Never Say Never

It’s very tempting to ignore all the practical advice given by career’s services, recruitment companies and your parents, but eventually it comes to a point when you start think they may have a point. Our marketing team at GRB recently carried out a survey on students and found some really interesting results. Of the 590 plus students that responded to the question ‘What do you feel is your biggest weakness?’ over 50% of them said work experience, if you’re in this category, this tip is for you. In addition to this, of the 1000 plus students who responded to the question ‘If you were an employer who received a huge amount of equally good applications, how would you narrow them down?’ over 60% said work experience would be the dividing factor.

Never say no to looking for work experience in your 1st year, never say no to having for part time job in your summer or during term-time if your timetable allows, and remember that positivity is key. If you get a few rejections, always get back on the horse. Try, try and try again, yes to internships, yes to work experience, yes to societies and yes to reaping the rewards of hard work.

Get a Routine and Stay in a Routine

This academic new year, you won’t be a fool for having said something along the lines of ‘this year’s going to be different’ or ‘I’m going to live in the library this year’, then actually getting to university and slugging it out in the library for the first week followed by a year of partying to reward your hard work. At times like this the old saying ‘work hard, play hard’ springs to mind. 

The key for this time of year is figuring out a routine, treat your course at you would a 9-5 job but with a little bit of flexi-time. This way if you are having a lazy day, you can do as many hours as your attention span allows, so long as you make up for it on your next productive days. Being a full-time student means full-time so stay focussed from 9 to 5, or even 12 to 8. Get a routine, include society meetings and events, be the full-time student you know you can be! 

Do Your Field Research

This one applies mainly to those graduates and students applying to part time work, internships and graduate roles within commercial retail companies. You will need to have done your research on the company to who you are applying, but how about taking it further than a simple Google search?

Visiting the store to which you are applying is a great way to do extra research that shows you have really thought about your application and are invested in getting the role with them. Think about their market position, store layout, products and strengths/weaknesses so that in an interview you can show what you would bring to their company and how you would be a good investment. Such an in depth knowledge of their store operations would set you apart from the majority of applications, ensuring you are remembered after interview.

Making The Most Of Recruitment Fairs

The season is almost upon us for recruitment and career fairs, these can be a priceless resource for your graduate job search and when approached well can really rocket your job hunt forward.

Firstly, make sure you dress appropriately. Ensure you make an impression by dressing smartly and appearing confident and professional.

Make sure you are prepared too, take copies of your CV with you. Don’t hand them out aimlessly, but if you are really interested in a role then ask if they are accepting CV’s currently.

Be careful not to take too many free items, you don’t want to appear as if this is the main reason for your attendance, and if you do take the free merchandise make sure you have a bag to stash it in, that way you keep your hands free for handshakes and accepting company literature.

Finally, practice your sales speech beforehand. You will have only a couple minutes to make an impression and inform the employer about yourself, going with a short, snappy pitch helps make sure you leave a lasting impression.

Also, collect business cards of the people you have spoken to and follow up immediately thanking them for speaking with you and reiterating your interest in the role you spoke of. You may not receive a reply but it could help bring your CV to the company’s attention.