From dissertations to exams, planning a graduation fit and looking for a graduate job or scheme, we know there’s loads to think about. So to help you get on top of your applications and secure that all-important role, we’ve created your ultimate graduate job timeline.

Inside you’ll find all the key dates and top tips. Click below! It’s free.

Graduate Tips

Once you’ve downloaded your timeline check out all the advice below to help you slay the graduation application process like an absolute boss.

A Guide to Graduate Jobs

Find out everything there is to know about graduate jobs and schemes, the difference, who’s hiring and how to apply.

Writing a Graduate CV

Your staring point: a CV that shows off your skills and grabs an employer’s attention. We’ve also included a free template!

Writing a Graduate Cover Letter

A good CV comes with a great cover letter. Here’s how to write one.

Be Interview Ready

Have you been invited to an interview? That’s great! Here’s everything you should expect including commonly asked questions and how to answer them.

Feeling ready to jump in? We have over 300 graduate roles waiting for your application. Click below to get started.

The post The Ultimate Graduate Job Timeline appeared first on RateMyPlacement.

It’s easy to compare yourself with your friends, who may have landed a placement within the first few months of applying. But for others, they may be on their 100th application. That’s okay. If you fall into one of these categories, this is for you.

There are hundreds of other opportunities out there just for you, whether it feels like it right now or not. You just need to do a little bit of digging – but that’s where we come in. 

Let’s get into it

• Reach out to your university
• Look for alternatives
• Upskilling yourself in other ways
• Focus on your studies

Reach out to your university

If you didn’t manage to secure a placement year, your first point of call is your university.

If your university course has a compulsory placement year, there should be support there to help you every step of the way, whether that’s looking at other options or other ways of helping out.

They may look to see if there are any campus-based opportunities or projects you can take on as part of your placement year.

You’ll still gain the necessary experience you need to snap up a role after graduation.

Don’t assume that your university won’t help you, all university career departments should be, all hands on deck when these unexpected situations happen.

It’s hard not to get wrapped up in emotions application season. Let’s talk.

Look for alternatives

Finding a placement is HARD (speaking from experience). According to the Institute of Student Employers, there are around 91 applicants per role, so it’s super competitive.

If you do miss out, think about the things you were going to gain through doing a placement year and how you can achieve them without doing one.

Ask yourself these questions: 

• Did you have any goals you would’ve liked to set yourself? 
• Was there a certain skill you wanted to learn?
• Did you want to get over your fear of presenting in front of people?
• Was there an area of the business that you were excited about learning about?

Your main goal should of course to be enhance your employability with relevant industry knowledge and real-life work experience. 

So, what can you do to gain this without a placement year? Read on to find out.

Upskilling yourself in other ways

Not doing a placement year isn’t the end of the world, but you’ll need to find ways to stand out above the rest.

Here are some other ways you can gain the skills and industry knowledge without having to do a placement.

These are all great ways to make sure you’re getting the experience you need. You need to make sure you are doing things that other candidates aren’t necessarily doing.

This way you’ll have;

• more experiences and skills to add to your CV
• more to discuss in your interview
• more of a chance to impress your employer.

Go and take control of your career progression, because it’s only you that can make it happen.

Depending on what time you’re reading this, it’s potentially not too late to apply for a placement either. Most of our roles go live between September and February. Check out what’s still available.

Focus on your studies

If your placement isn’t compulsory, you may just have to return to university to complete your final year. Which isn’t a bad thing at all.

With no placement disrupting your university mindset, you can focus on being an academic weapon and spend more time on your readings, essays, coursework, exam prep and of course your big dissertation.

Try and bridge the experience gap by doing as well as you can.

REMINDER

Focus on applying for graduate roles right away. Many students don’t realise that they start to open in early September. Here are some examples of transferable skills that you’ll need to include in your application.

So you’ve now found out about the available opportunities. What are your next steps? Whether that’s looking into insight schemes or reaching out to do some volunteer work, we want you to know.

Not finding a placement is only a small bump in the road, it’s not something you massively need to worry over, either. Just do your best, as that’s all that anyone can ask for.

Remember things happen for a reason, there may be your dream grad role still waiting for you after your final year.

Good Luck!

The post What Happens If I Don’t Get A Placement? appeared first on RateMyPlacement.

For many, university can be an exciting but daunting chapter of life. Thinking about all the opportunities and experiences you’ll have is going to be a huge plus, but this can become slightly overshadowed by anxiety. 

Here are some ways you can help manage these fears to allow yourself to have the best time at uni.

• Missing friends and family
• Making new friends and keeping up With old ones
• Breaking bad habits
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help

Missing friends and family

Almost everyone I spoke to at university in my first year shared the common fear of really missing friends and family and worrying about the amount of time away from them. Especially if they’re living away from home for the first time. 

I thought a lot about how I would be able to make friends and change my habits of seeing family every day, as I had previously lived at home. 

The best advice for this is: 

• Try and understand that loads of people are in the same boat. You’ll most likely not know anyone there and that’s ok because neither does anyone else!

• Consider what you can do to give yourself home comforts, even something as simple as a warm cup of tea in the evening or joining a dog walking society if you are missing pets from home.

Making new friends and keeping up with old ones

Try pushing out of your comfort zone as much as you can by going to freshers’ fairs, meeting accommodation house/flatmates, and attending societies (this in particular even if you decide not to go in the long run, you’ll meet some amazing people).

ON THAT NOTE… don’t be afraid to ask for people’s social media. Everyone will be doing the same thing. If it doesn’t even go beyond an add or a follow, that’s okay. But you don’t want to regret not being able to contact a potential new friend.

Scheduling when you’ll next talk to or meet loved ones from home is also a really good way to put your mind at ease as you know you’ll be talking to them soon and have something to look forward to if you are struggling. 

You might even end up going to the same university with some of your friends from home. While it will be nice to see familiar faces, don’t let that accidentally stop you from meeting new people. Maybe set a date in a few weeks to get together and talk about all your experiences so far.

It’s finally here, move-in date secured. Heres…

Breaking Bad Habits

For many, university is the first time being independent and self-reliant, so enjoy it! Make sure to look after yourself and become your own accountability tracker.

If you find yourself getting into the habit of not going to lectures for example, I would suggest at least trying to go to the library or leaving your accommodation during the week (not just leaving to go food shopping or for a sweet treat).

I joined university slightly later than everybody else and I was afraid everyone would have already made friends without me.

Throughout your time at university, you’ll find that friendship groups and people individually are always changing and evolving. I found that simply just saying yes to every social opportunity offered to me was helpful as it pushed me out of my comfort zone and exposed me to new people and situations.

One thing I love about university is that, unlike high school, there are no “popular people” (there are literally thousands of people at uni), so you can start fresh without judgment.

Never do anything that makes you feel unsafe or pressured. If you’re able to, try and excuse yourself to leave or reach out to anybody else, university officials or safety officers for support in your situation.

More on mental health and what you can actively do to look after yourself

Don’t Be Afraid To Ask For Help

If you are finding you are struggling, even in the first couple of days, and don’t know who to turn to, remind yourself that there is help and support out there. 

Universities will have support initiatives and professionals that will be able to help you, don’t be afraid to ask! There is nothing wrong with asking for help from a university.

You definitely won’t be the first or last person to ask for support, you are not alone. Even an email to the relevant team is a great step towards getting support.

Universities will always have services for you if you’re not doing too great and need a little help. Here are some of those:

All in all, university can be the best three years of your life. Just remember that you’ll ALWAYS have people around to support and guide you—just reach out! 

The post Looking After Your Mental Health At University appeared first on RateMyPlacement.

Luckily I have no regrets (well, maybe the hangover weekdays) but there are some things I wish someone had told me when I was a fresher…

• 101 to making friends at uni
• Ways to budget
• You’re more than your grades
• First Year = Fresh starts

101 to making friends at uni

First and foremost, be kind to everyone!  

This should be obvious but you’ll come across people who just aren’t friendly…That is okay! Try not to take it personally, you’ll be much happier knowing you maintained your kindness and values. 

On my first night, I invited all the flats in my block for a lil’ get-together, knocking on their doors with a big smile and managed to round up six of them. Don’t worry if your flatmates aren’t people you immediately click with, some things take time. You’ll be surprised how quickly you gravitate towards your people – be brave to take the first step, go knock!

Invite everyone to everything in those first few weeks. The more the merrier.

I went to surfing socials even though the sea TERRIFIES me because a friend invited me. Turns out I ended up making some great friends. Go to everything you get invited to (within your comfort zone) and vice versa.

Need a little bit more inspiration? Here are 8 ways you can make friends at university.

Ways to budget

The broke student stereotype is all too true, and with the cost of living crisis at the top of many students’ worries – there’s a lot to think about. But, there are ways you can make and hold on to those coins…

If you can, pick up a side hustle or part-time job, a lot of the time you will have big gaps in your day, so try to utilise this.

Here are some side hustles I did;

• Sell on vinted 
• Babysit (there are loads of apps available to help find parents)
• Sign up for a mystery shopping website 
• Part-time roles in retail or hospitality (the free food is a blessing!)
• Anything with flexible hours, the extra money will be a lifesaver.

There are also loads of ways you can make money around campus too! Whether that’s a job in the library or the SU coffee shop, you might not need to look far. 

You could even become a brand ambassador. It’s a great way to earn some cash, meet people and bag some work experience. Here are 8 more reasons to become a brand ambassador.

Don’t overspend on food shops. Take the first couple of months to evaluate what is essential/what goes out of date before you eat it. I wasted so many spinach and carrot bags, (random) yet continued to buy them.

Try to have a shopping list that you can make at least five meals from and budget for a couple of fast food takeaways as well. You need comfort and ease sometimes.

If you want some more money-saving hacks, find out how below: 

You’re more than your grades 

Try not to put too much pressure on yourself, it is easy to forget that in the first year, you only need to pass!

Of course, try your best (don’t get me wrong, the academic validation is always nice).

Really try to participate in seminars as much as you can, I was shy for so long and it hurt no one but myself… No one cares more than you, and that wrong answer you gave on a random rainy Tuesday morning will be forgotten as soon as you step out of those doors, I promise.

It’s important to get yourself into a routine halfway through the year so that you don’t struggle much when the second year rolls around (quickly might I add) but for freshers’, prioritise getting loads of the experience! 

As long as you find a balance, do not stress if you aren’t top of your class.

First year = Fresh start

Remember anything that held you back in the past gets wiped at uni. Nothing is ever that serious, and you get to live a double life at uni if you want to.

Embarrassing moments can and do happen, but trust me, they will be forgotten within 24 hours.

I definitely didn’t stack down a flight of stairs walking into my lecture… But if I had, I would just need to remember that in a university with 30,000 students, no one is going to remember that ten-second palaver, even though it got a laugh at the moment.

Finally, push yourself to try new things, as daunting as it may be, the time will fly and you will likely only regret the things you don’t do.

If you’re still a little unsure, that’s okay. Everything is new! But there are ways you can ease into doing the tasks that you’re not used to. Read on for more.

Good luck for freshers’ week, you’ll have a fab time! Be open to trying new things, and just remember to always be true to yourself and follow your instincts  

The post 4 things I Wish I Knew as a Fresher appeared first on RateMyPlacement.