Graduates
from the University of Plymouth are being offered the chance to build up their
skills base before entering the graduate talent pool.
The two-day
employability skills
boot camp will give graduates the chance to get expert advice on how to brush
up their CVs as well as being offered techniques to successfully get through
the application process for graduate
jobs.
The Career
Confidence Graduate Workshop will take place on July 23 and 24 and is open to
anyone who has graduated from any university in the past year. For graduates of
Plymouth University this can be within the past three years.
Jo Davies,
career gateway manager, said: "Although the graduate jobs market is
improving, it is still competitive in many sectors. Some graduates are
searching for that first step towards their career; or wondering what direction
they should take.
"This
is a great opportunity to receive guidance, talk to careers professionals, and meet graduates in a similar situation."
The free
event will be hosted by qualified university advisers and invited speakers and
will include talks on how to set up a business, career planning and how to make
the most of volunteering opportunities.
The last major survey of student volunteering habits
(2009/2010) found that 63% of students had formally volunteered and that this
constituted more than 3 million hours dedicated to community service. 32% of students volunteer at
least once a week compared with 39% in the wider population.
Boosting career prospects when volunteering is
clearly high on undergraduates’ agenda with 88% interested in skills development
and 83.2% using volunteering to get work-based experience and to enhance their
CVs. While students offer charities
their time for free, these organisations should also make time to invest in
students according to Dan Sumners, a senior policy officer at Volunteering
England:
"Organisations
should think about development opportunities they can offer volunteers, such as
training or additional responsibility".
Are you concerned that you may not
have the right skills to land a graduate position?
Would you consider the idea of a boot camp to be useful?