Guest Blog: 3 Things To Do Before You Graduate

As you near the end of your university degree course, you edge closer to the time when you can forget full time education and hopefully enter the world of employment.  The final year has probably been gruelling as you struggle to complete the projects/assignments by their due dates and begin to fantasize about never having to hand in another piece of work or attend another lecture. 

However, the reality is that, in these final stages, there’s actually a great deal more to think about than the end of course party!  Here are 3 things to focus on before you graduate: 

• Buying appropriate software with special discounts for students is something you won’t be able to do once you leave university, so look at what you need now and buy it before it’s too late.  There are some exceptional deals to be had on software for students – for example Adobe CS5 Master Collection at just £399 inc VAT (while stocks last) with 14 software programmes including Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Acrobat Pro and many more. 
  
  
• Put together the best CV you possibly can in preparation for job interviews – it’s definitely worth spending time on preparing a good CV which should be neatly typed setting out clearly your name and contact details along with educational achievements and career history to date.  Think up a brief personal profile to highlight your skills, experience and personal qualities.  Once you’ve completed your CV, keep a copy saved on your computer and keep up-dating it as your circumstances change, for example moving house, gaining more qualifications or changing jobs.  Often employers ask you to attach your CV to an email application – in this case you need to think carefully about your covering email and take the opportunity to impress prospective employers with a few lines to grab their attention and make them want to look more closely at your CV details. Make sure there are no spelling mistakes in the email and make sure the ‘subject’ box contains information about your application so that they can see at a glance what the email contains from their ‘inbox’. 
  
  
• Look for a job – this is what all your studying has been leading towards – finding that perfect job to put into practice all your new-found skills.  Sadly, achieving even the best university degree holds no guarantee of finding employment, so you have to make yourself stand out from the crowd so that prospective employers see something interesting on your CV to want to interview you in person.  Your initial interview performance should leave them wanting to see you again.  The best way to make these things happen is to be absolutely prepared for your interview.  Be prepared to write an awful lot of application letters, and be prepared to be disappointed – a lot!  If you’ve done your best in your studies and are predicted to achieve a good degree and have submitted a thorough concise CV, it’s now all down to the interview itself – pretty nerve-wracking, but set out to make a good impression with how you look, what you wear and be confident in your abilities to do the job.  Best luck. 
  
  

Once all these things are sorted, you can relax and enjoy the end of term parties!