Employability
At Westminster, we have always believed that your University experience should be designed to enhance your professional life.We place as much emphasis on gaining skills relevant to the workplace as on learning the academic discipline that you are studying.
Our courses all seek to help students develop attributes that will be sought after by future employers, such as communication, presentation and problem-solving, alongside the more traditional attributes of academic knowledge and theoretical understanding.
Employers work with us in a variety of ways. Not only do they offer placements or internships, they also collaborate with us in the development and delivery of new courses and projects. Where relevant, many courses have the endorsement of the appropriate professional body, such as the British Psychological Society or the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Obtaining a placement, part-time or vacation job while you study will provide you with extra cash and help you demonstrate that you have the skills employers are looking for. In London, there is a plentiful supply of part-time work - most students at the University of Westminster work part-time (or full-time during vacations) to help support their studies.
Careers and Student Employment (CaSE)
CaSE offers help and support to all students and graduates (even after you've left). We can help you:
- Find part-time / vacation, placement and graduate jobs, including voluntary experience
- Explore how to develop the skills that employers are looking for
- Plan your career development
- Identify your career options
- Market yourself effectively in CVs, application forms and interviews.
You are welcome to use the Careers and Student Employment Service (CaSE) whatever your year of study. It's never too early to start using CaSE, and most students say they wish they had come to see us sooner.
Overview of CaSE Services
- Comprehensive website with wide ranging careers information and advice, including tailored job hunting information for your subject area and our FUSION section specific to the many, diverse groups of students at Westminster.
- CaSE maintained vacancy lists with part-time, vacation, placement and graduate jobs.
- Free confidential interviews with a careers consultant to explore your skills and career options.
- Quick query sessions: ideal for checking application forms and CVs. Available Monday Thursday 12.30 3.30, just book on the day.
- Interactive Career Development Workshops on career planning, job hunting techniques, job applications and interviews, either within your curriculum or stand alone.
- Targeted support for International Students.
- Employer events to allow you to meet and hear from employers first hand.
- Practice psychometric tests.
- Community Volunteering Unit to help you secure valuable voluntary work experience to develop your skills and make an important contribution to society.
- National Mentoring Scheme, whereby home students of Black British, African, Caribbean and Asian descent are linked with professional managers or executives to gain support and experience.
Destinations of recent Westminster graduates
It is important for the University to know about the destinations of its graduates, so every year CaSE collects this information from our students six months after they graduate.
The data for 2006 shows that almost eight in ten Westminster graduates are in employment and/or further study. Of those in work, there is a high degree of professional employment with almost six in ten employed in managerial, professional or equivalent roles. For self-employed graduates, the figure is over nine in ten, with many of these working in new and emerging creative industries including fashion design, web management and graphic design.
Recent Westminster graduates work in a variety of sectors:
- The private sector including companies such as ITN, Barclays Bank, Sainsburys and HSBC.
- The public sector including local councils, Home Office, National Health Service, BBC, Metropolitan Police and the Civil Service.
- Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) such as IT start-up companies, media companies, architecture firms and hospitality organisations.
Extra-curricular activities
Your involvement in activities outside of your studies is another extremely valuable way to demonstrate your employability to potential employers. The Universitys Students Union co-ordinate a wide variety of sports clubs and societies.
Furthermore London is the centre of most professions in the UK, allowing students easy access to relevant professional bodies and events.
Westminster Business Consultants (WBC)
The University of Westminster was the first institution in the UK to develop a student-run junior enterprise company. WBC is a real company that provides services to real business clients; it is managed by current students with the support of the University. WBC enables students from any discipline to gain valuable experience.