You have made it through the first semester of your degree. This can feel like an overwhelming time, so use the winter break as a reflection point for you to think about what you are enjoying so far and what you might want to do to make your experience better. 

This might include accessing some support, joining a society, or continuing to try new things. You should still be focusing on exploring the services and opportunities available to you, but you can also start considering yourself and your own needs/wants/priorities for the rest of your first year. 

Checklist:

• Complete the mySkills assessment 

• Add Development Experience to your mySkills Portfolio

• Explore Placement Year options and Graduate Roles on Career Connect (to give you an idea of your future options)

• Decide what you might want to try next semester 

• Explore part-time jobs/volunteering opportunities on Career Connect 

• See which events you might want to attend next semester  

• Find out where you can ask questions about your employability and future careers

• Use the activities, guides, and question prompts below to think about your employability 

EXPLORE:

Focusing on exploring yourself can help you make the most of your degree experience. You can use the prompts below to explore different aspects of yourself and your employability. You can then use the web pages below to explore and develop yourself further and your degree experience. You can keep coming back to these web pages and services throughout your degree - your focus at the moment is exploring, so there is no pressure to use or access all of this information and services. 

• Exploring Your Needs

  • Questions to ask yourself:

    • Is there an aspect of my degree that I am struggling with? - this could be academic, personal, or about your work experiences/social time

    • Do I feel confident knowing how to work out my needs when developing my employability? 

    • What am I doing well to ensure I am aware of my needs while developing my employability? 

• Exploring Your Wants 

  • Questions to ask yourself:

    • What work experiences do I want to gain while completing my degree?

    • Have there been any opportunities that I haven't taken? Why did/didn't you take this?

    • Do I know what skills I want to develop/experiences I want to gain?

• Exploring Your Priorities 

  • Questions to ask yourself:

    • Which development experiences am I going to do? 

    • Which skills am I going to focus on developing? 

    • Why are these things my priority? What will I gain from focusing on these?

    • How do I make these things happen for me?

• Web pages/services to help you explore and develop your employability 

  • Jessop West Employability and Placements Hub 

The Jessop West Employability and Placements Hub can offer you initial career support, signposting, as well as the opportunity to hear about the Student Ambassadors’ work experiences. It is open 10am-3pm every weekday during term time. This is a drop-in service, so no need to make an appointment! 

• • Career Connect

Career Connect can be a great resource to explore your current employability by taking the mySkills assessment, working through pathways, and signing up for events. You can also use this site to explore graduate roles or placement opportunities to see what your future options might be (even though you won't be applying for these opportunities yet, knowing what you could be applying for in the future can help you identify what appeals to you and how you can make this happen!).

• • Arts & Humanities Careers Hub 

This site is a great resource for exploring what support is available to you at the university, in the Faculty, and in the School of English. Find information about placements, internships, international employability opportunities, how to develop your skills, and where you can find jobs as an Arts and Humanities Student. 

• • The School of English Hub 

You can use this site to explore information about your course, assessments, modules, reading lists, student support, and who to contact in the School.