When searching for your first graduate job it is hard to figure out what you should expect for a starting salary. To help you, below is an infographic that displays the average UK graduate salary for your region so you can see what graduates are earning in your area. When interviewing for any job, a question that is bound to come up is: “What are your salary expectations?” For recent graduates, this can be quite an uncomfortable question. You do not want to price yourself out of a role or sound unrealistic. On the flip side, you also do not…
Author: CareerExperts
BBC’s ‘The Apprentice’ seeks out candidates who are supposed to be the UK’s top, up-and-coming entrepreneurs. These young business-savvy professionals battle it out in weekly tasks for the ultimate prize of Lord Alan Sugar’s £250,000 investment. You would expect job seekers across the country to be able to learn a thing or two from watching these enterprising minds as they face one of the most rigorous recruitment processes around. However, after 10 series The Apprentice’s audience finds themselves more often entertained by the stupidity of candidates as opposed to being inspired by their entrepreneurial minds and expertise. Over 10 series,…
There are a lot of places to look for your next job opportunity, but what are the top job search sites in the UK? It is a good idea to use a combination of sites when conducting your job search. This way you are most likely to find the best opportunities out there that are relevant to you. The UK has plenty of job boards to choose from and no matter how well the job market is faring you can rely on these sites to have 1000s of opportunities listed across numerous sectors. As such, there is a very good…
When your time at university is drawing to a close the question that everyone asks you and that you need to ask yourself is: What’s next? Taking a gap year could be the answer. A lot of graduates are unsure about what they want to do after university. Some do not feel like they want to jump straight into a full-time career the day after picking up their degree certificate. A very popular option for graduates is taking a gap year. There are numerous things you can do and places to go on a gap year. You may be keen…
Stress is an unavoidable part of our busy lives and thriving careers and while we can’t oust it from our lives completely we can certainly learn how to beat stress. There are plenty of well-known techniques that can help us to cope with stress, but the one that comes out as the frontrunner is exercise. Physical activity as a means of beating stress is recommended by most healthcare professionals who encourage us to stay physically active. If hitting the gym or going for a run doesn’t float your boat (although these are great ways to de-stress), you can still partake…
Phone interviews are an extremely common way for employers and recruiters to initially screen candidates so knowing a few successful phone interview tips will put you on the right track for job search success. Employers and recruiters often conduct phone interviews before inviting candidates to face-to-face interviews as it gives them an opportunity to get an initial impression of you and to find out a bit more about the skills and experience listed on your CV. Usually, phone interviews are fairly short and straightforward. They are likely to be mostly about you, your experience and what you are looking for…
A lot of graduates find themselves leaving university still feeling a little unsure about what career they want to pursue. There are a lot of options for them to choose from and an area where a lot of graduates veer towards is working in a commercial environment. After graduating, you may feel that you should be looking for a graduate role that relates to your degree in some way, but this does not have to be the case. The skills that most graduates acquire while studying at university lend themselves to working in a commercial environment. What is a commercial…
Do you want your CV to stand out from the crowd of career-hungry candidates? A unique tip that may well help you to get a job is setting up and writing your own blog! Today both individuals and businesses big and small are regularly posting and sharing content online. Many of us find ourselves reading blog articles on a daily basis, being directed there by catchy headlines on social media and landing on informative pages that answer your online queries. The point is that blogs are really popular! It is unsurprising that blogging has become so popular so quickly when…
What does your online presence say about you? Social networks like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram are all the rage nowadays and I am guessing that you use at least one if not numerous social platforms. We love social media for keeping in touch with family and friends, sharing updates, organising events and even the occasional snooping. However, all of this online activity means that other people and, in particular, current and potential employers have a handy digital window through which to consider you and your lifestyle. It is increasingly important to be aware of the impact that our thoughts,…
Workplace communications, and the mutually beneficial relationships developed from them, are central to career success. Respect from our co-workers, managers, clients and customers hinges on the strength of our interpersonal skills. Strong communication helps us to move forward and upwards in our career, so mastering these skills holds endless benefits for you. Here are 7 ways that you can develop and improve your workplace communications: 1. Be positive Your communication and relationships with colleagues will be most effective if you are a positive person. No one likes to be around moany people with negative attitudes, so try to be the…
Having a list of things to ask in an interview is an important part of the preparation process. If you are currently preparing for an interview then you have probably thoroughly researched the company, come up with questions you might be asked and planned some great responses. However, in all this interview preparation it can be easy to forget that you should also have a list of things to ask your interviewer. Having a list of questions prepared will benefit you for a number of reasons: You can use your questions to further show off and validate the skills that…
The success of any business selling products or services is heavily dependent on the development and maintenance of strong relationships with clients or customers. This is why account management is so important. An Account Manager’s skills lie in managing client relations. It is these important relationships that continue to drive the success and results of their organisation. Successful account management means a successful business. Here are 5 top tips that all Account Managers should follow in order to keep those clients happy and coming back for more: 1. Fulfil your Promises As an Account Manager it’s important to do what…
The UK employment rate, job market and salary statistics are continuously shifting. If you are looking for a new opportunity or are involved in hiring processes at your company, it is important that you keep up to speed. The number of job seekers fluctuates with the change in markets and so do their expectations. With the increasing UK employment rate, today’s job seekers are looking for more than the salaries and packages that were on offer 5 years ago. What you need to know today UK Employment Rate The employment rate now stands at 73.3%. This is the highest rate…
If you want to know what key skills and personality traits an employer is looking for at your interview then you should revisit the job description. It is also important not to forget the basic things that they expect to see from you. So, what do employers want to see at interview? The infographic below highlights 12 things that you should do when attending an interview. You may think some are obvious, but sometimes it is the simple things that make the most impact.
Social media is rapidly becoming a popular place to advertise and find job opportunities. To find a job on social media, you do not even have to search. Once you have followed or liked the right pages, the jobs will come to you. Employers and recruiters are now looking for career-driven individuals on social media. They want candidates who show a real interest in their brand. If you want to get ahead of your job seeking competition, social media is a good option to try. Here’s how you can find a job on social media: Step 1: Create Professional Profiles…
Communication plays a huge part in our daily lives and careers and having good communication skills can often be the difference between failure and success. Taking a communication styles quiz like this one created by Bridgewater Resources UK will allow you to discover how you naturally communicate. It may well give you some food for thought when it comes to working with people who have different communication styles. Understanding communication styles is the first step in becoming an effective communicator. How we prefer to communicate is not going to work well with everyone so it is important to be aware…
Receiving an invitation to attend a job interview is exciting as you are one step closer to landing a great opportunity. Considering key tips for job interviews will help you to thoroughly prepare for your job interview and to be able to go into it feeling confident. Taking the time to properly conduct research before an interview will enable you to perform at your best and prove to an employer that you are serious and enthusiastic about the opportunity. Your research can also give you the knowledge to stand out from your competition. “Knowledge is power” – this is a…
Being a manager is hard work and the success of most companies depends on its managers. Possessing the traits of a good manager and utilising these skills can make a big impact on any business. Employees and team members want a manager who they can follow and learn from. A manager needs to be able to motivate and inspire their team to success. Here are 12 traits of a good manager that all leaders should try to possess: 1. Think positive 2. Be honest 3. Delegate 4. Communicate 5. Inspire 6. Align the team 7. Balanced 8. Give credit 9.…
When the interview nerves kick-in so do the sweaty hands, thumping heart and dry mouth. None of these are very helpful when you need to perform well, so it is important to know how to combat your nerves. We all get nervous about various situations throughout our lives and, unfortunately, our nerves often have a negative impact on how we perform. In your career, you may feel nervous before your interview time, making a pitch/presentation, or prior to a particularly important meeting. Whatever situation your nerves may be affecting, there are a few techniques that you can use to combat them.…
Every manager has a unique personality and their own tailored set of skills and methods. They do a lot for the businesses they work for. The main challenge that managers face every day is people management and these people management tips may well help you hone your management style and get your team on side. Managers can lead very varied teams full of different personalities. It is, therefore, pretty much impossible to come up with a straightforward formula for being a great manager. There are, however, a few key people management tips that will help managers to lead their team…