How to make the most of the careers support at Warwick Business School

07 March 2019

Coming to university is not only one of the most exciting experiences in life, but can also be a slightly frightening one. However, one of the main reasons I decided to go to university was to further develop myself as an individual with the end goal to become a more employable member of society.

At first, I had no idea where to start; how does someone even know if they are employable? Is my CV compatible with today’s graduate job market? How do I start off an application? What about if there is psychometric testing, assessment centres and interviews? These were a few of the many questions that I had when I first started at University.

I ended up looking on myAdvantage, a website for Warwick students which allows you to book onto useful seminars/workshops and schedule appointments with the Careers team. It even has a dedicated job board to help students like myself gain work experience whilst at university. The next thing I knew, I was in a Spring Week careers seminar gathering crucial information on how, why, and when to apply for Spring Week work experience.

Shortly after that, I decided it was time to get my CV checked. Thankfully, the WBS CareersPlus team informed me about VMock, an online CV checking tool that all WBS students have access to. This tool helped me see where I was making mistakes and allowed me to produce a new version of my CV, ready for a member of the Careers team to look over. However, at this point I was still confused about what I wanted to do for a career - yes, some of us head into university knowing exactly what to do, but that is not the case for all of us and that is okay.

 

I quickly realised that for the next stage I needed face-to-face advice. I booked an appointment with a WBS CareersPlus Coach and within 2 days I was in the WBS Careers office, flicking through some of their books regarding career options, interviews and employers, they had information about everything you could think of! The next 30 minutes proved to be the most useful thing that I have done for myself since I got to university. We explored career options which helped me to realise where I would like to work and what I would like to do once I graduate. Going over my CV then showed me what I was lacking and what I needed to adapt when applying for jobs in that career path.

At this stage, it was already a few weeks into the first term and I decided to go ahead and apply for a few Spring Weeks. To my surprise, my CV was accepted by each employer. Progressing through to the next stages of the application process has proven time consuming but as a result of the drop-in sessions, I was given support during each step and I’m currently waiting for the results of the video interview stages!

At the end of the day, the support is there; it is just about researching what you need and making the most out of it. To other current students reading this, I wish you the best of luck in your journey at WBS and hope that you grasp all of the opportunities available to Warwick students.

Keltoum studies BSc International Business (with French); our BSc International Business (with Languages) course allows you to study a language alongside learning the fundamentals of business. You can find out more about Keltoum's course here