PhD Employer Forum – Careers in Campaigning and Policy – 20th March 2012

Date/Time:  Tuesday 20th March, 5.30pm to 7.30pm
Venue: JBR, Wilkins Building

The aim of this event is to provide PhD and other research students with the opportunity to hear from and network with employers from the Campaigning and Policy sector. A panel of speakers who themselves are PhD holders and work in a range of organisations across local and national government, think tanks, NGOs, charities and development agencies have been invited to talk about their sector, their career progression and the best routes into these positions. They will also give tips on how PhD and research students can use their qualifications and experiences to enter these fields.

Companies/Panel Speakers:

• Jonathan Carr-West, Director, Policy, Local Government Information Unit 
• John Young, Director of impact Assessment, Partnerships and RAPID, Overseas Development Institute
• James Doeser, Senior Officer, Research & Knowledge, Arts Council England
• Michael O’Brien, Committee Specialist, Energy & Climate Change Select Committee, House of Commons
• Martin Walsh, Global Research Adviser, Policy Research Team, Oxfam
• Rory Yeomans, Senior International Research Analyst, International Directorate, Ministry of Justice
  

For full  information and to register for this event please go to the Graduate School Forum website page.

London Career Forum 2010

Cross Post from our International Students Blog

If you are bilingual in Japanese and English or bilingual in Japanese and French or German, then you might want to attend this event taking place on Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th June at the Earls Court Conference Centre.

Global companies based in Japan and Europe will be attending with a view to hiring candidates with these languages skills.

Students wishing to attend must fit the following criteria:

• Currently enrolled in a bachelor’s, master’s or Ph.D. program outside of Japan
• Graduated from a bachelor’s, master’s or Ph.D. program outside of Japan
• Students from Japan currently or was enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate exchange program

For further information visit http://www.careerforum.net/event/ldn/?lang=E

PhD Employers Forum Tomorrow

Just a quick note that one of our annual PhD Employers Forums takes place tomorrow.

I’ve copied details below, but make sure you register at http://courses.grad.ucl.ac.uk/course-details.pht?course_ID=1031
UCL PhD Employers Forum – Economics & Engineering

11:00am – 5:00pm Thursday 13 May 2010

What are employers looking for in PhD students and how can you present yourself and your unique talents in the best light?

PhD Employers Forum

What are employers looking for in PhD students and how can you present yourself and your unique talents in the best light?

The UCL PhD Employers Forum taking place from  11:00am – 5:00pm on Thursday 13 May 2010 gives PhD students from numerate, technical and scientific backgrounds the opportunity to meet potential future employers face to face, find out the options available, and practice some of the skills that will make all the difference to moving into a career beyond your PhD.

The day will be of interest not only to students nearing the end of their research, but also to research students at any point their career wishing to gain an insight into the PhD labour market in sectors including Engineering, Economic Research, Banking, Professional Services, IT and  Consultancy.

Currently confirmed to attend are Accenture, Barclays Capital, Cantab Capital Partners, Matchtech, Morgan Stanley, Oclaro, 02, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Teach First and Winton Capital Management.

For more details and to register to attend please visit : http://courses.grad.ucl.ac.uk/course-details.pht?course_ID=1031

Also you might want to attend the How To Use The PhD Employers Forum session on Monday 10 May 2010 – 13.30pm at UCL Careers Service, 4th Floor, ULU Building, Malet Street, London, WC1E 7HY

This half hour session is designed to give you pointers on how to use the PhD Employers Forum. No registration is necessary but please do arrive for a 13.30 start.

PhD Students looking to attend the PhD Employers Forum can also get their CV checked using the UCL Careers Service Quick Query sessions. Full details via http://www.ucl.ac.uk/careers/advice/quickquery

Is the organisation you are targeting a Trawler, a Spearfisher or an Angler?

The Council for Industry and Higher Education has produced a report entitled ‘Talent Fishing: What Businesses  Want from Postgraduates’, based on a recent survey in which HR Directors and other senior managers from 56 organisations were asked about their approach to the recruitment of  postgraduate talent, what qualities they value in postgraduates, and whether UK postgraduates deliver the right high level skills and personal qualities.

Recruiters were found to be of three types when it came to recruiting Postgraduates into their organisations, Trawlers, Spearfishers and Anglers.

These are fairly self-explanatory but for accuracy’s sake here are their definitions:

Trawlers

Postgraduates are simply caught up in the net of employers who recruit to meet more general requirements. They do not usually actively seek them out, and treat them little or no differently from first degree graduate applicants in the recruitment process.

Spearfishers

Employers who seek postgraduate recruits with specific capabilities to fill specific job roles, usually recruit in small numbers. This group of employers tends to have good links with a university department (or target several universities), which they utilise to ensure a flow of good postgraduate recruits to research or specialist functions.

Anglers

Employers may prefer postgraduates because they are expected to have a distinct advantage over a first degree graduate for a particular role or function and because they are more mature and can contribute more quickly to the business. However, in some instances, an applicant with a good first degree plus work experience may be equally suitable.

To meet some organisations to find out a little more about how they recruit you might want to register for the PhD Employers Forum (more details tomorrow on this blog).

The report also found that although the majority of organisations surveyed do seek out postgraduate recruits, but there is  a clear concern expressed that higher education institutions and businesses need to work together to make sure that postgraduates have the specific skills and knowledge that employers are looking for – in particular leadership skills and work experience – to complement other clearly identified benefits such as analytical thinking, problem-solving, and subject-specific knowledge.

To see the full range of things UCL does to address this keep an eye on this blog, The Graduate School training site, and The Careers Service pages.

To view the full report, go to: http://www.cihe.co.uk/talent-fishing-what-businesses-want-from-postgraduates/

Robert Donovan

UCL Careers Adviser

LBN Career Track presents: “Careers in Life Sciences: Bench & Business”

The London Biotechnology Network will be on campus on Tuesday 30th March 2010 to host a forum: ‘Careers in Life Sciences: Bench & Business’.

The event will provide information on a multitude of career paths available to scientists, what the day job is, and how to get started. You will also have the opportunity to hear from leading industry professionals and boost your employability skills.

Here’s an outline of the programme and details on how to book:

Company Presentation – NERA Economic Consulting

Numerate PhD Students here at UCL are highly rated by recruiters, so much so that we organise a PhD Employers Forum for you to meet with organisations who are interested in your skills.

This will take place in May, but if you are looking for some insight into Economic Consultancy right now then NERA Economic Consulting are hosting a presentation at their London office for Masters and PhD Students later this week on 4 March 2010.

Details are available here