Y3 Winter Break

Winter break is a great reflection point for you to think about what you want to gain from your last semester at university.

Building on your knowledge of the support and services offered by the university, and your reflection on your own wants/needs you can decide exactly what you need to develop your employability. This can help you begin to develop your plan for the future.

You can use winter break to feel confident in your employability basics. This includes writing your CV, understanding job applications, and exploring jobs to apply to. This reflection point is to highlight how you can use the resources from the university to feel confident in your life after graduating and understand if you have any gaps you might need to fill (this might be gaps in knowledge, experiences, skills development etc.).

Using the questions and activities, explore which events, services, and resources will help you feel confident in creating a realistic plan for the next semester.

Checklist:

• Complete the mySkills assessment

• Explore Career Connect 

• Familiarise yourself with the Sheffield Graduate Attributes

• 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  

• Ask questions you have about your employability and future career choices

• Use the activities, guides, and question prompts below to explore and reflect on your employability

PLAN: 

Feeling confident in the employability basics can help you make the most relevant plan for the rest of your degree experience. Look through the information and links for CVs, Cover Letters, Applications, and Interviews and then answer the reflection questions and make a plan for your next steps. 

• What is a CV, Cover Letter, Application, or interview?

  • CVs: 

    • Useful link: https://students.sheffield.ac.uk/careers/apply/cv 

    • Different types - academic, non-academic, part-time jobs etc.

    • These will all have slight differences, and it is important to adapt your CV for each role you are applying for. 

    • ATS - Application Tracking Systems: this is software that companies might use to look for keywords and phrases that match the job advert - this is why it is so important to tailor your CV to each job application 

    • There are lots of examples of CVs on the Careers and Employability Website.

  • Covering Letters:

    • Useful Link: https://students.sheffield.ac.uk/careers/apply/cv/covering-letter 

    • Purpose - Your CV is a brief summary of your skills and experience, and your Cover Letter is a chance for you to explain why you would be a good fit for the role. This is a chance for you to show you have done your research on the company, the role, and explain why you want the role.

    • Format - This is a letter so address it to the organisation or the recruiting manager (this might be included in the job application) - it is important to tailor this letter and make it as specific as possible- you want this to be clearly written for this role, this organisation, and by you. 

    • STAR approach (Situation, Task, Action, Result)  - using this technique gives you an opportunity to effectively explain how you have used your skills - it will also be good practice for future job interviews where you can find examples of how you have used specific skills.

    • You can also add in here any difficult situations you have faced (this might explain any gaps in your CV due to your health or disability) You could also disclose your disability here - although this is not a legal requirement and you do not have to do this but it could also let the recruiting manager know that you might need accommodations during your interview ect. 

    • There are lots of examples of covering letters on the Careers and Employability Website.

  • Applications: 

    • Useful link: https://students.sheffield.ac.uk/careers/apply/applications 

    • Different processes:

    • Some applications require you to submit some basic information (this might include qualifications, personal details, and your work experience)

    • You may also be required to then add a personal statement - this will include why you want to work for the organisation, and why they should choose you for the role. You can also include anything important that you might not have had the chance to add anywhere else in the application (for example volunteering, any setbacks, positively explain what you have learnt from these)

    • There may also be a section about Equal Opportunities - this might include asking you questions about your ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability etc. This section functions as a way for employers to measure if they are attracting a variety of people to apply for this role. This section is usually optional and you do not have to disclose anything you don't want to. 

    • You may be asked about your motivations and skills-based questions - this could include ‘why are you applying for this job?’ or ‘why do you want to work for this organisation?’ or ‘Give an example of when you have worked in a team or dealt with a difficult situation’ - You can use the STAR technique again here to effectively explain how your skills and experiences make you the best candidate for this role. Make sure you use relevant examples and to pick different ones for each question. Including enough detail is important so that the recruiting manager is able to understand the context of the examples. 

    • You may also be asked to complete some tests as part of the application process - these could be skills tests, personality tests, or situational judgement tests. These can help employers evaluate whether your personality will match the organisation and role. These can feel a bit complicated as you can start to second guess your answers and if your answer is what the employer wants - answering these questions honestly will be the best way to measure your suitability for the role (this can benefit you too as you wouldn't want to have to behave or act inauthentically whilst at work so it might reveal that the employer is not suitable for you either) 

    • These personal statement tips are also relevant to an academic setting where you may be applying for further study - you want to be able to give clear answers to why you want to study at that particular university, doing that particular course, and why you are the best candidate. 

  • Interviews:

Prepping for an interview is really important. Doing your research on both the organisation and yourself will help you feel more confident explaining exactly why you are the best candidate for the role. 

You can explore the organisation’s website, social media, the job specification, your application - you can also make sure you have clear examples of how you meet the criteria of the role - these can come in handy during the interview if you need to provide examples of skills or experiences

• • Useful link: https://students.sheffield.ac.uk/careers/apply/interviews 

    • Your interview - whether online or in person, you will most likely be asked questions about both yourself and your experiences. These questions might include:

      • Opening Questions - these questions might cover talking about yourself

      • Motivation and skills questions - these questions cover your motivations for applying and these skills you have that make you good for this role. They might also be covering your knowledge of the organisation and the role 

      • Competency based questions - these are looking for evidence for the relevant skills - using the STAR technique here can be helpful to make sure you are effectively communicating your competencies

      • Strength based questions - these are assessing your attributes, what you are good at and how you communicate this

      • Hypothetical questions - these will typically present you with a problem to solve

      • Useful link: https://students.sheffield.ac.uk/careers/apply/interviews/questions-types 

    • Interview Formats: 

      • Useful link: https://students.sheffield.ac.uk/careers/apply/interviews/formats 

      • Different types of interviews:

        • Group interviews 

        • Multiple station interviews 

        • Portfolio interviews 

        • Academic interviews 

        • Technical interviews 

        • In-person interviews

        • Online interviews 

        • Telephone interviews 

    • Accommodations - if you have a disability or are neurodivergent then asking for some accommodations can help you be on an even playing field - you could always ask for the questions before the interview, ask for questions to be printed out, ask for them to be asked in their simplest form/broken down.  

      • Useful link: https://students.sheffield.ac.uk/careers/rights  

• Reflection Questions and Next Steps:

  • Reflection Questions:

    • Reflect on your first semester

      • What did you enjoy the most?

      • What has been hardest?

      • Do you know who to reach out to if you have problems/questions?

      • Have you reached out to someone?

      • How useful was this? Would you change anything?

      • What skills do you think you have developed?

      • Have you tried something new?

      • Have you joined any societies?

      • Do you have any goals for next semester?

      • If you are feeling stuck, do you know how to find help?

    • Questions about the SGAs:

You can answer these questions and then complete the mySkills assessment if you want to record this reflection. By doing this, you can evaluate your skills development and compare your answers from earlier in your experience (and compare with future answers).  

• • • • • Which do you feel most confident with?

        • Do any attributes interest you?

        • Do any attributes feel less relevant to you and your degree? Why?

        • Which ones do you feel would be most beneficial for you to develop?

        • Can you see how these skills might fit into your dream job?

        • Do you know how to develop these attributes?

  • Next Steps:

    • What I am going to focus on during the rest of my degree experiences:

      • My CV

      • My LinkedIn Profile 

      • Exploring jobs

      • Exploring further study options 

      • Accessing the support and services from the university 

      • Asking the questions I need answers to 

      • Exploring what is important to me in a future career 

      • Deciding what I want to do next

    • What support and services do I need to contact to help me with my focus:

      • Career Connect Resources 

      • Events hosted by the university (found on Career Connect)

      • Book a 1-2-1 Careers Advisor Appointment (accessed via Career Connect)

      • Exploring the resources on the Careers and Employability Service Website 

      • Drop-in at the Jessop West Employability and Placements Hub