Career Zone Podcast

In our Law mini-series podcast, our Law Employability and Careers Consultants; Rachel, Tess and Sunny, talk to experienced professionals from both legal and non-legal sectors to hear their career experiences and advice. Interested to work as a barrister internationally? Felix Tang talks about the life of a barrister in Hong Kong, and the experiences he had at Exeter which helped him get there. A m...

Graham Perkins is the Associate Dean for Education within the Business School and an Associate Professor in Human Resource Management. Graham has both professional and academic experience within the field of Human Resource Management, having completed both undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in the subject, and having worked in industry in several HRM roles.  Graham came from a family in which...

In this episode, Dawn Lees, Student Employability and Development Manager, chats with alumnus Matt Light, Director at AscellaHealth, about building a career in Bid Writing. With 15 years experience leading bid and proposal teams across both the public and private sector, Matt shares his journey from a junior bid writer to team leader. Matt explains the various career pathways within the profession...

In our Law mini-series podcast, our Law Employability and Careers Consultants; Rachel, Tess and Sunny, talk to experienced professionals from both legal and non-legal sectors to hear their career experiences and advice. In this episode Tess Read, Employability and Career Consultant, talks to Grace Light, a current Law student. Grace shares her journey to securing a training contract, highlighting...

In this episode, Employability and Careers Consultant Sunny Lalli, is joined by BSc Human Sciences graduate Zack Islam. Recipient of the University of Exeter Student of the Year award at  2024 Success for All conference, and also the Academic Success Award at the 2025 Student Social Mobility Awards, Zack shares his insights on the art of networking and how preparatory research can power conversati...

In our Law mini-series podcast, our Law Employability and Careers Consultants; Rachel, Tess and Sunny, talk to experienced professionals from both legal and non-legal sectors to hear their career experiences and advice. In this episode Tess Read, Employability and Career Consultant, talks to Evalyn Anstiss, a recent Law graduate, about her experience working with the Community Law Clinic. Evalyn s...

In this episode, Sunny Lalli, Employability and Careers Consultant and Rachel Haddy, Employability and Placements Adviser, explore ways to investigate values of sustainability at a careers fair. Useful Links B Corp: https://bcorporation.uk Windo: https://csrwindo.com Listen to associated Career Zone podcast episodes: What is a B Corp and why might you want to work for one? https://pod.fo/e/2be941

Ever wondered if ‘luck’ is something you can prepare for and use to your advantage? In this week’s episode, Dave Gyll-Murray, an Employability and Placements Adviser, explores Krumboltz’s Theory of Planned Happenstance – a mindset that encourages you to be open to unexpected opportunities and turn them into meaningful career steps. Dave shares five key skills to help you make the most of the unpla...

Understanding who you are is an incredibly important first step in thinking about what you want to do after you graduate. In this episode Dawn Lees, Student Employability and Development Manager, explores how you can reflect on what interests you, what your strengths, skills, preferences, values and motivations are and how this can help you with your career planning. Useful Links: Attend one of ou...

Once you have done your research, you’ll need to start making informed and realistic decisions to narrow down your options. In this episode, Dawn Lees, Student Employability and Development Manager, explores how you can use what you have discovered about yourself and learnt about the job market to decide which jobs or sector interests you most. Useful Links: Placements section   Jobs section  Empl...

Exploring your options involves expanding your knowledge of the range of occupations, sectors and organisations that may be of interest to you. In this episode, Dawn Lees, Student Employability and Development Manager, discusses how you can explore the opportunities available to you, whether that's applying for graduate roles or further study. Useful Links: Getting the most from LinkedIn   Network...

If you have reflected on your values, motivations and skills, have explored your options and have then decided what it is that you want to do, it is now time to take action. In this episode, Dawn Lees, Student Employability and Development Manager shares how you can actively seek the graduate level role or further study opportunity that you have decided is right for you so that you can transition...

In this episode, Kate Foster, Employability and Careers Consultant, is joined by Maddy and Stephen to discuss the Civil Service Fast Stream. With 17 specialist schemes across the country, it’s designed to fast-track you into management roles and give you the skills to shape national policy and services Maddy and Stephen share how they see the Fast Stream champions inclusivity and social mobility,...

In this week’s podcast, Sunny Lalli and Nicky Hutchinson, Employability and Career Consultants, are joined by Chloé Bayliss of Cornish Lithium. In this episode Chloé as then Stakeholder Engagement Coordinator and now Senior ESG Coordinator at Cornish Lithium, discusses some of the work roles at Cornish Lithium and the experience of working in a small medium enterprise (SME). In this conversation C...

In this episode, Nicky Hutchinson, Employability and Career Consultant shares top tips and ideas for inspiration to help you to think of your next steps.   Useful links: Explore options with your degree by visiting the What can I do with my degree? webpages. Explore different sector and occupations   Help with researching  career options   Help with researching sectors and employers   Attend one o...

At some point as a student, you’ve probably been asked ‘what are you going to do when you graduate?’. It can be a daunting question and it’s ok not to know. In this episode, Nicky Hutchinson, Employability and Careers Consultant, shares tips and advice on how to answer this question and explores what you can do to be a proactive explorer, developing your self-awareness and skills. Useful Links: Gr...

In this week’s episode, Rachel Coombes, Employability and Career Consultant speaks with Jasmine Thomas-Campbell, a current PhD student, about her journey to studying for a PhD. Jasmine shares what led her to pursue a PhD, how she found and applied for the right opportunity and why transferable skills really matter. Useful Links: Choosing postgraduate study webpage ( exeter.ac.uk/students/careers/p...

Rachel Sloan, Employability and Careers Consultant explores how AI is shaping sustainability policies and procedures in the workplace. Rachel looks at both the positive and negative impacts of AI on sustainability in the workplace. Useful Links: Help with researching an employer.  Help with using AI | Career Zone | University of Exeter This episode was devised by Dr Dawn Lees with input from gener...

In this episode Employability and Placement Adviser, Alexa, speaks with Elly a current 4th year Business and Management with Industrial Experience student who completed her placement year at Unilever.    Here Elly and Alexa discuss how you can remain resilient and keep yourself motivated throughout recruitment processes.   For further support, why not book onto one of our upcoming sessions on; Per...

In this week’s episode, Oliver Laity, Careers Information and Systems Manager, is joined by Eve Carney and Allan Stewart from the University’s Digital Transformation Team, to discuss product management as a career. Eve, Head of Product, and Alan, Product Manager, share what is meant by a product management role and share their career journeys. They offer advice to students on how to get into this...

In our Law podcast mini-series of Autumn 2024, our Law Employability and Careers Consultants; Rachel, Tess and Sunny, talked to experienced professionals from both legal and non-legal sectors to hear their career experiences and advice. In this bonus episode, Sunny Lalli, Employability and Career Consultant, talks to Ben Ainsley Gill, an international law arbitration lawyer. Ben and Sunny seek to...

Personal responsibility is about acting with integrity, honesty and self-awareness – owning your actions and learning from your mistakes. In this week’s episode, Rachel Haddy, Employability and Placements Adviser, highlights three key aspects of personal responsibility: accountability, following through on commitments and authenticity. Rachel shares how admitting mistakes, managing your workload h...

We last looked at the Graduate Labour Market in December 2024 and a lot has changed since then. In this episode, Dawn Lees, Student Employability and Development Manager, looks at the current state of the graduate labour market, focusing on the relationship between politics and the economy.* Dawn shares insights on how the global situation has impacted the graduate labour market as well as sharing...

In this week’s episode, Andrea Hodges, Employment Schemes Manager, is joined by second year student Olivia Osborne, to discuss how you can develop your skills, gain experience and build your connections. Andrea and Olivia share their advice on how you can demonstrate the skills you have when applying for jobs. Andrea also highlights the schemes you can utilise at the University, whether you are lo...

The second episode of Placements 101 focusses on money – how to manage your finances while on placement. Everyone’s financial situation is different and how you manage money is a personal choice. In this episode Anya and Immy share their experiences and offer practical advice on how they handled their finances during their placements.    If you're unsure what you want to do with your third year, o...