Careers adviser presentation on career planning and how to get started

1. Careers and Employability Centre
I have no idea what I
want to do

2. This session will cover
• Reassurance about where you are
• Ideas about career planning
• Practical exercises to help you
think about what you want
• Researching your options
• What to do next

4. Reassurances
• There’s no rush.
• Don’t compare yourself
to others.
• You’re not alone.
• A high number of
graduates switch jobs
within 3 years.
• Your degree won’t go to waste.
• Many successful people ‘fall into’ their careers.
• Don’t panic - you’re not deciding what to do with the rest of
your life.
The road not taken?

5. Understanding
who you are
SELF
Researching what’s out
there
OPPORTUNITIES
Making choices
DECISIONS
Making applications &
gaining experience
TRANSITION
Career planning

6. Understanding
who you are
SELF
Researching what’s out
there
OPPORTUNITIES
Making choices
DECISIONS
Making applications &
gaining experience
TRANSITION
Career planning with a difference

7. SELF: Understanding who you are
Understanding who you are
Thinking about:
• Your criteria – what you want
• Your strengths
• Your values
• What you have to offer – your skills and experience
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/careers/careerchoices/interests

8. Where are you now?

9. What do employers want?
Commitment and drive Time management
Motivation and enthusiasm Leadership
Commercial awareness Numeracy
Oral communication Cultural sensitivity
Flexibility and adaptability Computer literacy
Project management Customer focus
Problem solving Report writing
Managing learning and career Risk taking
/enterprise
Planning and organisation Team-working

10. What do you want?

11. Identifying the possible
• I am geographically mobile
• Work-life balance is important to me
• I can afford a lower salary to get me
my ideal job
• I’m willing to take a less than ideal
job to get to my ideal Job
Agree Disagree

12. Your ideal job
• What’s its
purpose?
• Don’t worry
about the title.
90 seconds- what
are the three
objectives of your
ideal job?
Hints:
• “to <…>people”
• “to understand
how/why <….>”
• “to develop innovative
solutions to <…>”
• “to write and publish
<….>”

13. What activities in your ‘ideal’ job
Out of 100% or add your own…..
Managing/ supervising
Innovating
Teaching
Selling
Communicating
Pastoral care
Administrating
Helping
of 100% or add your own…..
Collaborating
Effecting change
Research
Advising
Planning
Generating income
Counselling
Organising

14. What motivates you?
• Identify three key words that
encapsulate what you want from a job
• Eg: autonomy, creativity, helping
people, money, development etc

15. What type of Organisation?
Third sector?
Industrial?
Public Sector?
Educational?
Commercial?
Community based??
Small 1-49
Medium 50-249
Large – Over 250

16. What environment energises you?

17. Write your own job description
Person specification
Essential Nice to have

18. Assessing your career options
• Skills and Values
• Profiling for Success
• Prospects Career Planner
• Opportunity awareness
• Prospects.ac.uk
• Sector Guides
www.sussex.ac.uk/careers/careerchoices/interestsandmotivations

19. How will you get there?
How will you get there?

20. Careers Action Plan
Plan some steps on how you
can move forward:
• Thinking more about
yourself/what you want
etc?
• Researching your
options?
• Gaining some
experience to try out
some ideas?

21. Do some research - OPTIONS
Roles and sectors
• What roles are you
interested in?
• Who’s in the sector?
• Why do you want the job?
• Do you match what they
need?

22. Sector guides

23. Current vacancies on Careerhub

24. Ways forward?
 Be proactive
 Self-assessment – (e.g. Profiling for Success)
 Research ideas further – types of job in that sector
www.prospects.ac.uk
 Talk to Contacts Network – LinkedIn?
 Work shadowing/work experience
 Careers and employability centre workshops
 Careers consultation or drop-in
 Looking for vacancies – careers and employability centre website,
relevant Journals etc
 Making applications, speculative approaches- LinkedIn
www.sussex.ac.uk/careers

25. Careers and Employability Centre
• Short interviews with a
careers adviser –book via
careers hub
• Events programme
• www.sussex.ac.uk/careers