The University of KentCareers & Employability Service

Careers with a degree in Comparative Literature/English

Language and Linguistics

You can download a copy of this presentation You can download a copy of this presentation at at

www.kent.ac.uk/careers/slides.htm

One third of graduate jobs accept any degree subject.

BECAUSE:• Learn new skills

quickly• Analyse & solve

problems• Communicate well• Open to new ideas,

adaptable and flexible• “Managers of change”

• Marketing and Sales

• Retailing• Social Work• Personnel• Civil Service• Accountancy• Banking• Computing

Humanities Degree Skills

• ability to write well in a variety of styles.

• to organise your work and meet tight deadlines.

• to convey meaning precisely.

• to summarise, argue and debate.

• to research, select, analyse, organise and present information.

• to think logically.

• EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNICATION!

“Would you say their are any skill shortages in the UK for actuary's ie their enough out their, is their a shortfall of any kind of actuary?” In an email from an HBOS HR manager to me!

CLS/Language

What can I do with my degree subject?

• What graduates in your subject did after leaving Kent

• Jobs related to your subject

• Employers and vacancy sources

www.kent.ac.uk/careers/cls.htm

www.kent.ac.uk/careers/fdrbases/2012ughum.htm#lang

CHOOSING A CAREER

• CHOOSING A CAREER www.kent.ac.uk/careers/Choosing/ChoosingCareer.htm and booklet available from Careers Service.

• Prospects Planner - powerful career choice program. www.prospects.ac.uk/links/Pplanner

• I Want to work in ….. www.kent.ac.uk/careers/workin.htm

Postgraduate Study

• MA taught – 1 year Sept to June – lectures, June to Sept – dissertation.

• Research MA 1 to 2 years – often part-time

• PhD – 3 years. Must do an MA first.

• PGCE (teacher training) 1 year: about 6% of grads

• See www.kent.ac.uk/careers/postgradmenu.htm

Postgraduate study

• Not much funding available for MA. Fees are about £5,000. At Kent get £1,000 graduate school scholarship reduction

• Many students work for a year to fund it or do it part-time whilst working

• Consider vocational MA – journalism, publishing, business, HR etc.

• Normally apply middle of final year. No UCAS can apply to as many course as you wish to – 3 or 4 is normal

Graduate Application Form Questions• Describe a challenging situation which

required your persuasive skills and your ability to organise other people in order to reach a successful resolution.

• Describe how your personal planning and organisation resulted in a successful achievement of a personal or group task.

• Describe a situation where you had to work effectively as a member of a team. What were the team’s aims? How was the team selected? What was your role?

Skills gained with a Humanities Degree: sell these in your applications!

• ability to write well in a variety of styles.

• to convey meaning precisely.

• to summarise, argue and debate.

• to plan, organise and meet tight deadlines.

• to research, select, analyse, organise and present information.

• to think clearly and logically and solve problems.

• To gather, assess, interpret and critically evaluate.

• EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNICATION!“Would you say their are any skill shortages in the UK for actuary's ie their enough out their, is their a shortfall of any kind of actuary?” In an email from an HR manager to me!

VACANCIES

University of Kent Vacancy Database

www.kent.ac.uk/ces/vacancies.html

Work Experience - see

www.kent.ac.uk/careers/vacwork.htm

OTHER TALKS

www.kent.ac.uk/careers/casevents.htm

Applications and Interviews

• Humanities CV: must be targeted at the job! www.kent.ac.uk/careers/cv/English-cv.htm

• Media CV www.kent.ac.uk/careers/cv/mediacv.htm

• Covering Letters

• Practice Interviews – journalism, teaching, marketing, HR, postgrad study etc.www.kent.ac.uk/careers/interviews/mockivs.htm

• Application, interview and selection centre videos www.kent.ac.uk/careers/IntVid.htm

Other Points

• Check you campus emails regularly as I will send you emails most Mondays!

• Apply early in your final year if you want a graduate training scheme with a “big” company, advertising, marketing, HR or primary teaching.

• Applications and interviews

www.kent.ac.uk/careers/applicn.htm

Location of the Careers Service

Open 5 to 5 Monday to Friday including vacations

BRUCE WOODCOCK

• A careers adviser is on duty for short (15 minute) consultations in the Careers and Employability Service any weekday morning 10.30-12.30 or afternoon from 2 pm to 4 pm. You don't need an appointment to see the duty adviser at these times. Just ask at Careers Reception to see them.

• If you need longer ring our reception on 01227 823299 to make an appointment for interview.

• Email: bw@kent.ac.uk

Careers Employability Award on Moodle

www.kent.ac.uk/careers/moodle.htm

The University of KentCareers & Employability

Service

You can download a copy of this presentation atYou can download a copy of this presentation atwww.kent.ac.uk/careers/www.kent.ac.uk/careers/

slides.htmslides.htm