Making a successful career move Tom Davie Careers Adviser

This session will be…. ... Interactive ... Confidential and supportive ... Encourage you to reflect on what you want out of a future career ... Provide you with advice on sources of information to help you to make informed decisions.

What has brought you here today? Push Pull Get group to discuss in pairs – what is pushing them out of academia, and what attracts them to something else (push will likely be negative factors, pull will likely be positive). Feed back to front and collate on whiteboard

How involved do you want to be? Hands on science Using science knowledge Using skills from your PhD/ research … or do something completely different? Activity – depends on the time. I have sometimes drawn this on a whiteboard and got them to mark it out. Divide into 4 groups – depending on numbers it could be 3 groups. Eg. Teaching – Higher Education Lecturer, Science Teacher, Primary School Teacher, Dance Teacher Those who want to work in hands on science / engineering Those who want to use science / engineering knowledge Those who want to use skills from PhD Those who want to do something completely new Ask each group to brainstorm and write on flip-chart paper all the jobs / occupations they can think of that could fit into that area. Write up on flipchart paper – each group to present back to the wider group. Give opportunities for other people to add job ideas that they think fit in with the distinct areas.

Finding a focus Individually, and then in pairs, discuss your top 5 career priorities. Be specific about the factors that would contribute to your job satisfaction. Space to think about what’s important. What will give you satisfaction in a career. If using big terms like “challenging”, or “helping others”, try to unpick what that means for you, as it will mean different things to different people.

Ideals and values Ideals Values Life balance/wellbeing Membership of a professional body/trade union Autonomy and responsibility Supporting workers development Supporting your own development Values Ethical investment Carbon footprint/environmental Community programmes International programmes ‘Making a difference’

Ideals and values Corporate Social Responsibility CSR is the acknowledgement by companies that they should be accountable not only for their financial performance, but for the impact of their activities on society and/or the environment. CBI

Investigating the organisation What do they do? Where does their money come from? Where do they invest? Environmental footprint Supply chains Employee policies Stakeholder engagement and accountability

Widening your horizons Increasing breadth of opportunity Increasing likelihood of re-training Increasing ‘risk’ – careers in the unknown... Increasingly further movement from ‘comfort zone’ Increasing effort to investigate new opportunities Increasing effort required to make the move Selling your knowledge/skills and attributes. Show widening horizons handout. Get them to discuss in pairs. How does their top 5 stack up?

Hidden opportunities 25% -------------- 75%

Before showing slide, ask group what they perceive their career options to be. Slide from Shinton consulting.

Some of your career options Industry, spin out, biotech Institute/professional bodies, government, charity/NGO Research Central administrative Projects HE Management Functional/ specialist Commercial Publishing, funding Policy, networks Research sector Consulting, spin out Social enterprise Enterprise Local government Civil service, advisory Public sector Fundraising, administrative Field based Charity/NFP Some of your career options

Strategies for career success CAREER PLANNED CAREER PREPARED Logical process of analysis, logic and elimination Drive to find ‘ideal’ job Matching your knowledge, experience, skills/attributes and values to job roles Systematic narrowing down of career choices through comprehensive research and information gathering. Based on ideas and concepts of theories of chaos Future uncertain and unpredictable Chance events provide opportunities – (planned) happenstance Developing behavioural strategies in response: curiosity, persistence, flexibility, optimism, and risk-taking. Outline common approaches to career thinking – career planners, and planned happenstance. One is about having a plan and an end-goal, the other is more about being prepared for the future. Each has merits, but also blind spots. ASK: which one do you identify with? Or do you do both? (most people do).

A framework for career planning and success Goal: what are you aiming for? Reality: where are you? Options: what could you do? Will: what will you do? Grow SMART Today, we will be learning how to make things happen, using a career coaching framework called GROW. You can use this outside the session to structure your own career planning. It encourages you to taken action.

Goal What is it that you’re aiming for? What will give you a sense of satisfaction and enjoyment? If anything was possible, what would you want/what would it be? Goal As individuals: Write your goal in 10 words or fewer / 2 sentences. Write it in the present tense. Must be SPECIFIC TIME MEASURED REALISTIC (but still a challenge) Ask yourself: If anything was possible, what would you want? Describe your 10/10 Think about the what not the how.

Reality Where are you at in relation to your goal? What is going well? What could be better? How successful do you consider yourself to be in planning, managing and achieving your goal? Scale 1-10 Reality As individuals: Write your goal in 10 words or fewer / 2 sentences. Write it in the present tense. Must be SPECIFIC TIME MEASURED REALISTIC (but still a challenge) Ask yourself: If anything was possible, what would you want? Describe your 10/10 Think about the what not the how.

Options What can you start doing to put yourself in a better position? What might you stop doing? What inspiration can you take from other people? Options Think about different approaches and ways of learning – do you like to read, observe, try things out, talk to people? TASK: Act as a consultant for the person sitting next to you and add at least one more option to their list. Feed back to front – has anyone had any ground breaking suggestions?

Looking at your options, what will you actually do Looking at your options, what will you actually do? Think about what are you prepared to do? When? How? Who needs to know or help? What are the potential obstacles? What is your very first step? What could you do to be more motivated? Will Feed back one thing each? (Depends on the mood of the room!). TASK! Action Planning activity What will you do? By when? With whom? What are the potential obstacles? On a scale of 1-10 how motivated are you to completing these actions? Is that a challenge for you? What could you do to become more motivated? Share one of your actions with the person next to you.

So, what’s stopping you? What help do you need to move forward? What do you know? What do you not know? What do you need to do? Who do you need to connect with?

How can we support you? Experienced and qualified staff Individualised information, advice and guidance Plan, manage and make decisions about your career Workshops specifically for PGRs Help you understand, develop and pitch your skills Finding opportunities that suit your needs and wants Transition skills – how to make things happen Support for IP and developing business ideas Emphasise career planning and management – not just about decision making, but preparing and upskilling. Jenny and Lorna are both experienced at working with people who are further along in their careers.

Action planning Write down three actions that you are going to take away from today’s session. Score your actions on a scale of 1-10, with 10 meaning “I am definitely going to do this” Tell the person next to you about one of your actions

Science Careers Outside The Lab Gain insights and top tips from professionals working in the following areas: Science education and STEM outreach Patents Science recruitment Environmental law Bioinformatics Science policy Teaching Medical physics Pharma & healthcare sales Environmental consultancy Clinical trials Sports nutrition Financial services Thursday 19 April 2017, 18:00 – 20:00 Careers Service, King’s Gate If you’re unsure about what you want to do after you’ve finished your science related degree, this event provides information and advice for new opportunities in a variety of sectors and the chance to hear from experienced professionals including Houses of Parliament, NHS and Bond Dickinson. Book your free place at: www.ncl.ac.uk/careers/events

Connect with us Careers Service Join us: facebook.com/nclcareers Follow us: twitter @ncl_careers Newcastle University Careers, find us on YouTube Careers Service Level 1 of King’s Gate Drop-in: 11-4:30 Look out for updates in your inbox!