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Careers

There has been no article in Salient this term from the Careers Advisory Service: time to put that right. Far from being due to inactivity at 6KP, life has been somewhat hectic in one way or other. So the following is a brief synopsis of items that might have been written earlier in the term!

• First, a reminder to all Stage 1 students that the Career Advisory Service is available all through (and beyond) degree studies. You do not have to be more or less decided about the directions you want to consider before coming over for an informal, confidential discussion. If you are thinking of changing major, of getting some ideas about the "marketability" of your degree, or even of quitting altogether - we will be pleased to help you consider the pros and cons, and supply information where possible.
• The Careers Library at 6 Kelburn Parade is open 9am to 5pm weekdays throughout the year, and contains information about careers, employers and training courses both in Godzone and elsewhere. In some cases spare information is available. (Incidentally, for those students who have been waiting for it, the new "Careers for Graduates in Geography" leaflet is now available).
• The employment situation in Wellington continues to cause concern in the Careers Office, with a number of 1980 graduates still not settled in "permanent" employment. Most of the casualties seem to have left job exploration until after the summer vacation. While it is tempting to indulge oneself in that last, long vacation, it certainly makes little sense to rely on there being any jobs left early in the following year. So if you are finishing studies in November 1981, we strongly recommend that you give some serious thought to the next step well before then (see "Milkround" below).
• Mid-year graduands who have not already been in to see us, and have no job arranged, should be visiting 6 Kelburn Parade now. If we don't know you, we can't help you, except impersonally via the Careers Library and "Current Vacancies", which is published fortnightly by this office.
• Accountancy students, particularly midyear finishers, should note that there will be an opportunity to meet with professional accounting firms on campus from 4 to 6 May 1981. Details will appear shortly via the Department, and Salient, and the Careers Office.
• The "Milkround" is for obscure reasons the nickname of the Programme of Employers' On Campus Interviews which will take place between 13 July and 14 August. A wide range of public and private sector employers make themselves available for informal interviews with students of all disciplines; although many students gain employment from these interviews, the primary objective from our point of view is educative - it gives students a chance to explore career ideas in a relatively unthreatening atmosphere. As you may be aware, employers using our facilities are to be levied from 1981. The levy does not relate directly to the numbers recruited at Victoria on the "Milkround", therefore it is hoped that the informal, information providing aspects of the programme will be unaffected, and that few if any employers will opt out of the scheme.

Roger Bartley Careers Adviser