This quote may actually be right, but how do you do it? How do we successfully network with people and what makes the person you’re reaching out to want to help you find a job?
Read on to get our top 5 tips and tricks on networking successfully.
Start Using Social Media
For many, face-to-face contact is a daunting experience. With social media, it is a lot easier to get to know someone who shares the same background and interests as you. It also helps you know beforehand whether you would like to put in the time getting to know someone.
Start using the following platforms:
LinkedIn
Google Plus
Twitter
Engage with content that other people are sharing and liking. Comment your thoughts and opinions on a shared topic; this can be a great conversation starter and a point to refer back to if and when you meet this person face-to-face.
Also, get involved and spice up your profile with a profile picture, a biography and some interesting posts. Don’t forget to take some time to browse through your posting history and make sure you aren’t sharing or involving yourself with any offensive or controversial topics.
Quick tip: mass-requesting to follow people is not the right way to network. It is not about the numbers, but the quality of each connection you make.
Read below to find out how to form genuine relationships.
2. Arrive Early to Events
Events are a fantastic opportunity for you to cheerlead your skills and show off your best self. But it can be uncomfortable when you walk into the venue and see hundreds of people huddled in their own bubble. So arriving early to events can be beneficial because you can form a group with those who are just arriving. Everyone would love to talk to somebody, and this is a great way to introduce yourself.
3. It’s Give & Take
Many people forget that networking is a two-way street. When you approach someone, talk about yourself, and then ask for a favour, you are essentially coming across as selfish. And of course, it would be fantastic to just walk up to someone, ask for a CEO position and get it – just like that. I wish that was true…
But networking is all about building a rapport. When you meet someone, what can you offer them? What will they gain from talking to you? Knowing all of this and being able to share this across naturally will help the keep the other person engaged with the conversation and invested in you.
4. Be Kind and Be You!
Build genuine relationships. Just be yourself. In many comedic films, when the protagonist goes to an office party and tries to network by being self-aggrandising and pretentious, it always ends in a flop. I’m not sure if this was the old way to network, but in 2021, people are becoming more open to real people.
If you’re feeling anxious about the event, prepare some questions you’d like to know about someone beforehand. Have some cue-cards at hand, so you can drive the conversation. And know that awkward, silent moments happen. If you don’t click with someone, just thank them for their time and wish them well.
5. Listening is Just as Important…
Listening to others is so important, more so than the talking. People are so quick to talk about themselves that the conversation becomes one-sided.
Picking up on some of the things that they say can help you so much in the conversation. If you’re able to relate to someone’s experience and bringing it back to circulation in the conversation will reflect on you as a good listener.
University – what a ride! First of all, a huge congratulations to you for graduating – get celebrating!
Now, whether you’re thinking of taking a well-deserved break for a while or whether you’re ready to keep pushing forward into your professional life, it’s never too early to start applying and securing your graduate role.
Read on to get the best tips and tricks, as well as getting to know your support system at Staffordshire University.
My Journey
I secured my first full-time role recently in June 2021. When I submitted my final assignment, I felt an influx of emotions: relief, fear, excitement.
I first felt underwhelmed, because throughout my time at university, I had a few goals that I wanted to achieve. Unfortunately, obstacles flew in from all angles – personal, financial, and housing. It made focusing on these goals and studying extremely tough and unrewarding. I felt like I physically dragged myself to the finish line: 4pm, May the 4th (be with you).
I felt like I ran out of time to do the things I wanted to at university. I think I was also just so relieved that it was all over that I looked for more negatives than positives in my situation.
Eventually, I “chillaxed”. There was a new obstacle to overcome – an exciting and new experience for me – getting a full-time job. After my final submission, I applied to over 200 jobs on all sites that I could think of. This kept me busy after university, which was exciting and nerve-wracking too.
With my English Literature & Creative Writing degree, I heard these a LOT:
“So, you wanna be a teacher then?”
“*Laughter*”
“Good luck getting a job with that degree!”
But this didn’t put me off at all. Most of the time, these were jokey remarks, and I felt like I could prove them wrong.
I was so grateful to have spoken with my personal tutor, Mark Brown. He told me to think outside the box and to look at what I have learned during my time at university. Now, my degree wasn’t a label, but an ocean of skills and experience that I could fish out and present at my job interview.
I got out an A3 piece of paper and drew a mind map. After scribbling down my skills, work experience, volunteering, and extra-curricular activities. I realised I had more to offer than I thought. Eventually, I realised I could apply my skills to so many job titles I’d enjoy: copywriting, marketing, translation, freelancing, and graphic design.
I got my job as a Marketing Assistant & Creative Producer Assistant thanks to Unitemps. Lizzy was so supportive & she helped ease my nerves for the interview. She also encouraged me to get some certificates online to stand out from others. So I did!
Target Keyword Searches
These are essentially the keywords you use in the search bar, whether that’d be on Google, Indeed, LinkedIn, and other job search websites to help refine your list of jobs. This makes job hunting easier because you will be matched with more roles that suit your level of expertise, as well as your interests.
It can be daunting to look at the list of irrelevant job roles without first refining your job needs. For example, on LinkedIn, you will see these filter options in the “Jobs” section:
At first, 24,000 jobs appear and it will take too much time trying to scroll through page after page of job titles for candidates with 25 years of experience! Filter through the following options:
Remote: this is a preference. If you are a stay-at-home parent or you would love to work for a company but would like to stay in your jammies at home-sweet-home, then click on “Remote” button.
Date Posted: experiment with this. It helps to lower the number of searches and the earlier the job post, the better. This is because many job postings from earlier may have expired, so it would be a waste of time applying to those.
Experience Level: many graduates like myself would typically click on “entry-level” jobs, “internship” or “associate”
LinkedIn offers a free trial for their Premium Feature which can be helpful when seeing what the other applicants’ backgrounds are like, which job titles match your skills on your profile and who is viewing your profile.
University & ‘Career Planning’
Did you know that Staffordshire University graduates have access to Career and Personal Development support for life?
On their page, ‘Life after University‘, the Careers Team suggests that having a ‘Career Plan’ is useful to help you understand yourself and what options you have for careers moving forward. The list will ultimately help you understand the following:
Your strengths, values and interests – as well as what you could work on to stand out from other candidates.
The goals you need to work towards your career (long-term and short-term). This will help you stay motivated and organised, because job-hunting is no easy feat.
Some ideas of which fields you can apply yourself to (what jobs could you do).
If you would like to find out more about this, please visit HERE
“MyCareer is your career and personal development one-stop-shop and the first place to go to:
Look for jobs and experience
Book a place on career workshops and events
Ask quick career-related questions”.
Once you have graduated, you will have received an email asking you to register for a new graduate account. This will give you access to a variety of work, with exclusive access to you, the graduate! You can also register HERE if you haven’t received it or are visiting after years of graduating at Staffs.
As well as finding work, their Careers Team is on hand every day of the working week (Mon-Fri), virtually and in-person, to help you in the following:
Writing a tailored CV
Writing the best cover letter for that particular role you’re applying for
Answering any career-related questions (or anything about student life; did you know that the Career Coaches are current students?)
LinkedIn Assistance
Practice Interviews
And a lot more to list… Visit the link above and contact them today!
Unitemps
Saving the best for last – kidding, we’re all useful in our own way; and it’s a lot more beneficial if you use all the services mentioned here regularly!
Unitemps offers new opportunities on the daily, whether that’d be a part-time role, a full-time graduate role, temporary or permanent roles, virtual or in-office roles, graduate schemes and more.
We also offer placement opportunities if you decide to stay in education. Placements are a great way to get on-the-job experience within your subject area. These vary from 12-week projects such as SAMPID to full 12-month placements. Undertaking a placement can be beneficial to your subject area knowledge and employability after completion of your award.
We have roles tailored to every need and with just a few clicks of a button, you can send out your best CV and Cover Letter after visiting the Careers Studio and registering with us HERE.
Not only do we offer the opportunities above, but did you know that we are in partnership with Staffordshire University for the following schemes?:
1) SAMPID
As it was just Women’s Engineering Day a week ago today, you may have heard of SAMPID. But if you haven’t, that’s okay! SAMPID stands for the ‘Advanced Manufacturing, Prototyping and Innovation Demonstrator’ programme.
The primary aim of SAMPID is to drive innovation in Advanced Manufacturing Sectors across the Staffordshire region. In just 12-months, you will develop skills in your STEM field.
Please read our previous blog to find out more about SAMPID HERE.
2) SDIPs
The Staffordshire Digital Innovation Partnerships (SDIPs) programme is a collaborative project between Staffordshire University and Staffordshire County Council to drive transformation through digital innovation in the region. The project is funded by Staffordshire University, Staffordshire County Council and the European Regional Development Fund 2014-2020 and will run until December 2021.
Digital Innovation Partnerships (DIPs)
Business Intelligence Partnerships (BIPs)
Social Challenge Innovation Partnerships (SCIPs)
Register with Unitemps Today:
https://www.unitemps.com/Register/Candidate
Follow Unitemps on Twitter for Regular Updates! @UnitempsStaffs
As the UK is progressing out of national lockdown, the way we approach testing is changing. Many of us are getting back onto campus for in-person teaching or to grab a hot drink from Squeezebox. With our venues slowly opening, safety is still the number one priority. Read on to find out how Staffordshire University ensures that all staff and pupils remain safe whilst on its premises.
How is Staffordshire University staying safe?
Testing and reporting:
The LRV on the Stoke-on-Trent campus operates on-site supervised lateral flow testing for the public, as well as staff and students at the university. These lateral flow tests are available from 9:30am-3:30pm, Monday to Friday.
Staff and students are advised to take a COVID test twice a week, so that Staffordshire University’s campus maintains a COVID-secure campus. Regular testing also ensures that staff and students remain safe. Ian Blachford, the Chief Operating Officer at Staffordshire University, says that:
‘It is easy to think that now that infection rates are lower, and hospitalisations are down, that the threat of COVID-19 has been removed. It hasn’t. If we don’t continue to test regularly, we could unwittingly play our part in the further spread of the virus and further possible lockdowns.’
To read in more detail about testing and reporting COVID test results, please visit here.
Sanitation and distancing measures:
In line with government guidelines, the university also implements social distancing measures. These include:
The campus is also remaining safe by encouraging everyone to keep their distance from one another through clear and visible markings.
Readily available hand sanitisers in stairwells, lift lobbies, foyers, lecture theatres and reception areas, so that anyone entering or leaving the premises has the chance to disinfect their hands.
Shared learning spaces and gyms will have wipes for staff and students to wipe down their areas as they arrive and leave.
Cleaning operations have adapted their procedures to focus on: hand rails, buttons, and doors, with special focus on high-touch areas such as bathrooms and lift facilities.
All students and staff are encouraged to wear face masks on campus. Staff have been provided with PPE to wear while teaching.
The retail outlets in Cadman, Ashley 2 and the Business School will remain closed until early next year. Vending machines are still available for use, though we encourage customers to either wash their hands or use hand sanitiser before and after use.
What should I do to help?
Having all these measures in place will not be effective if we didn’t have the full support from those who are on campus. Here are some things you must do, now that you are aware of how Staffordshire University supports your wellbeing and safety:
Monitor yourself for any symptoms of COVID-19 and arrange a test if you have any of the following: a high temperature (38°C+), a new, continuous cough, or a loss of smell/taste.
Wash your hands frequently with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds – singing ‘Happy Birthday’ twice helps! Or use hand sanitiser.
Catch coughs and sneezes with tissues. Immediately dispose of the tissue responsibly and clean your hands.
Avoid close contact with other people, maintaining a distance of two-meters wherever possible.
Support from the Well-being Team:
You are not alone, remember that. The pandemic has heightened the feelings of anxiety, uncertainty, and fear. Please speak with our friendly and qualified Well-being team who will be happy to help.
Unitemps are here for every student at Staffordshire University all year round. Working closely with the Student Support and Well-Being team, we employ Student Support Workers to work with students who may be facing difficulties while studying. Whether that be with their academic work or with their mental health, Unitemps are here to help.
We offer students two main types of support whilst studying, working with aSpecialist Mentor(ASC & Mental Health) or a Specialist Study Skills Tutor (ASC & SpLD) or both.
Specialist Mentor (Mental Health & ASC)
A Specialist Mentor will regularly support you with:
Motivation and setting goals
Mindfulness and relaxation
Managing expectations about appropriate levels of study
Creating appropriate study patterns
Finding the tools and mindset to achieve personal academic goals
Study-related stress or anxiety management
Time management, organisational skills, and study/exam preparation skills
Understanding your illness and managing symptoms, signs, and triggers
Specialist Study Skills Tutor (ASC & SpLD (Specific Learning Difficulties such as dyslexia, dyspraxia))
A Specialist Study Skills Tutor will regularly support you with:
Structuring essays and other written work
Critical and reflective thinking and research skills
Comprehension, summarising, referencing and note–taking
Developing and implementing proofreading strategies
Assisting with time management and other academic-related organisational skills
Examination preparation/revision techniques
Understanding and implementing feedback from academic staff
After University?
When coming to the end of their studies and entering the world of work, we aim to maximise the student’s opportunities by working with our Careers Service and Student Support Team, offering extra guidance to ensure that they are fully equipped when applying for jobs.
We add a new, exciting blog post every Monday. We provide the best tips, insights into what we do and more! Stay tuned.
Note: Take a look at the categories bar on the right-hand side of the page. We will have blog posts listed there. You will find the blog you’re searching for a lot easier that way!
