Faculty of Arts Careers Series 2024: top 5 takeaways

Hello! I’m Ella, a final year English Literature student and Career Peer Support Assistant. Here’s a round up of some of the takeaways from the Faculty of Arts Careers Series, which invited 41 University of Bristol alumni and industry experts to share their experiences and tips, and ran through February 2024.

Regardless of which industry you end up in, these 5 insights are transferable across sectors came up again and again…

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Being LGBTQIA+ in the workplace

As part of LGBT+ History Month, the Careers Service hosted a panel event exploring what it’s like in the workplace for LGBTQIA+ individuals.

The event connected current students with speakers from the LGBTQIA+ community who work in a variety of different sectors, allowing those who attended a chance to hear stories and advice, and ask questions.

Our panel included –

Photos of the panel. From left to right, Cassie, Jo, Mateusz, Yiran and Raeesa.

  • Cassie Agbehenu (she/her or they/them) – Director of Impact and Influence, Bristol Students’ Union
  • Dr Jo Hartland (they/them) – Senior Lecturer, Bristol Medical School
  • Mateusz Lipinski (he/him) – Business Analyst, Deloitte
  • Yiran Liu (she/her) – Audit Associate, Deloitte
  • Raeesa Rajmohamed (she/her) – Barrister, Academic Writer and Human Rights Implementation Centre Advisor

Here are their key tips for LGBTQIA+ people to thrive in the workplace.

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Why Attend the Faculty of Arts Careers Series?

Are you interested in hearing from alumni from all over the world who have built interesting and fulfilling careers after graduating from Bristol?

Graphic which a photo of some cloud overlaid by text reading 'Faculty of Arts Careers Series'

Would you like to hear from Faculty of Arts alumni who now work in diverse roles such as a communications manager for Women’s Aid, a podcast producer for the BBC, and an advisor working in the European Parliament?

If so, attend our Faculty of Arts Careers Series 2024, spanning four weeks from 6 to 29 February.

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Careers support for students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds

Career planning can be tricky. We know some students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds can also face specific challenges.

These may include: 

  • Exploring career ideas when you don’t know what’s out there; 
  • Getting quality work experience with fewer existing networks; or 
  • Having time to dedicate to career planning alongside other commitments. 

At the Careers Service, we provide dedicated support to address these challenges: 

Bristol Mentors

The Bristol Mentors scheme matches you with an alumni mentor. They can help you explore ideas, share advice, and give you an edge to break into the job sector that interests you.

Applications typically open in the Spring term – check your university emails. 

The words Bristol Mentors with two stduents smiling
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How to get into green jobs: the takeaways

In November, the Careers Service hosted speakers from a variety of environmental career paths who are each tackling the biggest sustainability issues we currently face using their own unique skills and experiences.


Meet the panellists:

Ann Cousins, Associate, Resilience and Climate Change Advisory, ARUP

Ann is the lead in the resilience, energy and climate change advisory team at Arup which is a sustainability consultancy firm. The team is multidisciplinary including engineers, psychologists, and lawyers. Ann started as a receptionist with Arup after graduating with a French and Italian degree at the University of Bristol and worked her way up to their leading consultancy role.

Recently, Ann also assisted in setting up the Bristol One City environmental plan.


Pierce Griffith, Principal Economist (Chemical), the Environment Agency

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Developing your graduate capital doesn’t have to stop when you leave uni

As you begin life after university, it’s important to recognise that your development doesn’t stop when you get your degree.

The concept of graduate capital emphasizes the key resources that empower you to successfully navigate the job market. These capitals go beyond academic development to include human, social, cultural, identity, and psychological aspects.

Graduates who can draw on these capitals feel more confident and can better present their value to employers. This blog post will explain each capital and explore practical ways to develop them as a graduate.


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Top tips from the world of AI and tech

In October, we ran our “How to get in AI and tech panel” event, which was for anyone with a non-technical degree, looking to enter the tech industry.

From Experience Design Leads to Senior Account Technology Leads, our panel provided anecdotal tips on applying for and flourishing within tech companies. All without an extensive understanding of technical practices. Below are a few of the keynotes that were particularly emphasised:

Pictures of all the speakers and their job titles: 

Caitlin Bloom 
Project Manager, Kinneir Dufort 

Cherry Lin 
Experience Design Lead, Accenture Song

Ian Gardner 
Senior Account Technology Leader 
IBM

Jessica Roussou 
Senior Specialist - Security Governance, Risk & Compliance, Wise 

Sarah Matesun 
Business Analyst, ClearBank

1. Don’t worry about your lack of technical knowledge

Lacking a tech background when working in the industry is no barrier. Most non-technical roles will involve some jargon that may mean nothing to you – and that’s okay!

Our speakers recommend getting comfortable with not knowing and asking questions.

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City Challenges – Building Communities with Bristol Hub

Earlier in November, Bristol Student Hub teamed up with the Careers Service to run our latest City Challenge.

27 student volunteers attended in order to work together and generate ideas which would help Bristol Student Hub reflect on their current methods of community engagement and recommend new ways to build sustainable communities within their network of alumni and volunteers.

Bristol Hub is part of a national network that includes student hubs in Southampton, Bristol, and Cambridge as well as individual projects that run at other institutions.​

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My SME Internship: James – The Strange Thoughts Group

A photo of James, smiling to the camera, outside.

Hi, I’m James. 

I entered into the internship process in a bit of an unusual state; I’d withdrawn from my PGCE (History) course earlier the same year and was just coming out of that self-reflective headspace we all go through when we’ve made our latest “big choice”. 

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