Worried your CV is looking a bit bare? Or wondering how to explain a period when you weren’t working or studying? We’ve collected some of our top tips on tackling gaps on your CV, so you can feel confident whatever you’re applying for.
Category: Part time work
Ten tips to make the most of your winter vacation!
Now that the holiday season is upon us, have you considered how you might spend the break from University? If you want to make the most of the time, this can be a good opportunity to continue your careers and employability journey.
Have a look at our top 10 tips to help you maximise the break from University:
My SME Internship: Nada – Deki
Hi, I’m Nada, my internship role was as a Fundraising Research Assistant with the International Development charity, Deki. I contributed to the Fundraising Team primarily by conducting background research into Trusts and Foundations which was the basis for other team members to make grant applications.
Bristol PLUS Award – Get rewarded for your extra-curricular activities
The Bristol PLUS Award rewards you for going above and beyond alongside your studies
Maybe you have a part-time job, are running your own small business, or are thinking of doing some volunteering or an internship. If so, you could already be partway there to achieving the Award! As long as your experience takes place during your time as a student, you could get recognition for it.
Third-year Music student Honey Wyatt achieved the Bristol PLUS Award after working in a café during the holidays, and also set up and ran her own podcast.
‘Through working as front of house at a restaurant and café, I developed my communication, teamwork, and resilience. You need to be able to handle high pressure situations, such as if there is a rude or impatient customer or you have to manage several tasks at once (and we were understaffed, so this happened often).
Along with that I learnt an element of independence, as I had to figure out how to deal with a situation if there is nobody there to ask for help.
Running my podcast has been a completely different experience, although I have also developed my teamwork, independence and communication skills, as well as my reliability and how to run a business. There are two aspects of the podcast: the creative side, and the business side, both of which I have had to develop different skills for.’
Honey used both of these experiences to achieve the Award, as well as completing a variety of workshops in employability skills:
‘I have learnt the importance of developing a variety of different skills no matter what I am doing, as these could be useful in applying for jobs in future.’
To get started with the Bristol PLUS Award, sign up now for an introductory talk. Enterprise, entrepreneurship and start-up support can be found at the Basecamp Enterprise Team .
CPSA case study: Making the most of your year abroad
Many students embark on a year abroad as part of their degree. We all have different reasons for choosing to do it: for some, it’s the excitement of a new culture and country, while others are keen to learn at a different institution or use the year to work or to improve their language skills.
Whatever your reason for doing a year abroad, it can be a great opportunity to gain valuable skills and work experience, making yourself stand out when applying for jobs in the future.
My Volunteering Experience
As part of my Politics and International Relations BSc I studied for a year in the USA, at the University of Maryland. I had the flexibility to study a broad range of topics, ranging from art to climate change, and loved the freedom I had to learn in a new environment.
But for me, my year in the US was about a lot more than just studying. I wanted to make friends, travel, and take advantage of new opportunities. (more…)
My COVID-19 SME Internship: Ed – EcoStyle
Ed, a 4th year Engineering student worked for Ecostyle last Summer, a design and manufacture company. Ecostyle create interactive educational models to promote renewable energy and water efficiency. Ed secured his role by sourcing his own internship after hearing about the COVID-19 Internship scheme. Here’s what he had to say about the experience.
What was the aim of your internship?
To develop resources and product development concepts which enable socially distanced hands-on learning of renewable technologies, in a classroom or at home. The resources should encourage sales of EcoStyle products whilst promoting an incredibly vital industry and renewable STEM career path. (more…)
My COVID-19 SME Internship: Anouk – LikeToBe
Hi, my name is Anouk. I had just handed in my PhD thesis when I applied for the COVID-19 SME Internship as an Event Manager at a digital platform; LikeToBe. LikeToBe is an online network which helps introduce students to professional online networking and creates regular employer engagements through online careers talks, which are available to watch here.
The COVID-19 SME Internship Fund
What is the Fund? 
We have launched a new internship fund to provide paid work experience of 4 weeks within UK-based small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The aim of this fund is to support organisations whilst providing opportunities for internships where you can make a difference. (more…)
My COVID-19 SME Internship: Katie – Brave Bold Drama
Hello, I’m Katie and I partook in a COVID-19 SME Internship from June to August 2020 with the Community Arts and Theatre company Brave Bold Drama based in Hartcliffe and Withywood, though I was working remotely. I was the Assistant Producer Intern and was primarily working on the Bristol and Bath Creative R+D ‘Expanded Performance’ Research project, of which Brave Bold Drama was an industry partner.
My COVID-19 SME Internship: Viktor – Raw Space
Introduction
Hi! My name is Viktor, I’m a second year Computer Science student. Just like many other students I hoped to secure an internship in order to gain valuable work experience and insight into the industry. However, due to a worldwide pandemic that proved to be a rather difficult task. Luckily, I stumbled upon a Web Developer Internship at Raw Space and that’s how it all began. (more…)