What's on offer from the Employability Service in 2021-22

We at the Employability Service are so excited to see our campuses coming back to life with the arrival of new and returning students. Here's what's on offer this academic year.

Every new academic year brings excitement and expectations and, after a challenging 18 months, we look ahead to what we hope will be an exciting and enjoyable year for everyone.

For those of you new to the Employability Service blog, look for contributions from students on how they found opportunities to expand their skills, employers who give helpful tips on how to stand out from the crowd and of course our own Employability Service team who write on just about everything from career planning to the latest job market trends.

Whilst we all possibly long for some 'normality' we should also recognise we have learnt so much about ourselves – our ability to adapt and show resilience in the face of much change, reaffirming our values and possibly identifying new interests.

Businesses have also made rapid changes in light of the pandemic, and this will have a lasting effect on workplaces and working practices now and in the future. Your Employability and Careers Advisers work closely with these organisations to ensure the support we provide reflects those changes and ensures you have the tools you need to succeed in your career aspirations.

For example, we have witnessed significant increases in the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and video in recruitment practices. Our CV360 and Interview360 tools on the Career Centre are excellent ways to sharpen your skills and ensure your applications will make it past the machines and get to a real human being!

We are also not going backwards and are embracing all the benefits of virtual to bring you new and exciting opportunities to engage with graduate and placement recruiters.

New for this year will be the Futures Festival – two weeks (1-12 November) jam-packed with events, employers and workshops to help you develop your career ideas, identify work experience and graduate opportunities as well as making industry connections. The programme is being finalised and you will shortly be able see all the events online.

Your Employability Service team are now back on campus and available for face-to-face appointments or you can continue to contact us via Live Chat or meet us online. Get full details on how to book appointments.

Drop In is back! Come and see us for those quick queries or help with your applications, job/placement search etc. You will find us between 11am-2pm Monday-Friday at Cambridge (Open Access Area, 1st Floor, LAB) and Chelmsford (ARU Temps, Queen’s Ground Floor). For appointments in Peterborough, please email [email protected].

Don’t forget that you also have 24/7 access to a huge range of resources at your Career Centre.

Remember, this blog is for you – ARU students. Please share your thoughts with us and if you have some interesting or useful information regarding employability and careers that you can share with your peers, contact us on [email protected].

Good luck for the new academic year and we look forward to seeing you soon!

By Amanda Crouch, Head of Employability & Careers

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Our Employability Service works with students throughout their time at ARU and after they graduate. The Service offers careers advice, online resources, and help with job searches, applications and interview preparation. Our Employability & Careers Advisers may mention some of these resources and services in their blogs, to give you an idea of the careers support that's on offer at ARU. Some of these resources sit behind a log in and can only be accessed by current students.