobs. It’s quicker, cheaper and can be conducted literally anywhere in the world!

It took a while to get used to pretending my camera was a real life person but at the end of it, I actually found that I felt more comfortable talking about myself this way than in face-to-face interviews.

My video interview didn’t have another person asking my questions at the other end. Instead, questions were given to me on the screen and I was given time to record my answers.

Based on the questions that I got asked, I have listed above what I think the recruiter wanted to gauge from me.

In my experience, depending on how specialised the position that you’re applying for is, most recruiters are becoming less interested in technical knowledge. What they want to know is whether or not you can fit into the culture of the company. Most importantly, they want to know how easily you can learn and adapt on the job – this is much more important than sounding as smart as Einstein.

My insider tips

 

1. Take the video interview seriously and dress as you would for a face to face meeting. 

You will feel more powerful and this will transpire when you speak. You might think that you can get away by wearing a crisp shirt on top and your pyjamas as bottoms but it would do your confidence a favour to really dress to impress. 

2. Do research on potential questions that may come up based on the position you’re applying for.

Why don’t you check YouTube for other people’s video interviews so you have an idea of how best to conduct yourself? Better yet, why don’t you attend a careers interview workshop? Check out our Careers and Employability website for events to help you.

3. Familiarise yourself with the technology.

• Is the webcam/microphone working? Don’t leave it last minute to check.

• Can you stop and start the interview or will you lose time by doing this? My interview allowed me some time to read the question. Afterwards I was free to start the recording of my answers.

• Are you allowed breaks? In my experience, I wasn’t. The idea is to emulate a real life interview but merely to exploit how technology makes it quicker and cheaper to screen candidates.

4. Try and locate the fastest internet speed you can get. 

This affects the quality of your video and ultimately how the recruiter will perceive you. The University’s Eduroam connection has never failed me. If you’re having trouble getting hold of a webcam, Hartley Library provides laptops with a microphone and camera. If you need a quiet room to record your interview, you can book a library room here. Of course, you can also complete the interview in the comfort of your own room! Just make sure you tell your housemates that your life depends on their quietness for the next hour or so…

5. Do a trial run.

Skype a friend before recording so you can ask for feedback on how close you should be to the camera and any other adjustments to make such as lighting and sound. I found that a plain white background for the video was enough. Too much going on in the back takes the attention away from you.

My experience in retail job interviews

As a student, it helps to have extra income from a part-time job whilst doing a degree. I work one shift a week in retail and that is enough to pay for my weekly food shop which is fantastic. My video interview was for Transport for London but I have had more experience being interviewed for retail positions. It’s different in a sense that they are done in person but incredibly similar in a sense that most of the questions I’ve been asked want to know how easily I can fit into the culture of the team.

If you’re thinking of applying for a part-time job in retail, here are some things that my manager has told me she keeps in mind when interviewing candidates:

Retail is very much team based and customer facing. Typically, employers want to know if you are warm and welcoming to new people, if you can sell products well and if you can learn on the job quickly. Retail is also busy and fast paced. I’ve found that it’s all about using your intuition and not relying on the manager or supervisor to tell you what to do all the time. For example, if I see a spillage on the shop floor I use my intuition to follow the right clean-up procedure and not wait for my manager to ask. One other thing is that retail managers want flexible recruits. Sometimes, your colleagues will get ill or someone can’t turn up for their shift. Your CV will get a guaranteed tick if you are flexible and open to short notice shift work.

In my experience, practice makes perfect if you want to succeed in that interview. Take a few hours to search online what kind of potential questions will come up based on the technicalities or competencies needed for the position you’re applying for. Ultimately, an interview is your opportunity to bring to life your CV. If you’ve got it – flaunt it. Don’t be shy to sound passionate.

If you have had a video interview, let me know how it went in the comments below. If you have one coming up, best of luck to you!

Rylyn

Graduate job hunt: tips and personal experience

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a graduate in possession of a degree must be in want of a job.

But today’s job market is indeed a tough one. Fortunately, it’s not all bad. There’s a recovery on – the overall employment rate for UK and EU graduates from a full-time first degree after six months was up from 68.5% in 2013 to 70.7% in 2014, and unemployment after six months was down from 9.1% to 7.8%. The recession hit us hard but things are looking up.

Improving your chances

Something I wish I had realised earlier on is that the graduate job hunt starts from the minute university begins. Everything you do has potential to be turned to an advantage in your search. For example, if you want to make your first year count, get involved in societies or perhaps even lead one. Securing a summer internship at the end of your penultimate year is also a way of improving your chances in the successive year. But to improve the results of your hunt considerably, be the early bird by beginning your search as soon as possible!

I started applying at the start of November. This might not seem too late since most deadlines are around the end of December/ beginning of January, but some of these positions are first come first served. What’s the more, the earlier you apply the more positions you can apply for.

Refresh your GCSE Maths skills

Most graduate job applications require you to take verbal and numerical tests. I bet you thought you’d never have to work out the percentage of apples in Bob’s fruit basket again! Well, you thought wrong. The numerical tests I’ve completed so far have challenged my grasp on basic percentages, ratios, multiplications and division. This isn’t so bad, however it’s been a while since I last did GCSE Maths. Oh well, time to dig out the old textbooks I say! The verbal tests normally require you to understand a large chunk of writing. Both aren’t so bad – unless you’re pressed for time. Despite this, practice is key. There are plenty of practice quizzes online to help.

Getting Connected 

So which avenues are available and what facilities are there to support you in this crusade? Well there is a surprising amount of very useful information and support provided by the University and further afield.

The Careers and Employability team.

If you are looking for more inspiration to kickstart your graduate job hunt, or want to know how the market works, then the University’s Career workshop on the graduate job search is for you. The interactive workshop will help you discover your job hunting preferences, find out how to structure your research and begin to create an effective action plan. The dates are listed on the events calendar so make it a habit to monitor it daily.

Get LinkedIn.

A good tip is to put a link to your LinkedIn profile on the header of your CV or on any cover letters you write. Doing so allows employers to paint a better picture of you. You cease from being just another resume and employers get a chance to view you as a real person. You would be naïve to think employers aren’t using social media to find out more about you, so why not use social media to your advantage? Again, the Careers team holds workshops on how to make an excellent LinkedIn profile.


Join Careers Sites. 

For example, TARGETjobs offers a Careers Report Tool that offers an assessment of your capabilities through simple behavioural questionnaires.

Check Emails.

Don’t miss out on the buzz as some great opportunities can be found if time is taken to sift through the hay!

Student Forums.

Extremely helpful advice from those who were once in your position, I would definitely recommend you check these out if you need first hand comments on applications from students themselves. The Student Room is an excellent example.

What else can I do after graduation?

Get a Masters Degree. 

Still not ready to enter the big wide world of working life? Then why not think about further education to further specialise and attain another degree? Although it may be beyond your financial constraints, there are ways to get extra funding. The University of Southampton, for example, offers bursaries, scholarships and studentships to the most talented students. The University also has industry partnerships who offer sponsorship opportunities in some subject areas.

What’s more, once you’ve secured a place on a Masters course, you can defer it and work for a year. This way you can earn enough money to help finance tuition and living costs whilst gaining work experience at the same time.

This is just my experience so far. I’m sure everyone else’s is unique so if you’ve got time, why not comment your tips below?

Good luck on the job search!

Rylyn

Advice from the Business Fair and the Careers and Employability Festival

Yesterday I had the opportunity to meet some of the country’s Top 100 graduate employers at the University’s Business Fair 2015. The Business Fair is part of the Careers and Employability Festival, which is running on campus until 3rd November and involves career fairs, workshops, talks and presentations. The festival is open to all undergraduate and postgraduate students.

Careers fairs in particular are a really good way to meet companies and their student recruitment teams.

You can turn up to the event without booking a place and you’re welcome to spend as much or as little time there as you want. As soon as I walked in it was packed with students eager to chat to prospective employers, and it was clear that the employers and their representatives were just as eager to chat to the students too which was incredibly encouraging.

The PWC stand… proud sponsors of the Business Fair! 

Preparing for the fair…

I got a lot of excellent advice at the ‘Prepare for the Fair’ workshop that the Careers and Employability team ran. What I took away from the workshop boosted my confidence in approaching the exhibitors today: these companies have actively booked to attend the fair – they really do want to see you!

It is acceptable to attend the event not knowing every single detail about the exhibitors. However, since there are 100 stands, having done some research on the companies helped narrow down who I wanted to visit. This meant I had more time to make the most of seeing those I was truly interested in and ask them some pre-prepared questions – questions that the company website can’t answer for me.

Nick and Ali – part of the Careers and Employability Services team who organised the event! 

The University’s Careers and Employability Services team said this year was one of the busiest they’ve had. The service plays a pivotal role by working closely with students, staff and potential employers to enhance student employability skills. If you’re uncertain about your future, these are the guys to chat to!

 

What should you research?

 

I clicked on five or six company websites the night before and checked out their company values. I looked for buzzwords on their recruitment pages to get an insight of what a company is looking for in graduates. I found that ‘technology’, ‘independence’, ‘teamwork’, ‘confidence’ and ‘client-facing’ appear a few times online as well as being mentioned by the recruiters I chatted to yesterday. This was an easy way to find out if the company’s values fit in with yours.

I also considered what it really is that I want to get out of the Fair. For me, it was to see whether or not there were any graduate opportunities for me in the business industry as a Politics student. I have found that, actually, not having a degree with Maths, Science or Management is not a hindrance. A few of the exhibitors I spoke to did History, Psychology, English and Sports Science at university and still landed jobs in companies that are Business focused. Of course, different students have different objectives for attending and it is true that you won’t always get what you want, but this is the opportunity to start that.

The INEOS stand. INEOS is a global producer of petrochemicals and speciality chemicals, and looks for opportunities to make a company achieve further through acquisitions. 

My top 4 general questions were:

1. I study Politics – will I be able to fit in with you with my background?
2. Why did you choose to work for this organisation?
3. What skills do you look for in a graduate applicant?
4. How can I apply and when are the deadlines?

Some recruiters such as INEOS are especially looking for students with a background in finance and technology. I spoke to Hannah who has been working for INEOS for a number of years now. She had a background in the sciences that aren’t particularly focused on petrochemicals. She was the treasurer of her canoe society back at her university and she mentioned that it may have helped satisfy the mathematical requirements of the job application! When I asked Hannah what the top thing is that they are looking for in a graduate she gave me two answers: someone who is independent and someone who thrives on a challenge.

The Excel Programme stand. 

The Excel Southampton Internship Programme stand caught my eye. Their schemes offer a wide range of paid internships during term time, Easter and summer holidays based both on campus and within a variety of external organisations. It’s fantastic to see the University of Southampton teaming up with local and nationwide businesses.

I also had the pleasure to chat to Natalie and Hayley who were volunteering at the Target Jobs stand. Target Jobs has a large choice of internships, placements and graduate jobs. They also give expert advice on how to get hired. I myself am subscribed to their mailing list and it is incredible how many work experience opportunities are out there for us students.

Natalie and Hayley at the Target Jobs stand. Natalie is a 2nd year Psychology student and Hayley is a 4th year doing History, both study here at the University of Southampton. 

Ultimately, attending the Fair is a two-way process; you need to find an organisation where you can work at your best, so you really need to understand why you might want to work for a company.
What is it about them that attracts you? Is it their values, profit, clientele, or company benefits?

Overall, I think chatting to company team members is going to be helpful in my job applications. It has given me a good indication of what type of people employers are looking for. What’s more, some graduate recruiters did actually attend the event today – who knows, they could be the ones deciding whether or not to hire you! Just remember to check out the application deadlines for internships and graduate jobs. Some close in November which, when you think about it, is incredibly close. Quite frankly, I would not have known about this had I not gone to the Fair, so I’m glad I went.

Hooray for freebies!!

Go ahead and impress employers with your preparation and enthusiasm.

See you at the next Careers Fair!

Rylyn

Top tips: Summer internships

Ah summer time; the time of year of freedom from alarm clocks, holidays, BBQs… and summer internships.

It wasn’t until second year that I became seriously active at searching out some internship or work placement opportunities. I had worked in retail before and have done some volunteering during my gap year, but never had I done any office work. 

Getting that experience

As soon as second year hit, I was applying for internships roughly two or three times a week. I regularly went to employability workshops hosted by the Career’s Team. I highly recommend people to go – they are free and incredibly useful. Some argue that this may have been too early but the cathartic party me of year one was over and it is never too early to apply! The new term commences this September so now is a great time to start looking. You hear horror stories of students missing out because they did not know about application deadlines. Some worry about their statement’s quality looking rushed because they left it last minute. Don’t let your chances of finding the right career become subject to lack of preparation!

A leaflet from one of Southampton’s graduate fairs last semester. These are held a few times a year and are not just for final years – click on the link to find out when the next one is!

It is a good idea to apply for as many opportunities as possible. As well as going for mainstream companies and organisations, I also applied to a few of Southampton’s Excel work experience programmes and the Study Abroad programme. Spending a semester or so abroad is an excellent way of getting a well rounded university experience. I was set to head off to the University of Adelaide in Australia but chose to stay in England instead as I managed to secure myself an internship with the Civil Service.

I have heard good things about the British Civil Service and their graduate programmes even before applying. Applications are a few clicks away online which made the whole process incredibly accessible. And after a challenging selection process, I’m now having the pleasure of completing a two month internship with the Civil Service at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in Westminster. 

Outside of the office

What am I doing here?

It most certainly is not making coffee and filing all day.

As well as shadowing my colleagues and coming to meetings, my project here looks at supporting mental and physical health for people at work. This is as opposed to just giving up on health and letting go of valuable staff. For me, the ethical nature of this project has kept my interest in it so far.

Working 9 to 5 does have its tests for someone who’s used to getting up for breakfast at 6 pm and having dinner at 6 am*. But, in terms of knowledge acquisition, working such hours have become incredibly rewarding. The DWP’s work inevitably affects you and me at one point in our lifetime and I am especially grateful for working in an organisation that deals with issues at the top of the political agenda.

What have I found so far?

Whether it’s when you’re waiting for data to be gathered or when you’ve finished your tasks for the day, it is true that some projects experience quiet moments. But I actually think that this is the point of an internship – in fact, I think it is one of the best things about it. This blank space in your schedule is prime time for you to go ahead and find out about what your colleagues actually do. The first advice I got from my line manager when I first started is to never be afraid to join people for lunch or to invite them for a coffee. Not only does this come across as enthusiastic but once you know more about them you may find that you’re actually really interested in their work. If you do, you could ask to shadow them for a day or sit in at one of their meetings, if they didn’t mind. Chances are they won’t. People love talking about what they do and it is a fun and practical way for you to figure out what you want in your career!

Having lunch with the colleagues

Ultimately, there are plenty of opportunities out there for you to get some experience. It is just the case of proactively searching for them, so go out there and have fun while you’re at it! Good luck!

Rylyn

*NB: Author is particularly guilty of this.