Category: Skills development

Hidden benefits of the Bristol PLUS Award: From Internships to preparing you for post-graduate life!

Posted on by Careers Service
The Bristol PLUS Award logo

Hear from 4th year MSc Chemistry student, Zahria, who achieved her Bristol PLUS Award in the 2023-24 Academic Year, whilst also securing a summer internship with telecommunications company BT! 

How has PLUS prepared you for your future once you leave university?

The Bristol PLUS Award has played a great role in preparing me for life beyond university by giving me a clearer understanding of navigating my career journey. It also opened my eyes to many career resources available at the university, that I would otherwise not have known about!

The activities required to achieve the PLUS Award helped me build and showcase key transferable skills that employers value such as teamwork, communication and time management.

Zahria smiling on a beach
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A taste of our Bristol PLUS Award Endorsing Organisation activities!

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What are Skills Sessions?

The Bristol PLUS Award is proud to have a variety of Endorsing Organisations, who work directly with the PLUS Award team to organise bespoke events for our PLUS Award students!

These organisations all see the value of connecting directly with our engaged PLUS Award students, who demonstrate commitment to continuous development of their employability skills. This term, almost 50 students have attended interactive sessions with AlphaSights, Enterprise, and Tutor The Nation.

Each of the sessions allowed students to develop their core skills of working well as part of a team, communicating confidently and appropriately, and developing and maintaining healthy relationships. These are 3 of the 27 skills on My Skills, the University’s skills development profile.

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City Challenge: Streams Learning Hub 

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City Challenges are a programme of events providing students with the opportunity to engage with charities and social enterprises.   

The Streams Learning Hub Bristol logo, featuring a white dove on a black background.

Students can support worthwhile organisations whilst developing skills to improve employability. By taking part in a City Challenge, students gain experience in problem solving, presentation skills, innovative thinking, and community engagement.  

Streams Learning Hub 

The Streams Learning Hub is a co-working space for teenagers in central Bristol. It provides a flexible space for young people to gather, learn and connect with online providers and in-person workshops and events.  

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Connect with confidence: a first-timer’s guide to networking

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Networking can be daunting, especially for those who have not had much experience with it before.

Studies show that first-generation students often have smaller, less diverse social networks, which can limit their access to networking opportunities and reduce their confidence in these settings.

However, building a network is crucial for personal and professional growth.

Here are five practical tips to help you get started:

Careers fair
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Welcome to your Careers Service

Posted on by Careers Service

Welcome (or welcome back!) to the University of Bristol. We are your Careers Service. We are here to support you in preparing for your next steps during or after you finish your studies. It’s never too early to start!   

Whether it’s help in getting a part-time job, finding internships and graduate roles, writing CVs and applications, or deciding what you want to do after your degree, we’re here for you.     

First things first, you are going to hear us talking about mycareer a lot this year. mycareer is your portal to resources, vacancies, events, appointments and more. You can set up a profile in there that will tailor content just for you. 

Log in, complete your profile and off you go! 

The front entrance of the Careers Service at 5 Tyndall Avenue.
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Hear from your peers who have achieved their PLUS Award!

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With the Bristol PLUS Award deadline fast approaching in just over two weeks, noon Friday 7 June, we thought it a great opportunity to showcase the experiences of three PLUS Achievers from this year.

Yunfei, Katie, and Ana Lucia all spoke about their core experience of partaking in the PLUS Award at our Outstanding PLUS and PLUS Celebration event at the Bristol Beacon to a great reception from our audience. Not only was their skill development and pure passion for what they accomplished clear, but the authenticity in which they spoke speaks to their achievements.

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Working in partnership: Tutor the Nation and the Careers Service 

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At the Careers Service we work in partnership with external organisations to bring a range of experiences to our students, and we like to think our brilliant students give a lot back too! 

Five women look excited and happy standing by a large screen with the Tutor the Nation logo on.

This year we have been working closely with Tutor the Nation, who have taken part in City Challenges and run mock interviews for our students as part of becoming an endorsing organisation for the Bristol PLUS Award. 

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Mentoring matters – your chance to open doors and create opportunities

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With just one week to go, Bristol Mentors is still open for applications for home UK students returning for study in 2024/25.

Bristol Mentors provides successful student applicants with an alumni mentor working in the sector/industry they are aiming to break into.

Mentorship can be an enriching experience and our student mentees are always happy to tell us more about the range of benefits they have gained whilst on the programme.

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How to get work experience (even if you don’t have experience)

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At this time of year, you might be thinking about how to make the most of your summer break. It can be an ideal time to get work experience before the next academic year begins.

Work experience not only looks good on your CV or LinkedIn profile, it can also help you: 

  • Gain a competitive edge when applying for graduate jobs or further study. It can also be a requirement for some careers. 
  • Develop skills and confidence, gain insights, and build your professional network. 
  • Decide whether a career area is right for you. 

But where to start? It may feel like many internship deadlines have passed. Or perhaps you want to know: “how am I supposed to get experience without previous experience?” It can feel like employers ask for lots of skills and experiences to apply for their internships. 

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