January News and Updates for PGRs University of Manchester Careers Blog

January News and Updates for PGRs A big welcome to all the new PGR students who’ve just arrived at the University of Manchester! Spring is in the air. It’s true. Leaving work in the evening, I’ve detected a glimmer of sunlight lingering in the western sky.  More significantly, snowdrops, that well known harbinger of British Spring, have appeared in our garden (we live 200 m higher than Manchester, so I come into work to get warm). Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672) was an early English poet in North America (unusual for being a published poet at a time when, according to her contemporary, Edward Hopkins, Governor of Connecticut (my home state for anyone interested) writing and reading should be left for men, “whose minds are stronger”).   Amongst her literary legacy, a particular quote of Mrs Bradstreet’s seems apt as we perch on the threshold of Spring 2017: “If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome. Anne Bradstreet, Meditations Divine and Moral The work of the Careers Service is designed and delivered to give you control over your career (= job + life).   None of us can ever have 100% control but through self-awareness and other skills of career management, you become more able to adapt and overcome adversities that are out of your immediate control, and able to seek guidance for support and advice for dealing with things both in and out of your control. With this in mind, I’ll be re-running some of the Careers Essentials workshops in February, for anyone who missed them last time around. You can find out more on our Postgraduate Events page: Careers Essentials for Postgraduates http://www.careers.manchester.ac.uk/postgraduates/events/ For new PhD students â€" don’t miss: 10 and a bit things you should know about the Careers Service: https://manunicareersblog.com/2016/09/14/10-and-a-bit-things-phds-should-know-about-the-careers-service/ Would building better relationships help you adapt and be resilient? Read this guest blog post on by Sue Colbeck to find out more about the skills of relationship building with colleagues: https://manunicareersblog.com/2015/03/20/relationships-are-they-a-skill/ Getting ready for making applications? Not sure where to start? A first port of call is the Applications and Interviews section of the Careers Service website â€" find out what you do know, what you don’t know, review your application and interview strengths and weaknesses â€" then take action before that crucial deadline. http://www.careers.manchester.ac.uk/applicationsinterviews/ International students â€" Don’t forget about the 12 month visa extension for PhDs.   Find out about this and more on our International pages: http://www.careers.manchester.ac.uk/international/ All Postgrad-highlighted Postgraduate Applications and interviews career planning postgraduate