Career Development Tips During Lockdown
No one knows exactly what will happen to the labour market following the pandemic including governments and public bodies. The media is reporting lots of negative news, many employees are being furloughed and some businesses will probably close. A recently published report from the Office for Budget Responsibility is predicting gloomy news initally but also states that at some point the economy should ‘bounce back’.
Even before the predicted ‘bounce back’ there will still be jobs in some sectors that are considered more essential and our advice would be to keep looking at all the vacancy sources. In times of previous recession there have often been less applicants for jobs as people, perhaps understandably, assume there are no jobs and don’t look. The range may be more limited but there will be some opportunities.
We posted an earlier blog about ‘Career Planning in the Time of Covid-19′ which gave some more practical tips on job hunting and applying. So take a look back at that one if you need help in that area.
If there is a silver lining in all of this it might be there is more time and space to review the next stage of your life. So you are more prepared and ready to go when things do improve. Coping with the challenge will help you develop your resilience, adaptability and flexibility.
As Franklin Roosevelt said ‘A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor’. So this blog post offers some alternative ideas of what you can do to develop your career related skills and knowledge. It is always important to focus on yourself and what you can offer. What else can you do that might help with your self and career development for the future?
More study…?
If you are in the final year an obvious idea is to consider applying for postgraduate study which will give you a focus and allow you to take more time to think about your career. It takes you temporarily out of what might be a tricky time for employment in some sectors. But before you jump in and apply think, do I want to do another year of study and can I finance this?
What have previous graduates from the course gone on to do?
The universities should be able to supply that information on their website and if you can’t find it ask the admissions department. There is no guarantee exactly the same opportunities will be open to you but being informed will help your overall decision about whether to do this.
Essentially is it worth the investment in time, effort and finance?
There is a lot more detail on finding courses and how to fund the course them on the Prospects website.
https://www.prospects.ac.uk/postgraduate-courses
Don’t forget that if you are already a student here at the university of Brighton and opt to remain here you may be able to get help with reduced fees.
https://www.brighton.ac.uk/studying-here/fees-and-finance/postgraduate/index.aspx
Prospects are also holding a Virtual Postgraduate fair on the 29th April from 1-4pm.
The link to register can be found here.
Alongside postgraduate study there are other online opportunities to learn new skills and aquire knowledge.
LinkedIn learning
MOOC –
Virtual careers events… ?
Locally the the excellent organisation Wired Sussex who support work with the digital sector have pulled out all the stops to make their annual Jobs fair event due to be held on the 29th April ‘virtual’.
They have lots of opportunities so take a look at their links and sign up.
https://www.wiredsussex.com/events/
These virtual events are likely to be more common place and we will post any that are coming up on our website
Are you on LinkedIn?
Now is as good a time as any to set up your LinkedIn profile or add to it if you already have one. See our section on the website for more details on how to set one up and develop this further.
https://www.brighton.ac.uk/careers/looking-for-a-job/find-a-job/networking/index.aspx
Testing times …?
Get ahead by having a go at some psychometric tests. Employers often ask you to complete these as part of the recruitment process so its a great idea to practice these in advance so you get used to them. If you have a go you can see which areas are weaker for you and it can show where you might need to improve your scores.
https://www.brighton.ac.uk/careers/looking-for-a-job/careers-advice/assessment-centres/index.aspx
These are just some ideas of what you can do and we will post more advice over the weeks ahead. Don’t forget that we are here to support you whatever stage you are at so don’t hesitate to get in touch with us if you need some help and advice.
https://www.brighton.ac.uk/careers/contact-us/index.aspx
Pamela Coppola • 17/04/2020