Using the Linked-in networking site to Job hunt

Use college essays to improve your career prospects!

Finally a job hunting tip that requires very little extra effort yet can reap huge rewards and an impressive line on your CV to help you stand out from the crowd!

Why not dust off a submitted college essay you're particularly proud of and enter it in
THE UNDERGRADUATE AWARDS OF IRELAND AND NORTHERN IRELAND 2011?

The awards are open to all final and penultimate year students enrolled in a degree course in any third level institution on the island of Ireland. To be eligible your essay must be corrected coursework of no more than 5,000 words that was completed during the academic year and received a high 2.1 or above. There are 20 different subject categories to enter. For full details about the awards visit the website at http://www.undergraduateawards.com/awards.

In a tough economic climate it’s tempting to feel your future is out of your hands, however it’s even more important during these times to focus on the current job you do have - that of being a student and doing the best you can at it. If you work on getting the best possible grade in your degree you are giving yourself the best possible competitive edge in the job market.

Another way you can use your years in college to increase your appeal to potential employers is to work on your extra curricular activities such as entering competitions like this. This is why we always emphasise the importance of participation in college clubs, societies and sporting teams, to present yourself as a well-rounded individual with proven interpersonal skills such as teamwork, organisation, leadership, public speaking, commitment to a project in terms of time and effort etc. However quality not quantity is key. Your time is valuable so just pick one or two that you are really interested in and can be commit to. The ability to juggle coursework, and outside interests is an important quality that employers always look for.

So, why not check out the awards website and submit your topgrade essay. The deadline is December 17th, 2010. Best of luck!

UCC Careers Service Team

Tips for Securing Law Traineeships in your Firm of Choice

For Law Students with their eye on a prestigious traineeship with one of the major Irish law firms here are a few tips for success. However you will need bags of motivation, determination and pay thorough attention to the following key areas in order to shine.

HISTORY
- Learn the history of the firm/ organization; its development and any key or pivotal events or changes that lead to development and expansion.

PRACTICE AREAS
- Know the practice areas, have a more detailed knowledge of practice areas you are specifically interested in
- Know about any recent or interesting cases/activities that they were involved in for each area

PARTNERS / PERSONNEL
- Research the backgrounds of partners, most especially partners who may be interviewing you!
- Any recent publications or interviews on journals etc…..Google them, there should be a lot of information about them on their website.
- Check Law Society website directory for any information.

THE LAW
- Be able to discuss current topical issues in the Law in Ireland, ideally be aware of any Legal changes in EU that may impinge on Ireland. This could be anything from controversy over sentencing to criticism of the Law Society.
- Be aware of recent interesting court cases in Ireland: i.e.; controversial High Court rulings, groundbreaking cases etc
- Be comfortable discussing new / up and coming or expanding areas in the Law: examples ; Bio-ethics, Insolvency, Environmental issues, Employment, Human Rights in the Irish context

BUSINESS AWARENESS- for those interested in Commercial firms.
- The ideal candidate is one who reads the business and financial pages of good quality papers such as Irish Times and Sunday Business Post
- Be comfortable talking about the Irish economy and future trends
- Know the key driving forces behind the economy such as Pharmaceuticals, IT/Software..etc
- A very good idea to be familiar with information on websites such as :
- http://www.ida.ie/
- http://www.ifsconline.ie/
- http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/

CURRENT AFFAIRS
- Be able to talk about recent events covered by media.
- Keep up to date with Irish, European and International current affairs..

ARTS/CULTURE ( for Big Firms)
- Have an opinion about a book, film, play, comedy, music and work of art. Don’t be surprised if you’re asked to discuss changes / new developments/ issues in these areas in the Irish context.

For futher Interview and application tips check out the following list of options on the UCC Careers Website http://www.ucc.ie/careers/students/Job_Search_from_Start_to_Finish.php

Mary McCarthy
UCC Careers Service Team

Get your career in shape at Bootcamp.

UCC Careers Service are currently running a six week series of workshops called CAREER BOOTCAMP open to all registered UCC students, free of charge. Week one is already passed however there are still places available on the Thursday sessions each week from Thursday November 11th onwards, taking place from 4-6pm. If you are interested in taking part you just need to email us at allison.carroll@ucc.ie for a booking form.

The remaining sessions are :

Week 2 – Creative Job Hunting
How to get a job without experience ? – tactics for getting your first break
Week 3 – Career Decision Making
Stuck in a rut? - evaluate your opportunities and get moving again.
Week 4 – Winning Job Applications
What do employers want to see in CVs and cover letters?
Week 5 – Interview technique
How to beat interview nerves and have them work in your favour.
Week 6 – Assessment Centres
A rare chance to participate in activities used by real recruiters

We’ll be blogging some more on the topic of creative job hunting in recessionary times next week.

UCC Careers Service

UCC Graduate Recruitment Fair: 20th-21st October

Not content with putting on a two day recruitment fair, we have also organised an information session the day before on Tuesday October 19th in room ORB 255 from 5-6pmwith tips on how to get the most out of the event and Polish your networking skills . Most of the companies attending the fair do have genuine vacancies on offer, but even for those who aren’t hiring just now, it pays to meet with them in person on the day. You can use the opportunity to find out what the company culture is like, what their future plans are and what sort of roles may become available and also to impress upon the HR contact your own suitability as a future employee. Either way you should be more memorable and have a contact name to personalise your cover letter with for any future applications once they being hiring again. The fair is an informal event so you wont need to wear a suit but if you are planning on chatting to the HR team from your dream company, you might want to bear that in mind when getting dressed that morning!

There are about sixty companies in attendance split over the two days in the multi- functional hall in the student centre and for a full list of companies attending click here. Each day runs from 12-4pm. We’d love to have every company on the same day for your convenience but can’t fit them all in any on-campus venue, however a few companies are attending both days.

Also, here is a links to a useful site giving tips on how to get the most out of recruitment fairs in general.
http://careers.guardian.co.uk/audio/podcast-recruitment-fairs


The Careers Service will also have a stand just at the entrance to the hall and we hope to see you there either day.

UCC Careers Service

What can the Careers Service do for you?

Here at the Careers Service we don’t just provide CV writing workshops or arrange fairs and talks from visiting Graduate Recruiters, we also provide an advisory service.
Whether you’re in first year, final year or somewhere in between, you are eligible for a free, one-to-one appointment with one of our experienced Careers Advisors.

In first year you may need to look at career prospects before finalising your subject choice or have a confidential chat with someone because you’d like to change course altogether! (Don’t worry it’s not the end of the world).

In second and third year you may need to update your CV and get tips on creative job hunting in order to secure relevant work experience whether through volunteering, unpaid placement or paid internship.

And in Final year we can help you explore your career options after your degree or discuss what postgrad course you might like to apply for.

You can drop in on spec to request an appointment or phone us after 9.30pm on 021 4903193 the day you wish to visit. We are even open though lunch. You can also call in just to browse our online library of career guidance tools or take away factsheets and booklets from Graduate recruiters.

We’re here on the Western Road in front of the Castlewhite Apartments, to help you make the most of your time at UCC while still keeping an eye on your future prospects when you graduate.

We look forward to seeing you soon.

UCC Careers Service

Quickfacts Opening hours:
09.30 to 5pm Monday to Thursday and until 4pm on Fridays.

Remember we stay open though lunch.

Appointment times – 30 minutes long
Phone 021 4903193/2349 on the morning of the day
you wish to come in.

Website http://www.ucc.ie/careers

JOB HUNTING EVENTS IN AUTUMN

Welcome back everyone to the new year at college! A special mention to those
of you entering your final year. You've just figured out your new lecture timetable, your boss from your summer job wants you to work extra hours at the weekends (and in this climate who can refuse?), and now we come along telling you about all the job hunting seminars we offer to help you stand out from the crowd in what is currently an employers market. The full list is available at http://www.ucc.ie/careers/events.php
or you can download our autumn schedule leaflet here:
http://www.ucc.ie/careers/students/programme.pdf

To make life easier for you we’ve repeated the talks on different days and scheduled them for lunchtimes and evenings, so if you’re worried about the star quality of your CV or your stage presence at interview make sure to try and catch some of the talks on offer.

For those of you who have yet to decide what broad career area interests you there are talks spotlighting different Industry sectors such as “Your science degree what next?” or “Careers in Management and Marketing” taking place in late October, early November and these are open to all years.

And finally for those of you who have narrowed down your career choice already, don’t miss the Milkround - where the top Graduate Employers visit campus at 6pm most evenings throughout October and November to explain why you should apply to work for them. Despite the downturn these firms are still hiring and have genuine vacancies on offer coupled with an excellent 1-2 year training scheme. There’s an impressive list from the Big 4 Accountancy firms, to Dairygold, Abbot, William Fry Solicitors and Sotheby’s to name but a few booked in so why not sign up to our twitter page for daily reminders and alerts of what’s on that day
http://www.twitter.com/CareersUCC.

We’ll be blogging regularly to help you make the most out of the year ahead and prepare for your future after you graduate.

UCC Careers Service

IBEC GradLink new initiative

IBEC Gradlink The Irish Business Employers Confederation (IBEC) has launched a website to help graduates from recent years find jobs and get real life work experience. The initiative which is called Gradlink, is specifically aimed at graduates who have been on the live register for three months. Various companies have advertised internships and work experience opportunities on the Gradlink site and graduates are free to go onto the site and apply directly to the companies if a particular role is of interest to them. To be eligible for the programme graduates need: · To have graduated from third level education · To have been on the live register for three months Companies from across the country have been offering work experience for graduates from all disciplines. Current internships on the site are offered in the areas of engineering, human resources, manufacturing, health and safety, business planning, financial services, information / communication/ technology, environmental services, management, healthcare, project management, quality engineering, sales and PR. Graduates who participate in the Gradlink programme can retain their social welfare benefits when on the programme. To view the internships and work experience opportunities currently on offer for graduates and for more information, please feel free to visit the Gradlink website on www.ibec.ie/gradlink You can also keep track of the opportunities posted on the site by following Gradlink on Twitter http://twitter.com/ibecgradlink