1. Introduction to the Careers & Employability Centre Liz Bland, Careers Adviser Careers & Employability Centre 1 st Floor, South Wing www.aston.ac.uk/careers

2. How can we help you? You can use the Careers & Employability Centre to: Formulate career plans and gain support making decisions Identify ways to make the most of your time at Aston Find useful books, brochures and dvds either in the loan or reference libraries and on the website, www.aston.ac.uk/careers www.aston.ac.uk/careers Attend workshops and events Receive assistance with PhD and job-hunting, cvs, applications, interview technique, psychometric testing and recruitment presentations

3. How to find us 1 st Floor of the South Wing (above the Main Building Reception area) Mon, Tues, Thurs and Fri: 8.45-4.30pm Wed: 11-4.30pm careers@aston.ac.uk www.aston.ac.uk/careers

4. Booking an appointment with a Careers Adviser 20 min appointment, bookable by logging on to: www.aston.ac.uk/careers Bookings open at 4pm the day before the appointments are being held and early booking is advised

5. A career planning model

6. Timings PhD hunting Autumn/Winter – research and start applying for places and funding Spring – continue with applications, attend interviews Summer – if need be, look for last minute opportunities arising www.prospects.ac.ukwww.prospects.ac.uk  postgrad study  about postgrad study Job hunting Recruitment timings vary depending on job sector and role Large employers offering formal graduate training schemes tend to recruit in the Autumn Term for the following September Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and direct entry positions with larger organisations tend to recruit all year round and much closer to the actual start date www.prospects.ac.ukwww.prospects.ac.uk  careers advice  job hunting

7. Key career planning resources for Aston students Careers & Employability Centre (CEC) website www.aston.ac.uk/careers Key online resources include: Careers Information Leaflets – covering all aspects of career planning Vault Careers Library and Going Global Career Management Online exclusive free access to both packages through CEC website

9. Exclusive access for Aston students to free psychometric tests Profiling for Success - Aptitude & Personality Tests Learn more about yourself so that you can make yourself more employable and build a more rewarding career in the future Try the Type Dynamics Indicator & the Learning Styles Indicator www.profilingforsuccess.com/main/flash.php Client code: tflhe Access code: aston Password: aston0710

10. General career planning links Prospects www.prospects.ac.uk  Jobs  Types of work  Jobs  Industry insights Inside Careers www.insidecareers.co.uk Real World www.realworldmagazine.com Targetjobs http://targetjobs.co.uk

11. Sector specific career planning links New Scientist – Careers section and Careers Guide 2010 www.newscientist.com/channel/opinion/careers Nature – jobs and careers toolkit: www.nature.com/naturejobswww.nature.com/naturejobs Findaphd: www.findaphd.comwww.findaphd.com Jobs in research, science, academic and related professions: www.jobs.ac.uk www.jobs.ac.uk Vitae – support for postgraduate researchers and research staff: www.vitae.ac.uk www.vitae.ac.uk Careers in the pharmaceutical industry: www.abpi-careers.org.ukwww.abpi-careers.org.uk NHS Jobs : www.jobs.nhs.ukwww.jobs.nhs.uk NHS Careers: www.nhscareers.nhs.ukwww.nhscareers.nhs.uk NHS Choices – identify hospitals and other services: www.nhs.ukwww.nhs.uk Institute of Biomedical Science: www.ibms.orgwww.ibms.org British Psychological Society: www.bps.org.ukwww.bps.org.uk ClinPsy: www.clinpsy.org.ukwww.clinpsy.org.uk

12. Careers events Life Science Careers Conference, organised by Society of Biology Wed 2 nd March 2011, Aston University Further info: http://www.societyofbiology.org/education/careers/lscc/aston http://www.societyofbiology.org/education/careers/lscc/aston Careers & Employability Centre Events Science & Engineering Fair, 11.30-2.30, Wed 10 th Nov 2010 Employer events and career planning workshop series National Graduate Recruitment Exhibition, 29 th Oct and 30 st Oct See www.gradjobs.co.uk for list of exhibitorswww.gradjobs.co.uk For full events listing go to: www.aston.ac.uk/careerswww.aston.ac.uk/careers LHS MSc and MRes CV Writing: Wed 20 st Oct, Wk 3, 2-4pm, MB517 MSc Health Psychology CV Writing: Wed 9th Feb, 2-4 Careers fairs across the country http://www.prospects.ac.uk/cms/ShowPage/Home_page/Careers_fairs/p! epkgf

13. Professional bodies Research and join professional bodies relevant to your career interests (eg ABPI, IBMS, RSC, BPS, BTS, SOB) and watch out for conferences and events that would be useful to attend for networking purposes. Not sure which professional bodies may be useful for your career interests? Explore the job profiles (contacts and resources section) at www.prospects.ac.uk/links/occu pations www.prospects.ac.uk/links/occu pations

14. International students Careers Centre information, guidance and events for international students www.aston.ac.uk/careers -> Students & Graduates -> Student Groups -> International Students UK Visa Law Presentations, International Student Support Unit Week 3, Thurs 21 st Oct, 1-2pm, MB404a Week 4, Tues 26 th Oct, 1-2pm, MB404a Further immigration advice available: International Student Support Unit, The Hub, 1 st Floor, Main Building 0121 204 4567 or issu@aston.ac.ukissu@aston.ac.uk

15. Seeking work outside of the UK Two key job-hunting resources: 1.Prospects Country Guide, www.prospects.ac.uk www.prospects.ac.uk 2.Going Global (international job- seeking online resource), available free via www.aston.ac.uk/careers www.aston.ac.uk/careers

16. Action plan time Write down one small but specific thing you intend to do this month to help you with your future career plans and give yourself a deadline for doing it Tell somebody in the room what you are going to do and when you will have done it by

17. Good luck with your time at Aston! Aston University Careers & Employability Centre 1 st Floor, South Wing (above the Main Reception area) www.aston.ac.uk/careers