The summer break of year two can feel like a transitional time. This might be you transitioning into a Placement Year/Year Abroad or moving into your final year. This can feel like a time full of pressure around what you will be doing next, what your plans are, and like you need to have an exact plan. Don't worry! You don't need to listen to any of these pressures. Hopefully, the exploring and reflecting you have been doing through your degree experience so far has given you some idea about your options and which ones will benefit you the most. 

This reflection point is all about thinking back on your degree so far, assessing your experience and skills, and identifying where you can find answers to your questions. If you still have questions you need answered, you still have plenty of time to ask them, remind yourself of the support and services offered by the university, and access these resources as you need them.   

Work through the checklist, activities, guides, and reflective questions to support you through this week. 

Checklist:

• Reflect on the Sheffield Graduate Attributes

• Complete the mySkills assessment

• Explore part-time jobs/volunteering opportunities for the easter break and summer

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

• Continue to explore your options for a Placement Year or Year Abroad

• Answer the reflective questions 

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

REFLECT: 

These questions will help you reflect on your second year and consider which employability opportunities you might want to explore next. After answering these questions and exploring the links, you can start to think about how you can start acting on these choices. Make sure you are accessing the Jessop West Employability and Placements Hub (during term time) or the Careers and Employability Service if you have specific questions. 

• Reflective Questions:  

  • Reflect on your second 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 year?

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

  • Reflect on your time at University so far:

    • 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 year?

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

  • Understand your Goals for the next academic year:

    • What kind of work experience would I like to get?

    • Which transferable skills would be most useful for me to develop?

    • Which academic skills would be most useful for me to develop?

    • Were there any societies I could join?

    • Is there something new I would like to try?

  • What are your plans for the summer:

    • Do you have any work experience planned?

    • What things are you going to do for fun?

    • If you could do anything this summer, what would it be? Why?

    • Is there anything you could do to make this happen (either this summer or in the future)

    • What can you do to help you feel prepared for the next academic year?

    • Are there any questions about your employability that you could find the answers to?

• Planning Your Goals 

Having answered the reflection questions, you can start to think about how to put this into a plan. This plan doesn't need to be long-term, and you should focus on making achievable and realistic goals. Look back through this year's Reflection Points and explore the questions, links, and activities to help you make your plan. You can make your plan for something over the summer or a goal for next year. 

If you are doing a Placement Year or Year Abroad, make sure you have explored the information and resources about this process on this site and other university resources. 

Your plan should include:

• • What you want to achieve

  • Why you want to achieve this 

  • How you will achieve this

  • Which resources you will use to support you 

  • Where you can ask questions if you need to 

  • When you want to achieve this by

Remember: this plan should be achievable, and you should be open to adapting it as things out of your control might change or affect your goals. This skill of creating a plan, actioning and adapting a plan, and then reflecting on your plan is good practice for your Year Three employability focus. Don't worry if you are struggling with this, as Year Three offers more opportunities to develop your planning skills.