Graduate Prospects - December 12, 2007 - (Page 2)

2 PROSPECTS GRADUATE Issue 57 · 12 December 2007 · Fortnightly www.prospects.ac.uk BLOGGERS AT WORK ‘The office still hasn’t got tired of teasing me.’ IT’S TORMENT KIRSTIE WEEK ‘I had visions of singleton moments ´ la Bridget Jones’ a INDEPENDENT RACHEL rewarding that I felt it helped me get through the hard parts of my degree.’ INTO SCHOOL Since graduating, Louise has worked in retail while volunteering in a local primary school and feels that teaching or care work will satisfy her desire to work with people. She has also succeeded in securing a two-week teaching placement on her approaching travels through Asia, which will help further her career ambitions. WHAT HAPPENED WHEN GRADUATION DAY WAS OVER? THE 2007 EXPERIENCE The exams were complete, the ceremonies over and the mortar-boards thrown in the air, but a final hurdle lay in wait for the graduates of 2007 - and a high hurdle at that. Completing a degree is one thing, but building on the success of your studies is quite another. Three Midlands graduates describe what happened next. For Contemporary History graduate Richard Summerfield, breaking into the world of work proved to be a game of patience. While studying at the University of Leicester, Richard had toiled through the summer breaks in a number of office jobs, including a recruitment company. While he enjoyed the enviable wage, Richard was less enthusiastic about the work. After graduating, he registered his cv with numerous websites generating an enormous amount of interest. Unfortunately it was almost entirely from recruitment firms. Richard feels that he’s treading water but is not entirely negative about his experience. He is grateful to have gained employment with a Birmingham-based property management company and has no regrets about taking on his degree. ‘To be PROPERTY WORK Now honest I went to university for the experience, with little career plan in mind. I’ve met loads of interesting people that I may not have had the chance to otherwise.’ And he has a new plan in mind. ‘Now I’ve left, I realise that I’d really like to break into football coaching,’ he says. That statement may come as a surprise given Richard’s degree discipline but it seems that it’s not uncommon for graduates to change direction having completed their studies. Louise Harris of Solihull took a very proactive approach when she found that she was unsatisfied with her degree. Having embarked on a BA in Jewellery Design and Silver-Smithing at Birmingham City University, Louise, found she no longer had the passion to turn it into a career. Through work experience, she has managed to turn an awkward situation into something much more promising. This tale of three students is not one entirely of altered ambitions, however. Philip Barber, also of Solihull showed no hesitance in making his mark on the art world when he graduated with first class honours, again from BCU. Specialising in video art, the work he produced for his final degree show earned him the City Inn Art Prize - a £500 prize awarded to innovative art. Philip’s success didn’t stop there. So impressed was an external examiner by his final piece that Philip’s been offered the chance to exhibit in Gothenburg. As if that wasn’t enough to inflate his head to planetary proportions, he’s also been offered a six-week solo show in Rhyll. Philip admits he takes it all with a pinch of salt. ‘It’s massively about luck,’ he claims. NEXT LEVEL Philip is pursuing his artistic dreams by undertaking an MA in Fine Art. ‘It’s the next level from a Fine Art degree; it’s much deeper and more informed. I’m treated less as a student and more as an equal among the tutors.’ Looking to the future, Philip sees himself taking on a PhD, possibly teaching at higher education level, a course of action which will allow him to continue his creative output. So there you have it. The story of these three bright things is far from a tale of woe. All have managed to find themselves in full-time ‘I wanted to take my creative skills as far as employment or education. Having taken a I could within education to see what I could great deal from their degree study and from achieve. I balanced this by taking on work experience, they are making plans for voluntary work at Childline to help shape my cv. The telephone counselling that I did was so the future. MATT ATKINS INFORMATION AND ADVICE www.prospects.ac.uk/links/gradtalk ALL ABOUT APPLICATIONS www.prospects.ac.uk/links/appsinterviews WHAT JOB SUITS YOU www.prospects.ac.uk/links/pplanner GRADUTE EMPLOYERS www.prospects.ac.uk/links/coprofiles GRADUATE CHAT ONLINE WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN OUR BLOGGING TEAM? http://www.prospects.ac.uk http://www.prospects.ac.uk/cms/ShowPage/Home_page/Feature_Articles/Feature_articles_2007/Kirstie_s_job_log__13/p!eXbebcm http://www.prospects.ac.uk/cms/ShowPage/Home_page/Feature_Articles/Feature_articles_2007/Rachel_s_job_log__33/p!ebXfXLk http://www.prospects.ac.uk/cms/ShowPage/Home_page/Feature_Articles/Feature_articles_2007/Blogging_on_Prospects_Graduate/p!efebeak http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/gradtalk http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/appsinterviews http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/pplanner http://www.prospects.ac.uk/links/coprofiles

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Graduate Prospects - December 12, 2007

Editorial: The 2007 Experience Editorial: Bloggers At Work Boots Plc Editorial: Escape From Law NATS ABP Norwich Union SELEX Enterprise Rent-a-car Costain Oil, Gas & Process Ltd Gradweb Babcock Marine OFCOM National Graduate Recruitment Exhibition National Graduate Recruitment Exhibition Matson Driscoll & Damico UK Property Market Analysis NHS Perriam & Everett Recruitment Cambridgeshire County Council Shape Media University of London Careers Service Editorial: Act Two

Graduate Prospects - December 12, 2007

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.