Career Zone Podcast

In this episode Employability and Career Consultant Sarah Blunt sits down with Mia, a final year Biological Sciences student, to find out about her experience of attending a careers guidance appointment with the Career Zone. Sarah also speaks to Employability and Career Consultant Fiona Hartley to find out what you can expect if you book an appointment yourself.   Find out more on the Career Zone...

Jenny Clark from the Student Employability team working, with social science students at the University of Exeter explains why it is so important to ask relevant questions at the end of an interview, and provides some great suggestions for what you should and should not ask.

In this episode, Rae explores what is meant by the phrase ‘organisational culture’ and why it is important. Rae shares her advice on how you can learn about a company’s organisational culture when applying for jobs.   For more information on how to utilise the Alumni tool on LinkedIn, book onto one of our LinkedIn Lab sessions

In this episode focusing on Study Abroad, Gemma, an Employability and Placements Adviser in the Skills Team, talks to Callum (who studied at University of Plymouth but is currently working alongside the Global Opportunities team as a Graduate Business Partner), Harry and Izzy, each of whom completed a study abroad year.  Here we learn more about the experiences and opportunities that this year pro...

We last looked at the labour market situation in January, so in this episode, we are going to look at what has changed in the labour market since then.  To support your transition from university into employment or further study, we have created the Get Ready to Graduate programme. Whether you are exploring options, planning your next steps or actively applying for opportunities, we have something...

David Pritchard, an Employability & Careers Consultant, discusses gamification in the recruitment process. David explores what is meant by gamification, and why it is used by employers. He shares the type of experience you might expect with examples from KPMG, Deloitte and Unilever, as well as giving advice on how to approach game based selection tools if you come across them in the recruitment pr...

You will never stop learning in the workplace.  Here Clive Betts, Head of Staff Development at the University of Exeter, explores the tremendous value of both formal and informal CPD (Continued Professional Development) throughout your career.  Clive considers how you can make the most of it, how to think carefully about what you are learning, how you learn and what you are going to do as a result...

In this week’s podcast, Employability and Career Consultants Dominic Prosser and Jenny Phillips discuss why it’s important to say no in the workplace. Dominic and Jenny talk about when you should be saying no and share their tips on the different ways you can say no.   References mentioned in this episode: Campbell, J. (2019) The Resilience Dynamic, Practical Inspiration Publishing: London. Lees,...

As part of Neurodiversity Celebration Week, Rae is joined by University of Exeter student, Ridi. Ridi shares her experience of being neurodivergent and how neurodiversity can be explored and supported within the workplace.   If you would like to book an appointment with a Careers Consultant, contact the Career Zone and ask for a Guidance appointment.   You can find out more about Ridi's art busine...

In this episode, Jenny Phillips and Dominic Prosser, Employability and Career Consultants, discuss how to bounce back after a job rejection. Jenny and Dominic talk about some of the practical things you can do in this situation and share ideas on how you can become more resilient. If you would like to book an appointment with a Careers Consultant, contact the Career Zone and ask for a Guidance app...

For International Women's Day, Rae is joined by Daisy Anderson, University of Exeter graduate and founder of ROOBARB'S. Daisy shares the process of starting her business, ROOBARB'S from the initial idea to learning how to adapt her business idea. Daisy also discusses the support she has received from Student Startups and from her mentor.  You can find ROOBARB'S on the following: Instagram: @roobar...

In this week’s episode University of Exeter graduate, Lucy, Director of Legal and Data at Terrafirma, shares her top tips for graduates looking to secure their first role in the Green sector.   You can find more information for career development for sustainability here . You can find out more about Green Consultants and access the training to explore whether working in the sustainability sector i...

In this episode, Rae is joined by University of Exeter student Maisie, a member of the Enactus Society. Maisie shares how her project, creating a climate change story book for children, came about from taking part in Challenges Online and how the project has benefited from the support Enactus offers.   You can find out more about Enactus  here . If you're thinking about working for yourself, build...

Katie Fennell-Harris, Programme Officer at the University of Exeter, introduces the Aspiring Educators programme and the range of opportunities available to you. Katie is joined by Leanne Galloway, an Early Years Adviser and Ofsted Inspector, who shares her top 5 skills that you need if you are thinking about a career in teaching. Katie also discusses how you can go about gaining teaching experien...

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) In this episode we look at the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and how they can relate to your career planning. Rae takes a look at a some of the SDGs to help you think further about what interests you and how focusing on your passion and skills can help you to make a difference.   For more information visit: United Nations Sustainable Development – 1...

In this episode, we will be thinking about careers in the green sector. Rae discusses what the green sector is and how every job has the potential to become green. University of Exeter graduates, Grace and Jasmin, share their advice on how to get involved in the green sector. Resources & links   Career Development for Sustainability | Career Zone | University of Exeter   Green Consultants | Career...

Content warning: This podcasts discusses eating disorders. In this week’s episode Rachel Sloan, Employability and Placements Adviser, is joined by Jo Whitfield, National Officer for Beat Eating Disorder Charity. Jo discusses eating disorders in the workplace and shares tips on how to manage them in a workplace.   For more information and support on eating disorders visit: Beat : Access to resource...

We last looked at the graduate labour market in September, but what has changed since then? In this episode, Rae takes a look at the current state of the graduate labour market. If you're thinking about working for yourself, building a portfolio or entrepreneurial career, contact the Careers Zone to book an Entrepreneurs Guidance appointment. If you would like help making career decisions or explo...

As part of Digital and Coding Week, Ben Toulson, an Employability and Career Consultant, is joined by Sarah Burne James, Solution Architect at IBM. Sarah and Ben discuss what IBM do, how to work in the tech industry if you don’t have a tech background and the importance of technical curiosity. For more resources on digital & coding skills and to find out what events are running throughout the week...

In this episode Rae considers how the rise in Artificial Intelligence (AI) will help businesses remove repetitive tasks, and explores how your skills can fit into this ever expanding sector to help address social inequalities, create jobs and improve people’s lives. References: Microsoft’s Unlocking the UK’s potential with digital skills Unlocking the UK's Potential with Digital Skills - Microsoft...

As part of Digital & Coding Week, Rachel Sloan, Employability & Placements Adviser talks to Claire Barret, Director at APIsFirst. Claire talks about her career journey and shares her advice to students interested in working within the digital sector. Jobs in the IT sector are open to all graduates, and Claire shares how a grounding in any degree subject can help you with a career in the IT sector....

As part of Digital & Coding Week, Rae explores what is meant by disruptive thinking and how it can bring change to businesses. Rae discusses the difference between innovation and disruptive thinking and shares what you need to be able to do and the skills you will need to develop in order to be a successful disruptive thinker. For more resources on digital & coding skills and to find out what even...

In this week’s episode, Laura Ibarra Hempel, College Coordinator for Humanities, explores perfectionism, what it means and how it can affect your behaviour at work. Laura also shares her advice on what you can do to tackle perfectionism. If you would like to explore this further the University Wellbeing team will be running a webinar on 9th Feb on perfectionism that will help you understand perfec...

In this episode, Branwen Cleaver, Programme Assistant, is joined by students Blakeney, Francesca and Maisie to share their experience of what it was like to take part in Grand Challenges. They discuss why they got involved, how taking part in the week has helped to develop their employability skills and share their tips on getting the most out of the week. Grand Challenges is a project week, in wh...

Mair George, Freelance Theatre Producer and External Facilitator on the Create Your Future programme, explores how to choose your referees for professional job applications. As part of the recruitment process, it is likely you will be asked to submit names of referees who are able to provide an insight into your previous work and your capabilities. In this episode, Mair provides examples of who yo...