Are you worried about your future and how your life will plan out after university? Do you ask yourself how can a university degree help you with getting your dream job? Then you are just like me!
In the last two years of my degree at the University of Chester, I was quite worried that I did not know what my future career path looked like and where to seek help for my future career. Luckily, I had very understanding lecturers that assisted me every step of the way, whilst the University’s Careers team helped me to understand the future job market through different exhibitions and talks, as well as placement opportunities.
What career path did I choose and why?
During my A-levels I was interested in several topics, however, I wasn’t sure what type of industry and career path I saw myself in. In the end, I took the risk and chose to study Geography as this was the one topic I was the most enthusiastic about and applied for a Single Honours course at the University of Chester. During the three years at the University, my passion for Geography and environmental studies continued to grow and I realised that I wanted to pursue a career within this area. When I investigated how I could achieve this, I discovered that many graduate roles preferred to hire a graduate student that had either acquired work experience during their university years or achieved further education, e.g. Masters following graduation. With this in mind, I was very pleased to know that the University of Chester provided guidance on both options. As I was looking for practical experience in the industry, I was very pleased to know that the University offered placement options during the second year of studies.
To win a work placement with a leading environmental consultancy company, the University careers team not only held workshops on helping students to design their CV but also assisted with preparing yourself for job interviews. They also welcome students to book appointments with them, to chat through any individual problems they encounter when applying for graduate roles, placements or internships.
How useful was my work placement?
My placement took place during the last six weeks of my second year at the University. I was given the option to try working in several departments, such as land contamination and soils, noise and quality monitoring, ecology and overall environmental consulting. The work placement not only offered me an opportunity to understand the industry and my future career options, but also to practically prepare myself for this industry.
On top of the above, I finally figured out exactly what I wanted to do! Having the option to experience myself in most environmental topics, I understood that I did not want to specialise in one topic but wanted to know and consult clients on all, and this is why I chose to become an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Consultant.
And just like that, I ended my second year of university knowing exactly what career I saw myself in, what jobs I will be applying for and what my dissertation topic is going to be in my third and final year of university.
My final year
I stepped into my third and final year feeling calm and ready. With the help of my supervisor who continued to listen and assist me with writing my dissertation, careers team that helped me improve my CV and prepared me for the interview day and the most caring friends I made during my university years, I finished my degree with a First Class degree with honours and a job in the bag!
What do I do now?
Almost three years on, I still enjoy and love every day of my working life at WYG, recently rebranded as Tetra Tech. EIA is a process by which the anticipated effects on the environment of a proposed development are measured, assessed and mitigated to inform the decision-making process by stakeholders and local authorities. It is an integral part of planning and development in cities, towns and rural areas and I am very happy and proud to be a part of this industry.
If you would like to find out more about studying at the University of Chester, we have a number of events available for you to book on to. You can view them all here.
