The first thing to check is your visa status and how many hours a week you are allowed to work.

If you re from the European Union then you may work as many hours as you like, although this should be cautioned as you still have a degree to pass! If you’re here as a non EU student on the standard tier 4 visa than the usual rules are that you can work up to 20 hours per week during term time and unlimited in the holidays. Many employers will not be aware of the rules so you may have to gently educate them. To find out you’re exact status, look in your passport, or talk to UCL Rights and advice.

Once you know how long you can work you need one other bit of legal information. A national insurance number. Now, you can start work without one but you will need to get this sorted fairly quickly. A national insurance number allows you to work in the UK and makes sure you pay tax on your earning above the threshold of £146 per week. Anything you earn above this threshold will be taxed at 12%.

• 12% on your weekly earnings between £146 and £817
• an extra 2% on any earnings over £817

For more info go to the HMRC website (Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs)

Now you are ready to find work it’s good to know where to look. The first go to place should be UCL Jobonline. This is where all the employers that like UCL students will place their adverts. You can search for part time/full time work and internships as well as graduate positions for when you finish your studies. There are roughly a 1000 new posting a month.

The next place to look is the UCL union Job shop. It has mainly part time roles and most jobs are fairly local to UCL.

Other sites include

1. UCL Careers website job resources
2. http://www.e4s.co.uk/
3. If looking for positions in different countries ie. Not in the UK, then check out Going Global ( you will need your UCL ID and Password to sign in)

When you have found a job you want to apply for, you will often have to provide a CV (resume) and cover letter (Introduction letter) to be able to apply for the role. On the link below are some help sheets to show you how to put them together.

http://www.careerstagged.co.uk/resources/helpsheets~applications/all/popular/1

When you have a draft, come into the careers service and have it checked over by an adviser. We run 15 minute one to one sessions Monday-Thursday that you can book in the morning for later on that same day. There are no advanced bookings. For full instruction on how to book see the link below.

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/careers/students/advice

Don’t forget to bring the job advert you are applying for as it’s really important that your documents are tailored to the opportunity.

Similarly if you are invited for an interview, we can run a practice interview with you and make sure you are on peak performance on the day.

Happy job hunting and if your not sure where to look or how to apply and impress, come in and see us for a short guidance appointment. Click on the link above for detail on how to book.

Good luck!

Going Global is a service specifically designed to pull jobs and placement opportunities from an amazing range of listings and display them for you to search by country.  It’s the only site like this on the internet and you’ll need to log in here:  http://www.ucl.ac.uk/careers/students/jobs using your UCL ID.  The job search function has over 16 million (yes, 16 million!!) jobs and is updated daily so choose your country and go for it.

Going Global has over 40 different country profiles so if you’re interested in working anywhere in the world, you can use these to discover the top job websites, visa information and how to format your CV for a specific country.  Don’t miss their blog as well, where often other students will be sharing their experiences of being global citizens.  There is also an employers directory which allows you to search either by country (so you find out who are biggest and best in new countries), by industry or by name – could be very useful if you see a job advert and want to know more about the company.

And finally, for those of you who are keen to get into the Not for Profit or NGO sector, Going Global offers access to both idealist.org and the devex.com NGO listings.  You can find these in the job search section and use them to search for both voluntary and paid work within not for profit organisations by country.

Going Global is a great resource both for research into different countries and for finding work – have a look and see for yourself!

With the Autumn term having started, we offer a series of careers events specifically designed to address the needs of international students considering work or post-graduate study in the UK and overseas.

To book onto any of these sessions, please log in to your My Careers Service account.

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Monday 1^st October 2012, 1-2pm

De-mystifying the UK Job Market

An introduction to finding a job in the UK through a variety of different routes.  We will look at how to find job openings including graduate training schemes, examine other strategic approaches to job-hunting and look at cultural differences in the recruitment process.  We will also provide a term-by-term ‘job-success’ planner so you won’t miss important application deadlines.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the UK job market including the different ways for graduates to access it.
• Provide information on current market using data from previous UCL graduates and an employer’s perspective.
• Form a strategic approach to job hunting in the UK using different approaches such as networking, online tools and speculative applications
• Understand the recruitment cycle in the UK.

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Monday 8^th October 2012, 1-2pm

Working while you study and CV’s for part-time work

This one hour talk offers advice on how to combine earning money with effective studying, the legal requirements for working in the UK, information about the range of jobs that you might be able to do and where to look for part-time jobs.  We’ll then look at how a CV for part-time work should be structured.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the importance of having UK work experience on a CV for finding post study work in a global job market.
• Outline and signpost legal requirements for working part time while studying, including visa and tax issues.
• Explore different types of part-time work in the UK and sources to find jobs.
• Develop an awareness of the structure and content of typical UK CV’s, for part-time work and how to translate previous experiences to a style that future employers will understand.

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Monday 8^th October 2012, 5-6pm

Effective Job Applications

This seminar gives advice on how to effectively communicate your relevant skills to employers and provides key strategies to better stand out through the entire UK application process.  Discover how to build a sound argument that you have what the employer is looking for and learn how best to communicate that argument in your job applications

Learning Outcomes:

• Gain insight into UK employers or educational institution’s perspective and an overview of the application process.
• Understand how best to structure a UK CV and covering letter, and its key components
• Consider how best to explain your experiences in a way UK employers will understand their value and see how they match their job descriptions.
• Understand how best to answer competency (or other) questions on an application form and complete a personal statement.

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Tuesday 9^th October 2012, 1-2pm

Employer presentation – working in China for Mars

This session is presented by Mars representatives to help Chinese students understand the opportunities open to them within the large international organisation of Mars.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the graduate programmes available from Mars
• Gain insights into working for a large multi-national company in China both as a graduate and beyond
• Learn how the Mars recruitment programme works, including tips on completing the application forms and the assessment centre
• Hear real life accounts of working for Mars from a recent graduate

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Monday 15^th October 2012 1-2pm

Writing a UK CV

How can you make sure that your CV impresses an employer?  If you’re applying for jobs in the UK, an excellent CV is critical to your success.  This seminar gives advice on putting together an effective CV and formatting a powerful cover letter for the competitive UK market.  We will give you an insight into what UK employers are looking for, and point out common CV-writing mistakes.

Learning outcomes:

• Develop an awareness of the structure and content of typical UK CV’s, cover / motivation letters and application forms.
• Understand how to translate skills, experience and personal qualities gained through academic and other experiences to a recruiter.
• Explore techniques used in UK application processes, including reading job advertisements, analysing CV’s and tailor CV’s to specific recruiters.
• Articulate positively and convincingly your reasons for applying for specific jobs based in the UK.

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Monday 22^nd October 2012 5-6pm

De-mystifying the UK Job Market

An introduction to finding a job in the UK through a variety of different routes.  We will look at how to find job openings including graduate training schemes, examine other strategic approaches to job-hunting and look at cultural differences in the recruitment process.  We will also provide a term-by-term ‘job-success’ planner so you won’t miss important application deadlines.

Learning Outcomes:

• Understand the UK job market including the different ways for graduates to access it.
• Provide information on current market using data from previous UCL graduates and an employer’s perspective.
• Form a strategic approach to job hunting in the UK using different approaches such as networking, online tools and speculative applications
• Understand the recruitment cycle in the UK.

 —–

Monday 29^th October 2012 1-2pm

Effective Job Applications

This seminar gives advice on how to effectively communicate your relevant skills to employers and provides key strategies to better stand out through the entire UK application process.  Discover how to build a sound argument that you have what the employer is looking for and learn how best to communicate that argument in your job applications

Learning Outcomes:

• Gain insight into UK employers or educational institution’s perspective and an overview of the application process.
• Understand how best to structure a UK CV and covering letter, and its key components
• Consider how best to explain your experiences in a way UK employers will understand their value and see how they match their job descriptions.
• Understand how best to answer competency (or other) questions on an application form and complete a personal statement.

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For further information please visit: http://bit.ly/SrBODx

• While jobs at the Olympic park are no longer an option (all employees needed to be UK Boarder Agency approved by April), extra help within pubs, cafes, restaurants and retail will needed to handle the crowds.  Keep an eye on the Careers Services Jobonline website or visit the jobs section of the UCL Careers Service website so you don’t miss out.
• Often smaller business advertise their roles by posting notices in their window so keep your eyes peeled as you’re walking around your local neighbourhood.  Getting a local part-time job keeps your travel costs down, and also gets you really involved in your local community.
• The most common type of summer work is within the hospitality industry.  Agency’s such as Hospitalitystaff.co.uk or fest staff recruit for a whole range of roles from checking tickets to serving food and security across loads of different festivals and events.
• Individual venues also take on extra staff over the busy summer period.  A good example is the Royal Albert Hall which hosts the Proms between July and September and who is currently looking for stewards to help out.
• If you’re more interested in an experience and less worried about the money, why not try volunteering.  UCL Volunteering is right here on campus to help out and organisations like the Volunteer England have special sections on volunteering for Olympics.  Also many of the museums, galleries and concert halls will be looking for volunteers over summer.  An example is the Royal Festival Hall on the Southbank who are looking for extra volunteers for their Festival of the World.

To help you out with other ideas, doing up your CV or preparing for interviews, the UCL Careers Service will be open throughout the whole of summer (apart from the official UCL closure days) offering application checking and short guidance sessions.  To check times and see how to book, visit the Careers Service website.

If you are from Pakistan and thinking of returning to work there after finishing your degree in the UK there is good news. Pakistani employers are currently seeking to recruit new graduates and the demand is high for those with a good UK degree.

To build up links between employers and students the UKTI and the Education UK British Council recently launched a project called the ‘Corporate Initiative’ to spread the word about the opportunities available in Pakistan. Top employers teamed up with these organisations and visited universities where high numbers of students from Pakistan are enrolled. We met up with them at Brunel University to find that opportunities are available not only in multinational companies but in flourishing Pakistani organisations, NGOs and Government Organisations. Recruitment is particularly strong in the energy sector and also in telecommunications, FMCGs (fast moving consumer goods) and construction and development.

More details about the Corporate Initiative and the Partner Organisations for 2012 can be found in the ‘Business Recorder’ at: http://www.brecorder.com/home/events/ukit-career-fair-2012.html

For the other 2 posts in this series focusing on Pakistan, follow the link to our friends at International futures and look at their blog.

If you haven’t been on Going Global before you’re in for a treat. The idea of the site is to give you expert knowledge of the global job market, by giving you a run down on the current economic out look, hot sectors and how to approach job hunting in the country of your choice.

Under the ‘Country Guides’ section you click on the name of the country you want to look at and then can view info on:

Industry and Employment Trends,

Top Companies,

Professional and Social Networking,

Embassy Listings,

Financial Considerations,

Work Permits and Visas,

Résumé/CV Guidelines,

Interviewing Advice and Cultural Advice

What’s more, by clicking on the Jobs and Internships button you can then have access to 16 million opportunities around the globe!

So what are you waiting for………Check it out here Going Global site.!

Our parent body, The Careers Group, is holding a one day introductory course that will set out clearly how the development sector is structured, the different entry roles available and the combination of qualifications, skills and experience needed to get into international development.

• Learn how the  sector is structured and find out about a wide variety of jobs, graduate schemes, internships and short courses.
• Participate in a lunch time careers fair and network with education providers and NGO’s.
• Choose optional workshops on effective applications, working in emergency relief, campaigning and fundraising.

Keynote Speaker: Stephen O’ Brien, Parliamentary Under-Secretary Of  State For International Development, DFID

Organisations involved include:

• Action Against Hunger
• The Book Bus
• Childreach
• Christian Aid
• The Daneford Trust
• Development in Action
• Doctors of the World
• Inspirational Volunteer Journeys
• Mad4Africa
• Medair UK
• Peru Support Group
• PKF
• Raleigh International
• Results
• Skillshare International – International Citizen Service
• SOAS
• The Social Investment Consultancy
• Teach a Man to Fish
• World Service Enquiry
• theIDLgroup
• GOAL UK
• Oxfam
• 2Way Development
• Restless Development
• War on Want
• VSO – newly confirmed!
• The University of East Anglia (UEA)- newly confirmed!
• The University of Manchester -  newly confirmed!
• International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) – newly confirmed!
• One Acre Fund – newly confirmed!
• Inter Cultural Youth Exchange (ICYE) UK – newly confirmed!

For the latest programme and to register , please visit this website

To the post….

So maybe becoming a caped crusader is a little far fetched. That is unless your local neighbourhood watch scheme has gone militant or you’ve watched the film “Kick ass” one too many times. There is however a mystery surrounding what international students go on to do. Well that is, until now!

Every year a survey is carried out of all students leaving university, 6 months after they graduate. It’s called the DLHE report (Destination of leavers in higher education) and its results are often surprising. For full details of where international students end up  see the destinations page at International Futures.

Did you know that half of international students find employment straight out of University and of that number 62% stay in England while 29% find work in their home country.

Those that landed their first job said that the top tip to securing employment was personal contacts and previous work experience in the company. A massive 24% landed jobs through Networking and 21% said they found their current role because they had completed a summer placement or internship for their employer. For current vacancies check out job online or international job online if working over seas is your dream destination.

The top employers were the NHS and UCL itself it seems, however this is likely due to the large number of Medics trained at UCL. Other big employers were Ernst and Young and Tesco. Almost 60% of students worked for employers with 250 or more employees; however the second largest group of students worked for companies with 1 to 49 employees. The figures show that when applying for job roles it is vitality important to include SME (Small to medium size enterprises) in your search.

So what about those that didn’t go on to employment? Well; about a quarter of student go onto further study after they graduate, while a further 6% combine work and study, 6% were still looking for work and 14% were doing something that didn’t fall neatly into a particular category and classed as “other”.

So there you have it, while many students go on to work in England or sign up for another round of academia, 14% remain men and women of mystery, so when Commissioner Gordon puts up the Bat Call, it could be one of your cohort that answers. Just maybe…..

Thanks to our friends at International futures for the number crunching.

For the full destination break down and more surprising facts click here

AW

Teach For India

In the first 3 years of existence, Teach For India has attracted Fellows from top universities such as Indian Institute of Technology, Indian Institute of Management, Harvard, St.Stephen’s College, St. Xavier’s College, and many more top-notch colleges in India and across the globe. The Fellowship also attracts young professionals from reputed companies such as Accenture, McKinsey, Schlumberger, Tata Group and several more international and Indian companies. The first batch of 80 alumni who graduated in April 2011 are today spread across India and the world, working with organizations such as McKinsey, Leader’s Quest, NIIT Foundation, Akanksha etc. and some are even studying at universities such as Harvard, Chicago Booth, Kellogg and Cornell. To know more, please visit www.teachforindia.org

You could also get in touch with Abishek Maroli who works with the Fellowship Recruitment team at Teach For India and assists applicants from universities outside India. His email address is abishek.maroli@teachforindia.org.

UCL Careers Service are hosting the Marketing & FMCG Fair, which is aimed at students considering careers in industries areas like: Marketing, PR, Advertising and New Media.

What? UCL Marketing & FMCG Fair

When? Thursday 27th October from 5.30 to 8.00 pm

Where? Old Refectory and Jeremy Bentham Room, Wilkins Building

There’s a diverse mix of exhibitors on show including some of the world’s biggest brands such as Google, Ogilvy, Trip Advisor, Proctor & Gamble, Ketchum Pleon and Unilever.

Many have never been on campus before and are keen to recruit from UCL, so don’t miss out on this unique opportunity. The fair is open to students and graduates from any degree background.  No booking required – just turn up with your UCL ID card!

To find out more please see: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/careers/students/events/fairs/fmcg/