Category: Student stories

Getting started with networking as a state school student

Posted on by Careers Service

Some people have more experience of professional networking through personal contacts, but where do you start if you don’t have these existing connections?

Carlos is a second year Law student and Co-President of The 93% Club (UoB’s State School Society). In this blog, Carlos shares his experiences and advice for developing professional networks at university as a state school student. 

“It wasn’t until my second year at university and my role as co-president of The 93% Club that I truly grasped the importance of networking. For students like me, who don’t have family connections in high places, networking offers a crucial opportunity to connect with employers, learn about companies, and expand future career prospects. 

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IKEEP project 2024: Our experience working with Bristol Hub

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The IKEEP programme offers students the opportunity to gain intrapreneurial training and engage with industry on knowledge exchange projects through a paid team placement with an SME.

The three students who made up the Bristol Hub IKEEP project team

Three undergraduates, Jack, (Economics and Management), Olivia (History and Spanish) and Kristina (Politics) recently completed one of our projects with Bristol Hub.

We spoke to them about what they have gained from the experience.

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Student Volunteering Week Panel Event: What can you achieve through volunteering?

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In conjunction with Student Volunteering Week, the Bristol PLUS Award team held a panel event where a brilliant panel of student volunteers shed light on the holistic benefits of volunteering.

Looking to start volunteering but not sure how to get started? Dive into this blog to learn about the key takeaways from our panellists.

Our panellists included:

  • Aditya Verma – Socio-Legal Studies (MSc)
  • Dinara Shaimakhanova – Education (PhD) 
  • Charmaine Sew – International Social and Public Policy (BSc)
  • Rowan O’Clarey – Mathematics (MSci) 
  • Ione Howells – Environmental Policy and Management (MSc)
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Looking beyond the arts and sciences divide with interdisciplinary work

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Elena graduated from Bristol in 2022 with a degree in English Literature and is now a Communications Consultant at Bright Carbon.

We caught up with Elena about looking beyond the arts and sciences divide with interdisciplinary work.

“It can feel as though there‘s a massive gap between an arts career and a science career, and once you pick a side, you’re stranded there.

The popularity of Sylvia Plath’s fig tree analogy shows just how many people feel like the choices they make close off all other potential futures. I definitely felt this when I was choosing my degree.

There was a sense of finality – that this was my specialism and other routes were now closed. After a lot of back and forth and deliberation, I chose ‘arts’ and studied Art Foundation and then English Literature at University – and I thought that was the end of that for other subjects.

“But, once I started my job search, I realised pretty quickly that the door to other disciplines never really closes.”

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My SME Internship: Emma – Neurometry

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Hi, I’m Emma, a Neuroscience BSc graduate. In 2023, I spent six months working as a research analyst with Neurometry.

I started as an intern on the SME Internship Scheme from January to April and then Neurometry extended my contract.

Neurometry is a start-up that is developing cognitive training tools for older adults. The company is based in London but mostly works remotely.

A photo of Emma, smiling to the camera.
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Cheer to Career: How you can use My Skills to showcase your transferable skills

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“From taking up cheerleading as a new sport in my first year of university, to becoming a competition team captain in my final year, my time with Bristol Jets Cheerleading Squad has developed my personal and professional skillset in ways I couldn’t have imagined.”

Meet Lia, a final-year Politics and Sociology (BSc) student and a Captain of the Bristol Jets Cheerleading Squad.

Below, Lia talks us through the skills she has learnt as Cheer Captain, how your extracurricular activities can translate into employability skills and the benefits of documenting them on My Skills to articulate how your experience is relevant to the job market.

“Taking up a leadership role in a sport society at university, as so many students do, has enabled me to develop a wide array of transferable skills that I will undoubtedly take with me on my career journey.

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Why nominate yourself for the Outstanding PLUS Awards? – from past winners and honourable mentions

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The Outstanding PLUS Awards (OPA) are open to all Bristol PLUS Award achievers. It offers an opportunity to gain invaluable articulation skills and reflect further on your achievements, leaving you with a sense of pride.

To be eligible, you must be a 2023-24 PLUS Award achiever and nominate yourself by 12 noon Monday 25 March.

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Disability and Neurodivergence careers panel – employer and alumni insights

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Last term, PwC’s Kim Whippy, Change 100’s Ursula Green, and University of Bristol MEng Aerospace Engineering alumnus, Syirah Ami, joined us at our ‘Disability and neurodivergence career panel’.

They shared their insights into the range of support available for students and graduates:

Workplace adjustments

Reasonable adjustments within the workplace maximise inclusivity, accessibility, and support for employees.

Applicants are encouraged to disclose requests or requirements whenever is most comfortable for them.

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