Employability and Careers

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Employability and Careers

The Researcher Development Programme (RDP) helps you progress through your research studies by identifying your existing skills and providing opportunities to further develop your skills and experience. As well as transferable skills that will make you a successful researcher, the RDP also aims to provide skills that have wider utility which will increase your employability.

Employability and Careers offers a wide range of support for Postgraduate Researchers to access during your PhD online or in the Employability and Careers Hubs on each campus.

Employability Portal

Find the Employability Portal on the Student Portal for lots of information and updates on workshops, events and how you can access advice and support.

There is a dedicated page with relevant information for Postgraduate Researchers

1-1 appointments

You can call into the Employability and Careers Hub for information drop-ins, CV or application reviews, or to arrange a career guidance appointments.

Find out more via the Advice pages in the Employability Portal.
Book your 1-1 consultation

Job Search and Application Strategies

Job searching and application forms can be tough and time consuming. By seeking the support of our Employability and Careers team, you can learn what employers in higher education and beyond are looking for in candidates, how to effectively search for future roles and how to present yourself most effectively online or on paper.

Preparing for Job Interviews

The Employability and Careers team can help you to gain confidence in your ability to perform at interview and manage your verbal and visual impact on others. Our experienced team can help you explore what essential preparation you need to carry out before your interview and help you to identify and prepare for questions that you might be asked, as well as exploring techniques to help you manage your thinking and strategies for coping with interview stress and anxiety.

Psychometric Tests

Graduate psychometric tests help to identify a candidate's skills, knowledge and personality. They're often used during the preliminary screening stage of a recruitment process, or as part of an assessment centre. They are objective, convenient and strong indicators of job performance; making them very popular with large graduate recruiters.

Practice tests can be found on the homepage of the Employability Portal

PhD Researchers can attend any Employability and Careers Events on campus

All of our events are open to Postgraduate Researchers. These include workshops, employer presentations, fairs and skill sessions delivered by employers and the Employability and Careers team.

You will find details on the Career Events page of the Employability Portal.

Careers Fairs

Postgraduate Researchers are encouraged to attend our Careers Fairs to meet professionals from different organisations and broaden your understanding of how your research can impact on business and industry. Networking at the fairs can also give you an insight into what employers are looking for and how you can stand out as a Researcher.

These sector specific Fairs are open to all Postgraduate Researchers:

Autumn Graduate Recruitment and Placement Fairs

The Researcher Development Programme includes tailored Employability and Careers workshops and webinars for PhD Researchers.