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Creating a successful careers event – a guide for researcher societies Kate Murray Senior Careers Consultant July 2015

3 Components of a successful event Venue Activities Purpose Budgeting Recording Evaluation Speakers

4 Purpose Why are you doing this event? What are you basing your assumptions on? What do you want your participants to get out of it? Can you point to a need not met anywhere else in King’s? Is your event realistic in scope and scale?

5 Activities Type of activityProCon Panel of speakersNot much preparation for the speakers Very passive for your audience Speed meet*Audience hears from a variety of speakers, opening minds to alternative career ideas Some audience members will not like hearing from sectors they don’t want to work in There is energy in the roomHard work for your speakers Career Lounge**Informal learning with no employer in the room Audience might think they need an ‘expert’ in the room Online profile buildingYour audience may well need help in this area Needs a good facilitator and possibly access to computers Skills development activities eg teamworking Could be very focussed on your audience’s needs Might not appeal to a wide audience Training exercise eg CV writing, interviews Your audience will learn a new skill Need a competent trainer Need good materials

6 Venue Do you know how to book a room at King’s, or elsewhere? Do you know what the arrangements are about paying for rooms? Is it suitable? (Raked lecture theatre vs flat classroom; formal vs informal; correct AV facilities) Is it local? Does that matter? Can you get catering there if you want it?

7 Budgeting Who have you approached for funds? Who is responsible for keeping control of funds? Are you clear on how to pay your suppliers? What will you do if you go over budget? How will you feed back on the event to your funders?

8 Speakers Balance between promoting academic careers and promoting careers outside Balance between male/female and different ethnicities; disabilities? Good, professional, communication in the lead-up to the event to keep them interested and to provide logistical joining instructions; thank you afterwards Are you paying them? Are the processes for payment clear? (N.B. Careers & Employability never pays for careers speakers) Have you checked you can quote them in any write-ups? What will you do if they can’t attend, giving you little notice? How are you managing expectations regarding the numbers of attendees? How will you source them? –Alumni Office - Departmental contacts –LinkedIn- Careers & Employability

9 Evaluation How will you evaluate the usefulness of the activity for your audience? (Link back to the purpose of the event) Can you get feedback from the speakers as well as the audience? What will you use the evaluation for? What will you change if you run the event again?

10 Recording Does your event have an afterlife? Can you provide case studies (written/audio) for the King’s Graduate School blog? (blogs.kcl.ac.uk/kclgradschool) Can your speakers provide a colleague for another event next year?