Advice For YIB Students From A YIB Student

 This is only a 5-minute read. I have included some very useful tips that you should seek out!

 

 

1.    Start Early - Seriously, Like Around October!

YIB staff and students say this for a reason. Most ‘big name’ companies advertise vacancies early as they want to screen out the best candidates. It is true that this also depends on the type of placement you are after (marketing, finance, HR, etc.), however do not jeopardise your own chances.

You should also consider that the sooner you secure a placement, the more time you will have to make accommodation arrangements for your third year and focus on your modules. In the spring term, most of my assessments started in March, so it was very convenient that I managed to secure a placement before then. I took advantage of the spare time I had in the winter holidays to apply and started doing video interviews, general ability assessments, and competency assessments for companies like Sony, SAP, Siemens, M&S, Hilton, and L’Oréal. I highly recommend that you take advantage of that time too. I would also advise that you create an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of all your applications and that you save a copy of their job descriptions as you may not be able to access the link to these after their application deadline.

2.     Your CV, The Careers Service, and Preparation

Your CV is one of the first ways you can attract employers and it is so easy to book an appointment with the Careers Service to get your CV checked (and re-checked in my case). Keep in mind that every meeting you have could be with different people so the more feedback you have, the better. The Careers Service is very helpful with this - they even provide you with CV templates! They also offer mock assessment centres and psychometric tests, as well as resources for common and challenging interview questions - take advantage of this, they are free!

It is also worth mentioning that you should definitely tailor your application to each company you apply to. Look at the key skills they are after, emphasise these on your CV, and make sure you mention modules that you study (or have studied) that would be relevant and useful - sell yourself as their ideal candidate. This can take some time, but it is worth it. If you are having trouble writing up your CV, you could start with your job search first to get an idea of what it is exactly that you want to apply for and create your CV around that. It may also be useful to have some references on standby as some companies can ask you for these during their recruitment process.

Apart from your CV, you should also spend a good amount of time preparing for each application. Do some research on the company - identify their core values and how you align with them, look at the company in the news (there is a literal filter on Google for this), their annual report, social media, and LinkedIn pages. You could also benefit from looking at their competitors, threats, opportunities, and trends in their industry. You may be asked about some of these things in interviews! Have a look at the typical questions a company may ask you and prepare responses for these. I also highly advise that you prepare between 5-10 questions to ask interviewers themselves - not the generic ones that you find online, make them specific to you, the interviewer, and the company. Do not skip out on this, make them remember you.

3.     LinkedIn and Your Job Search

When setting up your LinkedIn profile do not just do the bare minimum (profile picture, education history, and qualifications). Make yourself stand out; write a bio, add skills, earn badges for them, and have others endorse them. I ended up getting a placement with a company because one of their internal recruiters reached out to me through LinkedIn. This would have never happened if I was not active on the platform and if I would have not put some effort into my profile. 

Networking is also a big thing - connect with as many (relevant) people as you can. I have even gotten in touch with students that were doing placements at companies that I was interested in. More often than not, they are happy to give you insight and advice. This is great way to enhance your prospects against other candidates. That being said, here is the link to my profile if you would like to connect! linkedin.com/in/maria-micu-07a0641b8

I would also advise that you set up LinkedIn Job Alerts to better filter your job search and stay competitive. It is also very important that you apply for jobs that you are interested in as soon as possible. Some employers close their applications early if they receive a high volume of them. Why not be amongst the first few applicants? Make your mark. I should also advise you to not apply for placements that you are not (truly) interested in. I found myself applying to some placements just because they were with a ‘good’ company and their salaries were attractive. It is in your best interest that you do not do this. Not only are applications time consuming, but you will find yourself having to really think about your answers to questions like ‘Why do you want to work for our company in particular?’ It is also less likely for them to be interested in you if you are not entirely suited for that job.

Also, do not just use LinkedIn and the weekly vacancy bulletin for your job search. There are so many other useful platforms like Target, Reed, Indeed, and Glassdoor (to name a few). On Glassdoor, you can also view typical salaries for companies (useful for those that do not advertise them) and get insight from employees on their view of the company and what their job entails – this is a common interview question.

I hope that you found this helpful and wish you all the best in your placement search