1 securing a position outside academia june kay careers development consultant durham university...
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Securing A Position Outside Academia
June KayCareers Development ConsultantDurham UniversityCareers Advisory Service
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Today’s session – 3 hours
Destinations / Sources Vacancies Empress Research CVs Application forms Interviews Assessment Centres Questions
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What do PhDs Do?
Work in UK 69% Work & study in UK 11% Education Sector employment 50% 36% Research all areas 22% Research in HE 13% Teaching in HE
2006 Graduates, 6 months after graduation
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Durham PhD Graduates 2008
77
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1
8
93 2
Full-time work
Part-time work
VoluntaryWork
Work & Study
Further Study
Unemployed
Not Available
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Durham PhD Graduates 2008
Voluntary & Community Sector Engagement Officer (HE)
Information analyst (Housing Association)
Archaeologist Biotransformation Scientist Risk Assessment Officer (Pharma) Product Director Principal Consultant R&D Research Chemist Assistant Manager (Accountancy) Personnel Officer Clinical Director NHS Book Seller Geotechnical Engineer
Quality Assurance Manager (Engineering)
Scientific Officer (Conservation) Curator Hampton Court Palace Civil Servant Financial Analyst Choral Director (C of E) Education Centre & Homework Club Advanced Systems Researcher (IT) Corporate Affairs Membership Officer Translator Sports Statistician Clinical Psychologist College Lecturer
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Durham PhD AlumniCase Studies
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Sources of Vacancies
Websites e.g. prospects, PhDjobs etc Directories e.g. Times 100, GET etc Careers Fairs / Presentations Press – National, local, specialist Professional bodies Recruitment Agencies Networking Speculative Applications
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What some employers say about PhD’s“They have good learning skills, a commitment to the taskand need only minimum supervision.”“They are able to work on their own and have the benefit oflogical thinking. Also their research field might berelevant.”“Employers can benefit from their research skills andresearch experience but will have to invest in commercialtraining for these candidates.”“Try and gain some industrial consulting experience andprove that you can deal and liaise within a commercialenvironment.”“Don’t over rely on academic achievement – stresstransferable skills such as team working, report writing andleadership.”
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CVs for PhD’s
A CV and covering letter should includeevidence of relevant:
Knowledge – specific or general
Experience – tasks, processes, responsibilities
Skills – specialist and transferable / generic
Interest / Enthusiasm / Commitment
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CVs for PhD’s
Structure – logical, clear
Presentation/layout – attractive / professional
Content – Relevant / Explicit
Length – 2 pages A4
Impact !!!!!
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Action words for CVsNegotiated DevisedPromoted IdentifiedGenerated Led Delivered
TestedFacilitatedManagedAnalysedSolvedResolvedInitiatedRepresented
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CVs for PhD’s
What would you include under:
Personal details
PhD research
Other education
Work experience
Publications and Conferences
Additional skills and achievements
Interests
Who will be your references?
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CVs for PhD’s
What might you leave out?
CV at the top of the page
A career goal/personal profile
School record
Work experience that does not sell skills
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CVs for PhD’s
You should have a different type of CV forposts outside of academia
Many same skills and experience
Different Focus / Language
Commercial application
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CVs for PhD’s
Reverse chronological - Similar to academic CV
May omit: Publications Conferences
Must emphasise more: Non academic work experience Commercial Applications / Equivalents Transferable skills
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Other types of CV- Targeted
Useful if you know what the employer is looking for
Highlights on Page 1 the key skills and qualities you possess which are relevant to the post (skills profile) and where you have obtained these
Therefore ‘plagiarises’ the advert Then follows on with a standard reverse
chronological CV
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Page one might start like this…
Communication: Excellent oral and written skills required for planning preparing and leading seminars with undergraduate students. Several conference papers presented and well received by a wide academic audience. Active listening and diplomacy as demonstrated through voluntary work on student helpline for 3 years.
Team Working: Demonstrated when rowing for university where I proved my commitment to succeed and encouraged others to also do so, as part of a successful multi-disciplinary research group and whilst working in a pressured retail environment part-time for 4 years.
Project & Time Management: Successfully planned the most effective use of my time and resources to complete my research project ahead of schedule whilst submitting papers for publication, supervising undergraduate students research and renovating my new home.
Computer literacy: Confident user of a wide variety of packages including Microsoft Word, Access, Excel, SPSS and C++. Designed, developed and updated the International Students Society website. Easily adapt to specialist employer software e.g. stock control in retail
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Over to you…….
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Application forms
Same general principles as CVs
Competency Based
More specific examples
Statement in Support of Application
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Tell us about a time when you have worked effectively as part of a team. What was your role and what did you contribute to the team? What did you learn for the future?
S - In August 2009 I participated in the residential GRAD school Course, Communication Skills + More , run by Durham university. At the start of the 4 day course I was allocated to a group of 9 researchers from all faculties whom I had never met before.
T –On day 3 all teams participated in a 3 hour environmental impact simulation, where the remit was to represent your own interests in negotiation with other stakeholders. As representatives of the chemical company we had to consider the financial implications, adverse publicity and legal obligations.
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…….continued A –I felt that my strength would lie in preparation
of financial figures for use in press statement and negotiations. I told the rest of my team this and asked the other members which skills they felt they could bring to the team. I lead a discussion on allocation of roles and division of tasks then identified priority actions. Since some elements could not be started until others were completed I suggested a system whereby the strongest member for a particular task led a subgroup of two or three members, who could all contribute ideas and assist with practical tasks.
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…….continued
R –All team members engaged with the task and developed an insight into an area of communication they felt was new to them. The team spirit was high throughout and individual members gained new skills and confidence. We managed to reach a mutually satisfactory agreement with all but one of the other parties involved, but this one group managed to raise this very successfully at the final “press conference”. In future I would suggest the team allocate time to practice for media interview, rather than relying on knowing their facts.
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Covering letters
Explain who you are
Say why you want the post
Give examples of your suitability
Explain why you want to work in that organisation
Provide other general information
Say when you are available for interview
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Example application forms
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TOUGH QUESTIONS
Why do you want to work for…?
What is it about the position that you most like?
Take me through a task that you have completed from beginning to end? Was it successful? Why?
What were the main obstacles that you had to overcome?
What would you describe as your greatest strength?
What would you say is your major weakness?
What would you say is your greatest achievement and why?
Give me an example of when you have worked in a team and tell me what role you
took on?
What are the current issues facing…?
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PREPARE AND PRESENT
Be yourself Give interesting examples to questions that they ask Be willing to expand on any responses that you make Don’t be thrown by the unexpected question Stay calm Buy time to think Remain positive throughout Show them that you are right for the position and for
them! At the end of the interview think about what impression
you want to leave with them:
‘If you can’t think of good questions [to ask them]don’t ask stupid ones.’ Ian Jackson BT
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YOUR INTERPERSONALSKILLS/REACTIONS
What impression are you hoping to create?
Dress code: formal/informal ‘company culture’ Body Language handshake eye contact mannerisms open/close posture Smile
What approach are the interviewers adopting? style of questions pace of interview body language inc. note taking friendly/business like
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Making An Impact - DVD
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ASSESSMENT CENTRES
group discussions case studies in - tray exercises role play presentations aptitude / psychometric tests, eg:
logical thinking verbal reasoning numerical spatial awareness
personality - preferred styles of behaviour panel interviews
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Example Group Exercise
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Useful Websites
www.durham.ac.uk/careers-advice www.careers.civil-service.gov.uk/index.asp http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org www.prospects.ac.uk http://targetjobs.co.uk/graduate-jobs/ www.eurograduate.com www.thepaperboy.com www.graduatesforgrowth.org.uk/ www.phdjobs.com www.rec.uk.com www.ukspa.org.uk www.thebookseller.com www.ktponline.org.uk/
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Life After…Languages & Literature, …Social Studies, ...Engineering & Built Environment, ….Biological Sciences
Careers with an Arts or Humanities Degree
Non-Traditional Careers in Science
Building a Successful Career in Scientific Research
Career Opportunities in Biotechnology & Drug Development
Career Handbook for TV, Radio, Film, Video & Interactive Media
Working with the Environment
Who’s Who in Public Affairs etc, etc.
Publications
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Any Questions?
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