CEU's Career Services is here to help students and alumni in their career development. From information about career paths, events where you can engage with employers, workshops designed to help you develop your career readiness skills, and one-to-one support, we offer a range of services to make sure that you are equipped with the skills and knowledge you need for your future after CEU. Career development takes time, and we are here every step of the way!
Before you start your studies
The earlier you engage with your career development, the better informed you will be, the less pressure you will face later! This is why we advise students to think about their career future early and often. You won't have access to Career Services until you are enrolled, but you can still start to prepare.
You may already have some idea of what you want to do when you finish at CEU - or you may still be exploring your options. Either way, before you sit down to your first lecture of your new degree, it's a good idea to do some self-reflection. Think about the following and jot down your answers:
- What am I good at?
- What evidence do I have that I am good at this/these things?
- What do I enjoy doing? Why?
- If I imagine an average day in 5/10/15 years time, what does it look like?
- Do I prefer to focus on one thing, or have multiple interests/projects at a time?
Now take a few minutes and complete these sentences:
- 'I feel happiest when...'
- 'In the past I felt most proud when...'
- 'A person I admire is......because.....'
- 'Something I really want to do/experience/achieve during my time at CEU is...'
- 'The things I value most in my life are...'
Feel free to also add your own questions and sentences.
This exercise will only take you a few minutes but it should already kick-start your thinking about you and your future. Once you start at CEU, you may even want to book an appointment with a Career Advisor to discuss your answers.
You may want to do this exercise every few months. Regularly taking time to check-in with yourself, to ask yourself important questions and see how you are developing as a person will help you to make better decisions when it comes to things like choosing an internship or other work experience.
Self-reflection is also an important skill in itself. Candidates are often asked questions about their strengths and weaknesses during interviews, for example. And like any skill, practice makes you better.
Career Development Model
The Career Development Model is something that you will see a lot of when you start engaging with Career Services at CEU. Above, we have focused on the 'Reflect' segment of the model, but preparing for your future will involve paying attention to each segment. Once you are enrolled, you will find more information and advice about these areas of career development on our internal sharepoint site.