Adam Coombs, student blogger

It finally hits you. Your student loan is not going to be enough to sustain your wild life of parties anymore. Well, maybe if you cut out food and decide that alcohol is more important than the rent, but most sane people would either cut back on going out or do what I’ve been doing for the past month or so. And that is to try and find a part-time job in recession-struck Britain.Herein lies the problem. Traditionally students would work in the retail sector (where I personally have experience) or in the hospitality sector in bars or pubs and things. These are  two of the areas that have been the worst hit by the recession and people not going out and spending their hard-earned cash. So, I thought to myself, how is anyone going to get a job in this kind of environment?

The first step I took was to make sure my CV was perfect. The easiest way of doing this is to book an appointment with the Careers Service and have them help you with it. Without an amazing CV you’re probably not going to get anywhere and that’s the truth unfortunately. So armed with my CV I hit the streets to try and find a retail position.

There weren’t any. Everywhere I looked and asked there were no jobs. Not even Christmas temps, as they weren’t employing for those until later in the month. Usually the shopping centres and high streets are a good place to start because the staff turnover in retail is incredibly high and I would still recommend it. But the chances of getting a job there seemed to be slim.

So, a little downtrodden that I wouldn’t be able to work in a trendy fashion boutique or in a funky soap shop I went home. These days one of the easiest places to find job vacancy notices is online. The first place I went to was the Careers Service website. They’re not just there for final year students to find work after uni, they also run a very good part-time listing website which I can only recommend. Other sites to try (and the emphasis is on try) include: Totaljobs, Justjobs4students and Fish4jobs. While some of these sites are definitely more focused on full-time work, from time to time part-time vacancies do come up and it is worth keeping an eye out for them. There were a few positions that I thought I could do which I applied for and the total number of applications I made was around the 15 mark.

The internet is also good for finding another, more surprising type of job. These days a lot of the bars, pubs and clubs in Manchester have a website and more often than not they’re advertising a vacancy. Usually though instead of being able to apply online you have to drop a CV into the manager during the day, or ring someone up but it does make it easier than traipsing around town all day.

Once I had finished with the websites I went to bed. It was about 2am and while I’m dedicated to finding work, I do need to sleep. The next day I went into town with my CV and hit the job agencies. If you cannot find a job these guys are fantastic. Companies like Reed often have a specific manager for part-time roles and these do crop up often. The one caveat is that most of the jobs they advertise are temporary, not permanent roles. I went to a company called Rullion who have their offices about halfway along Moseley Street in town. The staff there were incredibly friendly and the woman that registered me with them informed me of a position that was available right then and there. I found a job! Obviously however I will keep up the hunt. But that’s for another time…

Part time vacancies seen this week:

Seen on Retail Choice website

• Sales Assistants at Kurt Geiger (in Selfridges, city centre)
• Sales Associates at GAP
• Out of hours Merchandiser, PC World (Stockport)

Seen on Job Centre Plus website
(Enter job ref and click ‘GO’ for details)

• Retail Merchandising Assistant REF: FTS/134176
• Retail Merchandising Assistant at the Trafford Centre REF: STY/89659
• Sales Assistant at the Trafford Centre REF: STY/89614
• Waiting Staff at Little Casbah (Stockport) REF: SOO/45575
• Admin Assistant at M & W Freight (Sale) REF: ALU/67786
• Weekend Receptionist at Turner Hire Drive (Altrincham) REF: ALU/67797
• Events Waiting Staff at Ringways (Altrincham) REF: ALU/67805

Seen on Reed employment agency website

• PA/Admin (2 days per week)

Seen elsewhere…

• Christmas staff at Tiger Tiger (Printworks) 

Final year students I see here often ask how they can find out the closing dates for grad schemes starting next September.  The 500 full-time graduate vacancies (at the last count) on the Careers Service website are helpfully sorted by application deadline, but not all graduate scheme listings are so user friendly.  So my colleague Jenny, who also writes for this blog, has pored painstakingly through two of the main graduate recruitment directories – the GET Directory and the Prospects Directory – to produce a Calendar of Graduate Scheme Closing Dates for 2009/10.

However, while it’s important not to miss closing dates for schemes you really want to apply to, our advice is always to apply as early as possible and not rely on closing dates. Back in September, we wrote a post ‘Closing dates are not always what they seem‘, referring to the trend for some grad schemes to fill up well before the official closing dates, and of course there are a number of schemes which don’t have specific closing dates, but will nonetheless close when they recruiters have received enough quality applications to fill the places.

There might be some of you out there who are looking at all the different jobs available and are left thinking “I’d rather do something a bit different” or “I just can’t see myself working for someone else.” Or perhaps you’re just an innately enterprising kind of person and you want to find out how you can put your talents to best use.

If that sounds like you, next week from 16th to 22nd November is Global Enterprise Week and there are various different events and activities you can get involved in here at the University and in Manchester generally, whether you have an interest in starting your own business or freelancing now or at some point in the future, or even if you just have a vaguely entrepreneurial streak.

For example, on Wednesday 18th November 12.30-4pm there’s a FlyingStart ‘Make it Happen’ day at the Manchester Conference Centre on Sackville Street, which includes workshops on idea creation, getting your business idea off the ground, and lots of practical advice on starting a business or freelancing. The organisers also advertise an opportunity to take up a free place in a 12-month programme to help you into self employment or successfully set up and run a business” – definitely something worth checking out!

On Thursday 19th November 5-6pm there’s also an Enterprise web chat, where you can put your questions about enterprise, self-employment and freelancing to one of our specialist careers consultants and someone from the University’s Enterprise Centre.

Check out the full programme of Entreprise Week activities on our website.

Anastasia Miari – student blogger

Teaching, for a lot of us, is a back up. If all else fails, then teach, right? If this is your mindset, maybe you should consider taking part in the Student Associates Scheme, as I did for three weeks this summer.

Along with a great number of students, before this summer I thought that teaching would be a brilliant fall back if my acting/ journalism/TV-producing career doesn’t exactly go to plan. Lets face it, the country’s not getting any richer and jobs aren’t exactly being handed out willy nilly. So, I decided that I’d see if teaching was actually for me.

The Student Associates Scheme is organised by The University of Manchester in association with TDA for university students with an interest in a career in teaching. It consists of five different workshops/training days in Special Needs Education, Behaviour Management, Lesson Planning, Ethnicity and Diversity and Widening Participation. These training days give a real insight into what the three-week placement will involve and also prepare you for any possible challenges you may face during placement.

After taking part in the workshops, you are assigned a school in the Manchester region (I organised my own placement at home but if you’re going to do this, you need to get it sorted fast.) The placement takes place from mid June for three weeks. I was a little disconcerted at the thought of having to do homework during my long awaited break from academia (I had to fill in daily logbooks reflecting on my progress) but to be honest, it really wasn’t that much work and I did get record of my achievement as well as £600… Oh yes, I forgot to mention you get paid.

So, could I manage hyperactive eight year-olds all learning to join their i’s and their t’s with biros for the first time? Or was it rowdy teenagers all eager to get one over on the non-teacher for popularity’s sake? I chose the teenagers.

After being interviewed, then attending the workshops I was keen to begin placement. Working as a drama teacher, I remembered my passion for my subject and felt I was achieving something by simply helping out. Even the naughty kids were enthusiastic and willing to get involved.

During placement, I worked with groups as well as individually and I taught whole lessons alone. I was worried about teaching my first lesson solo but it turned out I had nothing to worry about. After the lesson I even got an “Aw miss, you’re well better than Mr Veitch!”

The best thing about this work experience is that the whole process is made to be similar to how you would go about getting a job in teaching. After filling in an application, an interview ensues, then following the interview the workshops which in turn are followed by three weeks in which you actually immerse yourself in the role of a teacher.

Before this placement I thought that teaching would be a good back up plan; three challenging weeks and £600 later, I realise that teaching can’t just be a back up. A real enthusiasm and passion for your subject as well as a drive to disperse your knowledge is necessary. I don’t want to be a teacher unless I am a good one, and my placement with the SAS has made me see that I do have the potential to be a good teacher. PGCE after graduation has definitely become an option for me.

If you think teaching may be for you, I’d strongly advise you to take part. Applications and interviews are going on from now until February so get in there fast.

Semester one is the most popular time of the year for students and graduates looking to find a job.  Students are looking for part-time jobs and internships, final year students are looking for graduate jobs as are last years’ graduates.

It’s crazy busy and yet everyone thinks they are the only one in that situation. Take a look around you are competing with students at this university, MMU and Salford plus the graduates who have stayed on in Manchester, not to mention the local population. 

You need to have a plan and put the work in to find a job, its not easy and it takes time.

Because jobs don’t just fall out of trees here are a few pointers.

Looking for a graduate job

• Use the Careers Service website – check out …
  • The vacancies section
  • Employer talks and workshops - do a bit of networking.
  • Fairs – find out who attended and what they are looking for.
  • Sector and North West pages for links and vacancy feeds.
• Use other local careers fairs
  MMU
  Compass jobs fair for social work
  Prospects website – lists fairs around the country
  Try virtual fairs like this Prospects virtual fair
• Do your own research, yes sorry  – you will have to do some work and make lists of employers to apply to.
  • Find out who the professional bodies are for your sector – look on their website for directories of members.
  • Use journals some have vacancies listed others may have services directories where companies promote to clients. Use these to help you establish who is active in the field.
  • Check out our research section for more tips!
  • Use the Careers Resource Centre. There are books, journals, directories and all sorts of other useful things to help you make a list of potential employers.

Looking for internships, placements, work experience and vacation jobs.

All these terms can mean the same thing- work experience (usually paid) for a few weeks  to a year in length.

Although there are lots of internships advertised – there are many that aren’t – you may have to find your own work experience.
All the tips above count – plus:

• Check with your department – they may advertise opportunities for those who have to do a year in industry or have special requirements for what is suitable.
• Check out the tips on our website
• With vacation jobs consider where you want to do it and what time of year it is.  Seasonal work may be available – think about it and target your applications appropriately.

Part-time jobs

• We advertise them on the website and on this blog in our Seen on the street posts.
• You need to keep alert and look around you when you are out shopping or socialising, many places just put an advert in the window or inside the store.  Take a note of the details, brush up your CV so that it fits their needs and send it off.  If you are handing an application in try to look neat and tidy and be polite – you never know who you are speaking to or if their opinion of you will be asked.
• Often advertised in local papers – but beware of commission only jobs and scam jobs, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.
• If you see a job advertised in a bus shelter or on a lamp post be very cautious!

So go on get looking!  Good luck.

Apologies for not being able to bring you our usual post last week. Normal service now resumed! Part time jobs seen this week are:

Seen by our roving reporter Sarah M

• Zizzi are opening a new restaurant in Didsbury this month and are looking for staff. Email your CV to recruitment@zizzi.co.uk and more information on the opening at http://www.zizzi.co.uk/news/

Seen on Fish 4 Jobs website

• Retail Advisor at the Trafford Centre (apply via Adecco recruitment)
• Sales/Canvassers for a national newspaper (Altrincham)

Seen on  Reed employment agency website

• Camera Demonstrators at Gekko

Seen on Job Centre Plus website
(Enter job ref and click ‘GO’ for details)

• Nightclub Photographers REF: FTS/133875
• Model (events promotional brochure) REF: FTS/ 133896
• Cafe/Deli Assistant at Cafe Carlo REF: FTS/133744
• Glass Collector at Club V REF: FTS/133990
• Saturday Healthcare Assistant at Boots (Stretford) REF: STY/89545
• Bar Staff at the Stonemasons’ Arms (Altrincham) REF: ALU/67730

Seen on The Jobs Mine

• Receptionist at Trevor Sorbie
• Retail cleaners at the Trafford Centre

Helen McGuire – student blogger

There is a poster I walk past almost everyday in the John Ryland’s Library, and every time I see it I’m filled with a sort of sense of impending doom about the future course of my adult life. It’s a poster advertising careers at the discount supermarket ‘Aldi’. In the corner of the poster of doom it states that a graduate can get a starting salary of £40,000 and a ‘fully expensed Audi A4’. This poster always gets me thinking about what I’d want out of a career. Would I really be happy in a 9 to 5 job, working for Aldi and driving around in my Audi A4? Or am I prepared to sacrifice financial success for a more fulfilling career?

As a second year student, I’m just starting to think about what I want to do with my life. I still have no fixed career in mind but I’m pretty sure that the graduate job at Aldi isn’t for me. I too have been less than proactive in seeking out careers advice, and shamefully I’ve never made use of any of the facilities the Careers Service has to offer. But this year that will all change, and I’ll be writing a blog every month about my efforts to find a career that will suit me and hopefully I’ll enjoy. Also I hope this blog will reassure people who, like me, have no definite career plans. I’m an English student, which is a gift and a curse in itself. It’s a subject that provides me with such a broad range of skills that I could consider a career in pretty much any area. However, I can’t help feeling slightly jealous when I look at my friends studying law or medicine and realise they’ve already had the maturity and foresight to decide what they’re good at, what they want out of a career and are already some way to achieving it. I’m just stumbling around reading Larkin with my head in the clouds, and occasionally being brought back down to earth with a bump.

Anyway, like any right thinking person my first port of call for careers-related advice is the website www.prospects.ac.uk. It is an amazing website full of invaluable information about what to do after you graduate, from further study to profiles of different careers. If you’re like me and still undecided about what you want to do, one of the most helpful things to use on ‘Prospects’ is ‘Options with your subject’. It suggests a whole host of different career paths that relate to different degree subjects. Under ‘English’ there’s a long list of job ideas, from teacher (what a surprise…) to advertising account executive, but also a lot of ideas about jobs in the creative industries, which is lucky for me because I’m pretty sure that’s the sort of thing I’ll probably want to do when I graduate – and that’s about as decisive as I get when it comes to careers.

I’ve also recently attended the Postgraduate Study fair, because I’m fairly certain I want to do some form of further study after my time at Manchester. The whole idea of postgraduate study is still an absolute minefield to me, even though the fair was really useful, so in my next post I’ll be filling you in on all the fair has to offer.

Manchester Metropolitan University Business School are holding a Placement Fair & Career Development Day on Wednesday 25th November in partnership with Pro Manchester, a corporate membership organisation representing the 240,000 employed in the financial and professional service community in and around Greater Manchester.

The Fair is open to all students from MMU, Salford and The University of Manchester to attend. Open to students studying on any year of any course (undergraduate or postgraduate) but may be of particular interest to those interested in; Business, Marketing, Accounting, Finance, IT, Computing, Law, Media, Advertising and PR.

More details follow…

Wednesday 25th November – 12.30 pm – 3.30 pm

John Dalton Building, Oxford Road (opposite BBC)

The Fair is a fantastic opportunity for students seeking placements, internships, projects, vacation work or graduate positions. Come along and network with employers and gain professional advice about the opportunities available.

Exhibiting organisations include; Kellogg’s, Deloitte, General Motors, MC2, Aldi, Barclays, Grant Thornton, Rate My Placement, Cobbetts, Zurich, SSL International, HSBC, Enterprise Rent a Car, Jepson Holt, Pro Manchester, Willis, Manchester Masters, IBM, Kintish, The Co-operative Group, The Rainmaker Academy, DWF, Adidas, Ralli Solicitors, Oxygen, Outokumpu Stainless Ltd, KPMG, Wireless CCTV & Cellhire, Weber Shandwick, HSBC, Heath Lambert, GMPTE, Aviva Insurance and Financial Services Skills Council

Find out what it is like to work for a particular company or in a particular sector by attending one of four employer led workshops. You can register for these on the day.

Find out more and pre-register online now at:
http://www.business.mmu.ac.uk/placements/placementfair

Student blogger – Priya Thakrar

I remember when I hit the age of 16. I’d be in town every Saturday handing my CV out to every shop I could – especially the clothing retail ones in hope of some store discount! I ended up working in a petrol station. Although I’d moan about this at the time, I now realise that the experience I gained from assisting in simple commerce such as on the till or shop floor has been vital to progressing my employability skills. It’s not that I’ve become an expert at sweeping the floor, more the dexterity I developed to enable me to adapt to different working situations.  I believe that during university, it is vital to gain work experience, whether paid or not. The current economic situation has affected the job market hugely and employees may wake up one day finding themselves unemployed. Having a job whilst studying may save your overdraft a little; more importantly though, it will enable you to adapt to the professional environment and prepare you for the life that awaits after graduation (I can wait!)

During the upcoming weekend, I am participating in Manchester Jailbreak – a challenge where you have to get as far away from Manchester as you can in 30 hours… without paying a penny. I am raising money for KidsCan – a charity that funds research into children’s cancer. If you wish to donate a few pennies to KidsCan please visit www.justgiving.com/Priya-Thakrar. I emailed all the transit companies that leave the UK asking them to sponsor me or let me on a flight abroad for free. I’d be happy sitting in the luggage haul! They all said no. Now I’m sure they already donate a fair amount to their chosen charity each year, but I get constant junk emails like ‘WIN 2 FLIGHTS TO LA NOW!’. If airlines are happy to give free flights to a gambler who has enough time on his/her hands to fill out endless pages of useless information, why not help out a couple of broke students doing crazy challenges for charity? The answer is simple – RECESSION, RECESSION, RECESSION. I have been told that airlines were previously more generous and were willing to guarantee fundraisers a boarding pass. With this dire economic crisis that seems to have been around forever though, times are hard as we all know! The price for Sainsbury’s basics tortilla chips have gone up by 7p. The legendary £2 double VodBull at well-loved Robbos in Fallowfield is now £2.25. Students are complaining! More seriously though, the job market has been affected. We constantly hear stories on the news of large companies having to let masses of employees go. What is more depressing is that our generation has that to come. We will have to go out there into the big, bleak world and search for jobs. I get hot and sweaty rummaging around clothes in the Christmas sale. I have a feeling that the job-hunt may be a little more traumatic.

As our teachers used to bang on to us though – POSITIVE THINKING – THE GLASS IS HALF FULL, NOT HALF EMPTY – we are not all doomed! It is just that getting a leg into your preferred industry may now be more difficult. I have been told that employers are looking for that something extra that you’ve done. Not just one extra or two extras … but a list of extras. The Careers Service volunteering team at the University of Manchester regularly send out brilliant emails with heaps of opportunities for you to get involved in. It takes minimal effort to sign up and the results could be invaluable. If you are interested in receiving emails from them visit the volunteering pages of the Careers Service website.

They also distribute emails listing details of companies who are looking for students to employ for paid work. Although the general economic situation is dull (as is the Manchester weather as I sit here writing this wearing two hoodies to save on the electricity bill), there are still many employers out there seeking young, fresh, innovative thinking. That means you, you and you! All you have to do is email them your CV and wait for a response. I did and you can too. So visit the job hunting section of the Careers Service website and let me know how it goes.

Good luck!