Further to Holly’s post below about your options if you didn’t get the result you hoped for, I thought it’d be useful to pass on some info about the entry requirements for the Royal Bank of Scotland.

A colleague of ours recently went on a visit there and and was informed that not only was their minimum requirement a 2(ii) but that they do actually recruit people with 2(ii)s and not just grades above that. They obviously look at your academic credentials but also at other competencies such as leadership, communication and people skills.

They seem to be genuinely enthusiastic about candidates with a 2(ii) as they see them as potentially having acquired skills/experinces outside of their degree-this can indicate that they may be suited to the roles on offer with those requirements.

Their programmes are listed on their website- most are closed for 09 entry but applicants can pre-register for the 2010 entry application form whe it opens in September.

http://makeitrbs.com

I saw this in the news this morning and decided I HAD to post it!  Wookey Hole Caves in Somerset are advertising for a witch. Yes really!

Job description: Live in a cave, be a witch and do all the things witches do.

Salary: £50,000 pro rata

Requirements:

• Must be able to cackle (see I KNEW that skill would come in handy one day!)
• Must be prepared to travel
• Must be able to work weekends and school holidays
• Must be a good comminicator
• Must not be allergic to cats
• Female, male or transgender witches may apply

Application process:

Auditions will be held on July 28th at 11am at Wookey Hole Caves.  Come dressed as a witch, in character and with any essential witch accoutrements.  A limited range of potion ingredients will be available on the day, (so you can leave the eye of newt at home).

More information: See the website, email: witch@wookey.co.uk or call 01749 672243.

Good luck!

If your heart sank when you read your final degree classification, don’t despair there are still options out there.

Firstly, consider what the reason was for your result.  If you were ill or had some other extenuating circumstances, explaining them in the right way in your applications may result in an exception being made.  But this will very much depend on what else you have to offer.

Sometimes when you look at job adverts, especially for graduate recruitment schemes you will see a degree classification specified, but most vacancies will be more interested in your skills, work experience and personal qualities.  In your situation it is doubly vital to think carefully about everything you have to offer and provide evidence of each skill. Have a look at page 4 of our CV handout for advice on how to do this.

If you had a career or further study pathway in mind that has been derailed by your results I recommend that you arrange an appointment with the Careers Service.  We can look at whether it is possible to take an alternative route to your career goal or help you explore alternative options.

Above all – chin up!  Once you get established in most careers your degree classification will cease to matter.

If you think you might be interested in working for the BBC don’t miss their Virtual Careers Fair on Wednesday 29th July.

You will be able to talk directly with BBC recruiters and take part in interactive seminars delivered by professionals within the BBC.

You will need to register online to take part.

We recently ran a session delivered by local Manchester recruitment agencies, so I thought it may be helpful to share some of their views with you.

They pointed out, as you would expect, that it’s a tougher market out there so there is a need to be as prepared as possible as far as CVs and interview skills are concerned. They are happy to give advice on CVs and applications though they did point out too that they wouldn’t be able to advise as much as the Careers Service would (which is good to know!)

An interesting view was that the benefit of working with an agency is that you have a “supporter” almost. They recommended that you become familiar with a particular recruitment consultant, as they in turn get to know you and have you in mind when a suitable job comes up. They can then act as your advocate with the company.

Many consultancies specialise in a certain area (eg Engineering or IT)so will therefore have  a good deal of industry knowledge ie who is currently recruiting, who is likely to in the future etc. So I think it really helps to do your research on any specialisms before signing up with an agency.

Here are some tried and tested tips for dealing with agencies:

1) There are loads of them out there so do your homework on what they canoffer before you start.  If you’re at all unsure check with www.rec.uk.com- any agency appearing on their list has to adhere to a set of standards.

2)Remember that agencies are commercial organisations whose obligation is to their client (the employer) and it’s in their interests to place you with a client so they can pick up their fee. Having said that they are unlikely to place you if they think you don’t meet the standards expected by the employer so don’t assume you’ll walk into a job either.

3) Beware as some agencies charge for checking your CV but here at the Careers Service we provide feedback for free! Insist on seeing your CV before it’s submitted to employers, as from time to time we hear anecdotes from graduates about their CVs undergoing changes without them seeing them first…

On the whole using agencies can be a useful way of earning some cash quickly plus they may act as a stepping stone to something you really enjoy. Also every day you spend in the workplace is helpful as it gives you real examples you can use in your future jobseach, so good luck and if you want more info go to:

http://www.studentnet.manchester.ac.uk/careers/job-huntingandworkexperience/findingwork/recruitmentagencies/

With a recession in full swing everyone knows that there are graduates and other people looking for jobs, some of whom may be quite desperate. Unfortunately there are people out there who see this fact as an opportunity to scam jobhunters.

Job scams can take several forms, some of which we have blogged about before:

• Email of job offer scam
• Scam job advertisement

In recent weeks we have heard several stories from graduates who have been contacted after posting their CVs on national jobsites (things like Monster) or on blogs. They were invited for interviews by companies.

One was for a part-time courier position where the job involved sending and receiving unspecified parcels – think what illegal goods you could unwittingly end up handling!

Another offered training courses, the cost of which would be deducted from the graduate’s salary once he got a job – but there was no guarantee the courses would actually be useful or relevant, and no guarantee that a job would be found. We were concerned that the graduate might be liable for the costs of the courses even if they proved to be of no help to his jobsearch.

If something does not ring true about a job vacancy or offer what can you do about it?

1. See the information on our website about spotting scam jobs
2. Follow the advice on the Financial Services Authority (FSA) webguide to staying safe against scams. This site also includes links to places you can report scams for investigation.

It’s definitely NOT for James Bond wannabes, but MI6 or to use its official name the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) offers a range of exciting and challenging careers with lots of variety, that really make a difference.  The number of vacancies is reported to be increasing.

SIS does not have a graduate scheme as such but they particularly encourage applications from recent graduates with either undergraduate or postgraduate degrees as well as people who are further on in their careers.  Likely graduate entry roles are for operational officers, language specialists and technology experts.  Explore their website to find out more.

To be eligible you must:

• be a British citizen
• be 21 years of age or over (or will be in the next 6 months)

Before you apply you need to be aware that, to quote the SIS website; ‘You are embarking on a lengthy recruitment process which will be intrusive yet require complete discretion from you. If you feel this is in any way problematic, you should consider carefully whether to proceed with your application.’

You will need to submit detailed vetting questionnaires. Your background and that of your family will be rigorously security checked. You will be drugs tested and have to take a medical.

If you’re new to the graduate blog, you may not have heard about the Manchester Graduate Internship Programme.

We introduced the scheme last year, which aims to provide short term, PAID positions for graduates in organisations across Greater Manchester.  Perfect for those of you wanting to stay in Manchester and looking to gain experience and earn money whilst you decide on your long term plans.

All internships we advertise are between 4 – 12 months.  There are opportunities across all sectors and in a variety of roles.

In addition, any graduate apppointed via MGIP will gain access to an exclusive training programme managed by your Careers Service – enabling you to develop your skills and  interact with other fellow graduates on a regular basis.

New internships are appearing on the website daily, so if you can’t see anything that interests you at the moment, do keep checking.

Remember these are exlusively for University of Manchester graduates (UK and EU nationals only) and the pool of applicants is therefore smaller and competition less fierce than for other roles.

To view current internships, visit the website

www.careers.manchester.ac.uk/mgip

It’s nice to have some good news to bring to you in these testing times.

Teach First have just announced that they will be recruiting around 700 graduates for their next intake.  They are particularly keen to attract graduates for Maths, Science and ICT teaching roles.  They also have lots of excellent opportunities located outside London.  Applications opened on 3rd June and assessment centres are running throughout the summer.  Apply now at www.teachfirst.org.uk

Good Luck!

Just had an e-mail this morning from a contact at Kelloggs with a vacancy whose deadline is today. Very short notice but I thought I would quickly post it in case any linguists are interested…

The post is an 8 week temporary contract based in the Manchester head office. The ability to communicate in at least one additional European language to English is advantageous.

Further details and apply online.