Keeping My Career Options Open...or How I Put My Degree to Work

Ever since beginning high school, I was told I would have over five careers during my working life and undoubtedly end up in an industry where my degree was not relevant. By the time I was attending university, I had my sights set on the health care industry, shaping my degree and extracurricular activities to reflect the marks and the skills necessary to gain a job in that sector. However, at graduation and after four years of study, I found myself in a situation where I no longer wanted to become a health care professional – the required additional years of study were a big turn off! Instead, I turned my attention to my job search, thinking about what I was good at and what I enjoyed, and how I could turn that into a career. Ultimately, that ended up as a Graduate with people2people.

I had never thought of recruitment as a career, but so far I am loving it! The take away message from this is if you are in university, be prepared to consider that the prophecy of not ending up in your desired industry could become true. This involves trying your best to get good grades, getting a casual job and participating in as many extracurricular activities as your study allows.

Because when you're in an interview, although you may not have the exact knowledge and educational background required, you can demonstrate through prior experience the skills required for the job. For me, my volunteer experience at Lifeline demonstrated my ability to work under pressure, while my sporting activities and causal work that I undertook during university showed my ability to time manage and multi task. Good luck with your job search!