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

Why do an employability award when you are already busy with study, sport, family, socialising etc?  Rosemary Heather wondered that too. But when she did check it out, she quickly saw the benefits. Now happily employed as a food science analyst, Rosemary encourages other students to make the most of the award opportunities.

Employers love meeting people who are proactive, curious and well prepared. They will remember you if you take an interest, ask questions and show an understanding of what their organisation does. Over March and April there will be crowds of employers coming on campus to career expos and events to meet you. Here are 6 tips on how to stand out.

Wondering how to meet employers? Then make the most of the opportunity to meet a large number of employers on city campus at AUT by attending the upcoming career expos this semester. Are you ready to shine like a peacock at the next career fair? Here are tips on how to put your best foot forward.

What has detective work got to do with getting a job? Well, just like a detective builds up a case by collecting clues and leads, so should you build up information and collect leads when trying to figure out where you’d love to work. By researching, talking to people, and checking out events and organisations, you start to zone in on great job opportunities.

As someone “annoyingly practical and analytical” Natalie Pettitt reckoned science was a natural fit. Her desire to understand the ‘why’ behind sour dough and cheese led her to study microbiology and food science at AUT. Now a senior technician at Ministry of Primary Industries, Natalie talks about her science career journey over the past couple of years.

Going up to strangers can feel a bit scary but the employers at the Science Career Expo are there because they want to talk to you about their work and the science careers they can offer. Here are some tips from two of the employers attending.

Hansani Senadeera landed a great part time job after attending a workshop for job interview practice at the Employability Lab at AUT. She encourages other students to take advantage of these workshops - see what she learned that helped her get a job.

Getting involved in supporting other students was something Tanvi Narayan would never have had the confidence to do when she first started at AUT, but the AUT Edge Award opened up possibilities and led to Tanvi becoming a student ambassador, RUOK adviser and peer mentor.

Employers love to see you have developed good life skills and professional skills as well as academic knowledge. They also want to hear you talk positively about those skills. Sound tricky? It need not be. There are plenty of ways you can identify and/or develop the right soft skills.  Part time work, volunteering and academic projects all build a picture of someone with a great range of transferable life skills.

Gaming attracted Liam O’Reilly-Gevert into a design degree that quickly opened up “a million and one other possibilities” and the realisation that your job title doesn’t have to reflect the name of your degree