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Career centres: how they can help

Whether you are at university or already in the job market, you have a very useful tool at hand that can help you look for work or advance your career.

Every university and town has its own career centre, and this is a great place for work-related help that can often be overlooked.

These resource centres offer lots of useful information on careers and employers that can help you to make more informed choices, plus they are full of trained staff that can answer any questions you might have and gives you access to a variety of reference materials and computer access if necessary.

What's there?

Take advantage of these centres! They will have copies of every national and local paper from the last week (and beyond) for you to trawl through for vacancies - saving you both some cash and some footwork! They will also have vast amounts of information on types of jobs and employers which will help you to research any potential employers and what kinds of things would be expected of you in such a role. Check out your local centre's reference section; you never know what hidden gems of information and advice you might find.

Most career centres have their own vacancies bulletin and once you've registered you should have free access to its list of vacancies either on a posting board in the centre, by post, or via e mail. At bigger university centres, there may even be a more substantial publication such as a directory that lists employers interested in students from your institution.

The majority of the time you can book slots to come into the centre and use its PCs; giving you access to the Internet and office tools for you to write application letters etc. Then quite often they'll even post your application forms for you, which when applying for 10+ jobs a week; that's another money saving for you.

Advisors

More than anything, trained careers advisors are the greatest tools any careers service can offer you. They are there to help, so take advantage of that! More often than not there is a 'duty' advisor available to answer any urgent or quick queries, but for a more dedicated time slot, you can book a careers appointment and discuss any issues that are worrying you. Then you can feel free to ask them how to overcome any weaknesses you feel you have when it comes to the application and interview process, and ask for advice on how to fill in application forms and covering letters etc.

They are very helpful, and they are always there, so remember that and use them to their full advantage.

Presentations and Career Fairs

The service goes beyond the centre itself, with centres co-ordinating employer presentations or employer run workshops. This is more often the case at university centres, where employers like to come and check out the upcoming talent. These presentations can come in many forms, from a formal workshop to a talk in a snazzy bar in Central London. Its always great to network, so by signing up to your careers centre you'll find you have many more opportunities to schmooze with prospective future employers, get a feel for what they are looking for, and also get taught a few new skills along the way!

The career fair is another opportunity to network; this time with lots of employers at once. Sometimes career centres set up specialised events for specific industries - such as engineering -and then other times it can be a much event with all types of employer milling around an extensive exhibition hall. Either way, take these opportunities to get out there and show employers what you've got to offer.

As you can see, there are a lot of reasons to sign up to your local career centre. They offer wide variety of facilities, events and opportunities all aimed at helping you further your career in some form or another. Why don't you put aside a few hours this coming week to go down to your nearest centre and check it out? It could offer you more than you originally thought.