Employability and Careers Blog: Info and Advice for AUT Students and Graduates

A lot of students ask us how they can stand out in the job market. One of our best pieces of advice is to undertake the AUT Edge Award (undergraduate) or the Beyond AUT Award (postgraduate). Why? Aside from it looking good on your CV and academic transcript, it also encourages you to develop skills ad attributes that employers look for – communication, confidence, collaboration and resilience.

Be proactive about your passion, advises AUT Master of Marine Science  alumni Jaever Santos, who as a kid loved  "creepy ocean stuff". That became the pathway to marine conservation postgraduate  research and a role at Australian Museum.

Why go to career expos? Because that is where you meet real employers and have real conversations about the world after AUT. Find out more about invaluable advice from employers and insights from students about the value of career expos – and other career events.

International students often tell us they feel very confused when employers say they want NZ work experience, despite the students having a wealth of experience in their own country. We explain what employers are looking for and how you can improve your job search opportunities.

Trying to meet employers and become known outside of AUT can be a difficult thing to contemplate. Here is a way to take small steps to build up confidence and start to interact with lots of different people.

Practising how to network can feel uncomfortable, but if you push through your awkwardness it can pay off, as Lavenia Tailai-Mataitini found when she attended a career expo and learned about the internship she is now undertaking with Auckland Transport.

You have a great passion, but not the talent to make it big. Well, not everyone can be the star of the show, but there are plenty of opportunities to make the most of the skills you do have and follow your passion into that world another way. It’s simple!

It can take time to find your place in the world. If you’re feeling unsure about the study you’re undertaking, it is okay to take a deep breath and reflect on what you’re doing. Is it just a difficult point in your study or could there be a better career path for you?  As AUT graduate Jordan Anderson found out, it is better to have a break and work out what you really enjoy,  rather than slog on unhappily.

Helping people through working in recruitment for a social justice organisation ticks all the boxes for Tominika Moa. The AUT Human Resources and Employment Relations graduate works as a HR coordinator at Lifewise. She advises students to not worry about lack of experience when applying for jobs. She applied for all the HR roles she could find even though she had little experience. “Don’t be scared to put yourself out there.”

The role you take as a graduate is often a starting point from where you can develop the transferable skills you need to land the role you dream of. This was certainly the experience of Zymus International applications technologist Roselle Samaratunga.