Your careers service – here to help

Your university careers service is a mine of useful information and resources for students looking for their first job.

Careers services provide you with quality careers guidance and information so that you can manage your career development. You may be offered careers and educational guidance on an individual and/or group basis and through a variety of media ranging from individual interviews to e-guidance and large events, such as graduate recruitment fairs. 

Services have strong links with employers, promote specific job vacancies and arrange on-campus employer presentations; some also co-ordinate student placements. Many careers services have also formed partnerships with academics and employers to develop careers education programmes, facilitating opportunities for students to develop career management skills, such as decision making, employability skills, such as teamwork, or gain important information about subjects, for example through further study.

Help! I don't know what to do

If you're not sure which career path you want to pursue, you're not alone. Some students visit their careers service certain that they want to work in a particular sector; many more are just starting out and are looking for direction. Careers advisers can't tell you what to do, but they will help you to understand your strengths and tell you a bit about a range of career areas which might suit you and help you to form your action plan.

Recent developments

Careers services have been quick to respond to the changing face of graduate recruitment. It's become increasingly important for graduates to build a portfolio of skills so that they can clearly demonstrate that they have the potential to meet employers' needs. Your careers service will help you find ways to both recognise the skills you already possess and develop new skills. Careers advisers also work closely with placement offices to help ensure that you learn from structured experience.

Technology has changed the way careers advice is provided. Alongside the traditional duty advisory sessions where you meet a careers adviser for a quick query or longer consultation, most careers services now offer an e-guidance option for students via e-mail and websites. Up-to-date information is made available in information rooms or careers libraries in both hard copy and via a range of technologies, particularly via websites.

Some services also produce their own publications, such as job vacancy bulletins and careers guides, outlining opportunities available at their own institution. Check your careers service website for details. You can find links to career service websites through the menu on the Careers advice homepage. Careers services have also been very quick to acknowledge the increasing diversity of our student population, developing services in careers education, information and guidance for non-traditional groups such as access, mature students and students with disabilities.

We know what we're talking about!

Careers advisers are up to date with labour market information and the needs of employers, students and graduates. We survey graduates each year to gather information on their 'first destinations' which provides valuable information for careers services and can inform government policy. Individual services have very close links with employers and course providers. Representatives from our professional association, the Graduate Careers Ireland (GCI), also liaise with relevant agencies to keep up to date with trends; indeed GCI members are often consulted by government agencies and the media.

After you leave

In Ireland, careers services provide at least basic advice and guidance services to recent graduates (NOT current students) of other HE institutions, usually subject to the restriction that the institution's own students/graduates receive priority. 

Written by John Hannon, Careers Adviser, National University of Ireland, Galway.