Students - Stand Out After Lockdown
Henry Field, Chartered MCIPD
Strategy ? Equity, Diversity and Inclusion ? People ? Well-being
Students.
This isn’t quite how you imagined your time at university. Many of you will be wondering how this will effect you securing your first jobs. Some may even be wondering how you can make the best use of your time and cope during this challenging time.
It’s been 4 weeks since government put the country on lock down. By now, hopefully you’ve got yourself into a new routine and starting to find some level of regularity in this irregular time.
Since my first post about my own experience of being put on furlough, more people than I expected have reached out for advice. I’ve spoken to professionals, but not really spoken to students that have asked.
hopefully, I can help answer a few questions below and share some useful links:
I’ll be applying for jobs after graduating. How can I make sure I stand out?
If you’re in your final year of university, you’re arguably going to be looking to join the workforce during one of the most difficult times to do so. It’s important now, more than ever, to ensure you stand out.
Firstly – Your CV is the first contact you’ll have with many companies. Now is a great time to really spend some time making sure its top notch. Get someone to proof read it for you to make sure. Again, there are so many resources online with great advice for writing CVs. Just make sure you use one relevant to your location. In many parts of Europe its standard to add a photo to your CV, in the UK it’s not expected (I don’t recommend it, it opens the door to bias!).
My second tip – Is to ensure you really spend some time preparing competency based interview techniques, having a few key answers in your back pocket to most commonly asked questions. Many companies will ask competency based questions during interviews. I’m a real fan of using the STAR Technique when approaching these questions. A short video explaining the Star technique, sent to candidates interviewing at NewLaw, can be found by clicking HERE. I would also recommend researching more examples of the STAR Technique online.
Finally - There are very few reasons NOT to be joining the good fight against COVID-19 at the moment. Whether its volunteering as a befriender calling the elderly, working with a food outlet helping with the increased demand on home deliveries, or supporting your NHS or a local charity – There are many things you can be doing at present so when interviewers say ‘What did you do during the lock down?’ you have more to say than binge watching Netflix and baking banana bread. I don’t only say this as a recruiter, I speak as a person that’s supported the recruitment efforts of Cardiff and Vale Health Board and been truly humbled by the number of volunteers and paid staff coming forward to make sure we get through this as safely and quickly as possible. Giving support will look great on your CV.
I’ve already secured a role to start, but I am really nervous – How can I prepare?
Some companies are lucky enough to be in a position to skill be hiring, this will be highly dependent on sector, company size ETC. So potentially you’ve already secured the role you’ll be starting after you graduate. If so, congratulations!
Now is a fantastic time to be building connections. Make sure you have a LinkedIn profile selling yourself in a positive light highlighting your greatest achievements. Make sure you connect with as many people from your new team and business as possible, and introduce yourself – Now you can really make sure you get off to a great start. Start following the companies social media, get to know what the company does, shares and gets involved in. It’s a great way to make sure you are prepared and know more about the business when you start.
There are also other things you can do to prepare for your new role. This is a little bit of a shameless plug – A friend of mine, Aimee Bateman, has an amazing online careers development platform dedicated to sharing short, sharp learning designed to help people take on the challenges they’ll face in the first decade of their careers.
Careercake is a platform I have used myself and found truly beneficial. They have amazing library of online advice covering many topics, including interviewing for jobs, what to do when you start in a new business, as well as wider areas, such as developing your communication skills, LGBT+ inclusivity and dealing with imposter syndrome (I found this one very useful!).
Check out their 14 day free trial HERE. (To be clear, I am not a seller of the service, simply someone that has found it beneficial personally that would recommend it!)
I’m struggling a lot with the lockdown, too much to be able to focus on thinking about work, or preparing for it.
I’ve not been contacted about this personally, but I have seen a lot online about people struggling – And you know what? It’s ok. It’s understandable.
People read what I post on LinkedIn and assume I am coping really well. One person even told me I seem to be thriving. Let me share something with you… I’m not.
I appear to be thriving because of my volunteering and writing – The opposite is true. My partner works for PHW in their communications team, my mother is high risk living on the other side of the country and now my partners mum is laid up at home after testing positive for COVID-19. My volunteering, writing and events I attend is the closest thing to normality I am getting. Still, I have teary moments. I miss shopping, seeing friends and family and being able to leave the house without needing to justify it. I simply chose to focus on the positives in what I share… Normally.
If you’re a student, or anyone for that matter, that’s struggling with the current situation – I can’t give specific advice. But I can say that reaching out, speaking to people, volunteering, writing or learning a new skill really will help take your mind off it, even for a short period. No one has the perfect way to cope, everyone is different – That’s what makes the world fun!
That’s the best I can recommend for now, hopefully the below links will help with some of the recommendations I’ve made above:
You want to volunteer?
Volunteering Wales is full of great ways to get involved:
https://volunteering-wales.net/vk/volunteers/search.htm
You want to work?
Simply going online and searching for vacancies will bring plenty of opportunities up, but here are a few of the Health Boards recruiting within the NHS across South Wales:
https://www.cardiffandvaleuhb.wales.nhs.uk/working-with-us
https://sbuhb.nhs.wales/jobs/jobs-and-volunteering/
https://www.wales.nhs.uk/sitesplus/866/working-for-us
Want to prepare for interviews?
There are so many tools out there to help with making a good first impression. A simple google search will bring up a lot, but here are a few to get you started:
https://www.reed.co.uk/career-advice/interview-techniques/job-interview-tips/
https://www.cv-library.co.uk/career-advice/interviews/job-interview-tips-complete-guide/
Want to distract yourself?
Many people find mindfulness apps very useful at times like this. Headspace is by far the most popular. If it’s your sort of thing, or want to give it a try, the link is here - www.headspace.com
I struggle with mindfulness apps. I have ADHD, I relax in different ways, usually doing something simple like crochet, a puzzle or playing a game on my phone. Maybe reading a book is your thing? As much as I made a tongue in cheek comment about Netflix and Banana Bread earlier. If you’re needing a distraction then baking and binge watching shows can help! I’ve got through several series so far on days I don’t feel great”
If, like me, you thrive off the company of others now is an amazing time to get online and get involved in online communities. There are so many online zoom meeting and drop ins about so many topics at the moment. For me, I’m a member of an internal recruiters network that hold weekly events talking about different recruitment related topics. Its been amazing to have that community to speak to each week and have that bit of normality. Have a look online, there are so many online communities covering hundreds of topics – And if you can’t find one you like – Create your own! Join facebook groups and let people know about it and build your network.
A final thought – If you are feeling lonely, you’ve reached out to friends and family and still want to talk to people. If you’re not in a great way please please reach out to MIND or Samaritans on 116123 – or check out their website www.samaritan.org
You could also sign up to be a befriender! https://www.ageuk.org.uk/contact-us/local-volunteering/
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That’s all from me. I hope you find some benefit from the advice shared. If you are still in university at the moment and you want to speak to someone else, I’ve heard some great initiatives going on to keep people talking whether its an official event or set up by other students – Reach out, find out what you can get involved in, if you want to!
BIM Coordinator l Foster + Partners
4 年Great article, I really needed this. Thank you Henry for sharing.
B2B marketing and go-to-market consultant for creative startups, software, and professional services. Get stuff done approved.
4 年Great article, Henry, and thanks for sharing about Careercake | Awesome On-demand Learning