Discover our Career Services workshops
With the rising uncertainty in the job market, our Career Services are hosting online workshops to offer our students even more career support.
Published on 12 June 2020
There is no denying that the global pandemic has resulted in a high level of job uncertainty. The Office of National Statistics released a Business Impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) Survey (BICS) showing the high rate of staff layoffs throughout major industries, like hospitality and travel.
One industry shown to be the most resilient to the pandemic effects, is the tech industry. Showing that the skills gap remains ever-growing for professionals with digital skills, we know that the vacancies are there but the path to finding them continues to change.
With more employers relying on virtual job applications and interviews, it is important to adapt your job search to stand out. Our Career Services recognised this and needed a way to regularly reach our students to help them address the most current and relevant issues students were having in their career search.
Making use of one of the many video communication softwares that have kept everyone connected, our Career Services team hosted a virtual workshop for all our students who needed career support.
What is Career Services?
Our student-exclusive career support services. Our Career Services team has a wealth of experience in helping students make the right choices when it comes to their search for a new career, or progressing in their current position.
Career Services offers personalised 1-2-1 support to every Learning People student. Split into 3 phases, you’ll be guided through CVs, LinkedIn, networking, interviews and more. This will give you all the confidence and tools you’ll need within your career.
What are the Career Services workshops?
Alongside their training, students are invited to attend the Career Services workshops. The workshops are hosted every 2 weeks live on Zoom and focus on different areas of navigating the job market followed by a Q&A session. Some workshops also have an expert special guest to share some additional insights depending on the topic.
The Q&A session is the student’s opportunity to ask any questions they have around their career, job search, the industry and employability.
Students are encouraged to share details about their own experiences of job searching, so that the hosts can give them personalised responses. This also allows everyone else in the workshop to learn from each other.
The workshops are a place for students to also connect with each other. Through the use of the instant message chat feature, students are able to offer each other their own tips and advice and to discuss their training. Students are also able to share their LinkedIn profiles, kick-starting an online network to offer each other further support.
Workshop reviews:
“I think everyone (myself included) will have been uplifted by your ability to identify positive next steps appropriate to the different scenarios that were presented. Well done and best wishes.” – Ed Northway
“I very much enjoyed today’s Q&A workshop, it was very motivating and informative.” – Shaun Ward
“Thanks so much for the workshop today. It was nice in a way to know that I am not alone in the scary world of looking for a new job!” – Toju Dediare
Student success
Our students have been reaping the benefits from the workshops and on-going support from the Career Services team.
One student had a job offer fall through at the beginning of lockdown and so reached out to Career Services. Now finished with his cyber security training, this student has landed a job as a Field Engineer. This is a great example of someone who continued to interview throughout this period but had to keep positive, keep pushing and be patient at the same time.
Another student attended the workshop and listened to the advice surrounding the value of LinkedIn. With Career Services guidance he created a stand out profile. Within 8 days, the student landed his first role as a Desktop Support.
This shows that there are jobs out there. Our students are getting jobs and changing careers during a global pandemic. They are getting offered jobs before even completing their training and the resources that Career Services have available are working.
What have our workshops covered so far?
1. How to find a job during the pandemic
The first workshop began with an introduction to the Career Services team and their experience. We then heard an overview of how COVID-19 has affected the job market. The Career Services team then explored how only using job boards is limiting people’s job search. During the Q&A, the group covered informational interviews, finding a role that allows you to work remotely, networking and industry trends.
2. Tips for building your network
During this workshop, students learnt the importance of networking and the best approaches for building one remotely. The Career Services team explored researching your network and the advantages of using LinkedIn.
3. A Q&A with Career Services
This workshop was completely led by the questions asked by our students. The Career Services team used their expert knowledge and experience to help students tackle their personal job search obstacles. We heard about how to identify and utilise your transferable skills for a career change and more.
4. A Q&A with the Talent Acquisition team at AO
This workshop had industry experts from the Talent Acquisition team at AO, specialising in tech roles, join. The guests helped students understand how to stand out to potential employers and gained some great insights into how recruiters find the right talent.
5. Building confidence in your search for the perfect career
Special guest Personal and Team Development coach and the former Head of Digital Operations at Three, Amanda Kirby joined this workshop for a discussion and tips on how to increase confidence. This workshop was really interactive, with great advice being shared from both our Career Consultants and other students. Amanda also gave some valuable practical tips on preparing for and during interviews, both virtual and in-person.
Looking for more support in your career?
If you’re looking for a career change or to enhance your current career, get in touch to see how we can help. We offer industry-leading and globally recognised online training within IT, coding, project management and cyber security. Once you’re a student, you are fully supported by an award-winning StudentCareTM team and have access to our unrivalled Career Services.
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