Career clinic

Written by: Vesna Siljanovska

Scared of presentations? Not sure how to secure your place on a graduate scheme? Experts answer your career conundrums

[Q] I have an assessment day coming up, how can I prepare? 

The employer should send you information about what the assessment day covers and what competencies are being assessed. If not, call them and ask what you should expect. Once you know the structure the day will take and what is being assessed, you will start to feel more confident. You can start to prepare by thinking of examples of when you have demonstrated the competencies. Also imagine yourself doing well at the activities and think of positive reasons why you have been selected for this stage. This will help to build your confidence. Make sure you know where the assessment day is taking place and that you know how to get there. Always leave more than enough time – so that you arrive feeling positive and in control. 

Lindsay Hanson

Do as much as you can in advance to familiarise yourself with the whole process and to know what to expect. There is a wealth of information available on the types of tests you will be asked to undertake. Alas, you cannot prepare the answers, but you can rehearse similar tests. Plenty of practice is excellent preparation. Most of all, you should ensure that you have the correct mindset for the day. You should be assertive, enthusiastic and co-operative. It is not a competition, but teamwork is important. Be friendly, polite and supportive to other candidates, too.

Peter Panayotou

[Q] I have an interview coming up and know it’s good to ask some questions at the end. What will impress them? 

Make a list of questions that you want to ask before the interview. These might cover training, what it’s really like to work at the company and what a typical day is like. Make sure you listen throughout to ensure your question hasn’t already been covered by the interviewer. If at the end you can’t think of anything to ask, thank the interviewer, tell them they have been very thorough and all of the questions you had prepared have actually been covered.   

Lindsay Hanson

[Q] I didn’t get on to any schemes this year, but am planning on applying next year. What can I do in the meantime to improve my CV?

Firstly, when applying for positions take the time to tailor your CV and application to the job that you’re applying for. Highlight any relevant experience (whether it’s commercial or academic) and include something pertinent in your mission statement or overview. Secondly, during the rest of the year undertake some commercial or voluntary work. It doesn’t have to be in the field you want to enter (although obviously this is preferable) but any experience will be able to demonstrate the basic competencies that employers are looking for. Finally, take the coming months as an opportunity to fully research and understand the industry you’re wishing to progress in. Lack of commercial awareness can be a major stumbling block for applicants when invited to progress to the next stage.

Catherine Cheek

The most important thing is that you do something. Although graduate schemes offer structured training and development, there are a whole host of jobs out there that will help improve your work experience and more importantly, your CV. Whether you do some admin for a large organisation, data entry or become an office helper, all of this work experience will help you discover what you enjoy and whether the graduate scheme you applied for is really for you. Plus, if you establish yourself as a good and reliable employee, you may even be offered something more long term in a career you’d not thought of previously.

Vesna Siljanovska

[Q] My main work experience consists of bar work and retail, how can I use that experience to impress prospective employees?

Whilst bar work and retail experience may not necessarily be linked to your future career, you can use this experience to demonstrate to prospective employers 

the transferable skills that you will bring with you to the role for which you are applying for. This experience is an example of how you perform in the work environment, such as communication (serving customers), teamwork (working with other staff), time management (working within strict timescales), leadership (training or supervising others), problem solving (dealing with customer complaints) and so on. These are all valuable proven skills that you can apply to any role you undertake.

Peter Panayotou

[Q] I dislike presentations but many of the assessment days involve them. How can I overcome my fear?

Presentations are a key part of an assessment day and employers use them as an indicator of your communication and interpersonal skills. Often you will be able to select a topic of your choice to present on, for example, many graduates that apply to FDM present their final year project. This topic choice should put you more at ease, as you will be knowledgeable and enthusiastic on the presentation. When creating your presentation make sure it has an introduction, main body and clear conclusion. The final stage to help over come your fear would be to practice, practice and then practice some more! Try presenting to friends and family to help you feel more comfortable with the delivery of a presentation.

Louise Raycraft

As a relatively quiet English student, presentations were never my forte. However, it is commonplace for grads to be asked to do these during the recruitment process. The truth is, the more experience you gain speaking in front of people the easier it becomes. Remember, you have nothing to lose – at best you impress so much you get through to the next stage, at worst, you probably will never see the people you presented to again, but would have gained experience and perfected your technique to be even better next time!

Scared of presentations? Not sure how to secure your place on a graduate scheme? Experts answer your career conundrums

[Q] I have an assessment day coming up, how can I prepare?  

The employer should send you information about what the assessment day covers and what competencies are being assessed. If not, call them and ask what you should expect. Once you know the structure the day will take and what is being assessed, you will start to feel more confident. You can start to prepare by thinking of examples of when you have demonstrated the competencies. Also imagine yourself doing well at the activities and think of positive reasons why you have been selected for this stage. This will help to build your confidence. Make sure you know where the assessment day is taking place and that you know how to get there. Always leave more than enough time – so that you arrive feeling positive and in control. 

Lindsay Hanson

Do as much as you can in advance to familiarise yourself with the whole process and to know what to expect. There is a wealth of information available on the types of tests you will be asked to undertake. Alas, you cannot prepare the answers, but you can rehearse similar tests. Plenty of practice is excellent preparation. Most of all, you should ensure that you have the correct mindset for the day. You should be assertive, enthusiastic and co-operative. It is not a competition, but teamwork is important. Be friendly, polite and supportive to other candidates, too.

Peter Panayotou

[Q] I have an interview coming up and know it’s good to ask some questions at the end. What will impress them? 

Make a list of questions that you want to ask before the interview. These might cover training, what it’s really like to work at the company and what a typical day is like. Make sure you listen throughout to ensure your question hasn’t already been covered by the interviewer. If at the end you can’t think of anything to ask, thank the interviewer, tell them they have been very thorough and all of the questions you had prepared have actually been covered.   

Lindsay Hanson

[Q] I didn’t get on to any schemes this year, but am planning on applying next year. What can I do in the meantime to improve my CV?

Firstly, when applying for positions take the time to tailor your CV and application to the job that you’re applying for. Highlight any relevant experience (whether it’s commercial or academic) and include something pertinent in your mission statement or overview. Secondly, during the rest of the year undertake some commercial or voluntary work. It doesn’t have to be in the field you want to enter (although obviously this is preferable) but any experience will be able to demonstrate the basic competencies that employers are looking for. Finally, take the coming months as an opportunity to fully research and understand the industry you’re wishing to progress in. Lack of commercial awareness can be a major stumbling block for applicants when invited to progress to the next stage.

Catherine Cheek

The most important thing is that you do something. Although graduate schemes offer structured training and development, there are a whole host of jobs out there that will help improve your work experience and more importantly, your CV. Whether you do some admin for a large organisation, data entry or become an office helper, all of this work experience will help you discover what you enjoy and whether the graduate scheme you applied for is really for you. Plus, if you establish yourself as a good and reliable employee, you may even be offered something more long term in a career you’d not thought of previously.

Vesna Siljanovska

[Q] My main work experience consists of bar work and retail, how can I use that experience to impress prospective employees?

Whilst bar work and retail experience may not necessarily be linked to your future career, you can use this experience to demonstrate to prospective employers the transferable skills that you will bring with you to the role for which you are applying for. This experience is an example of how you perform in the work environment, such as communication (serving customers), teamwork (working with other staff), time management (working within strict timescales), leadership (training or supervising others), problem solving (dealing with customer complaints) and so on. These are all valuable proven skills that you can apply to any role you undertake.

Peter Panayotou

[Q] I dislike presentations but many of the assessment days involve them. How can I overcome my fear?

Presentations are a key part of an assessment day and employers use them as an indicator of your communication and interpersonal skills. Often you will be able to select a topic of your choice to present on, for example, many graduates that apply to FDM present their final year project. This topic choice should put you more at ease, as you will be knowledgeable and enthusiastic on the presentation. When creating your presentation make sure it has an introduction, main body and clear conclusion. The final stage to help over come your fear would be to practice, practice and then practice some more! Try presenting to friends and family to help you feel more comfortable with the delivery of a presentation.

Louise Raycraft

As a relatively quiet English student, presentations were never my forte. However, it is commonplace for grads to be asked to do these during the recruitment process. The truth is, the more experience you gain speaking in front of people the easier it becomes. Remember, you have nothing to lose – at best you impress so much you get through to the next stage, at worst, you probably will never see the people you presented to again, but would have gained experience and perfected your technique to be even better next time!

Vesna Siljanovska

Please share

• Tweet
• Email this
• Print this