Thomas More Career Services

Whether you’re just starting your study programme or you’re a recent graduate, there’s no time like the present when it comes to preparing yourself for that post-academic career. 

Digitalisation and globalisation have expanded the types of career opportunities on the market. As a result, there are more career possibilities with your degree than you could imagine.
While some may have a specific career goal in mind when they graduate, others may be curious about exploring the different job possibilities with their Thomas More degree.
No matter which camp you belong to, taking time to brainstorm your career goals, ambitions and possibilities is essential to prepare for the job market.

 

It takes time and effort to find a job or even an internship. Therefore, it's important to organise yourself so you can scout and apply for opportunities more efficiently. Determine how many hours per day or which days of the week you will dedicate to your career search. It is important to be on the lookout for those freshly published opportunities and not wait until the last minute to apply. 

Create or update your LinkedIn profile and register for different job announcement notifications. You might also want to set up a professional email account to keep your job message notifications separate from your personal ones. By planning ahead, you’ll make the job search process faster and more efficient!

• Pro tip: Create a spreadsheet to keep track of the jobs you've applied for and the interview invitations you’ve received. 

Your technical background, training and knowledge acquired during your studies or work experience are important. However, it’s equally important to have a strong set of soft skills when building a successful career. Soft skills include leadership, communication and problem-solving skills. Also the ability to negotiate, build relationships and adapt to workplace changes are examples of soft skills and are valuable to mention to your future employer.  It's a continuous process to develop these soft skills, for example, through leadership training, voluntary work or professional development opportunities at the workplace.

Before applying to a specific company or organisation, make sure you do your research. Look into factors such as the mission statement, products, services and growth outlook and determine how these relate to the position you’re interested in. Consider factors that are related to the work environment, such as employee satisfaction, benefits and salary range. This information can help you determine whether this position is a good fit. Moreover, it can be used to refer to in your cover letter.  

Networking is essential for your growth as a young professional. From social meetups to seminar events, and extracurricular activities to after hour drinks. These are all opportunities to connect with new or existing contacts in your network, find out more about an industry you’re interested in, or even connect further with someone who can advise you in your job search. 

• Pro tip: Do you have a LinkedIn profile? With LinkedIn you can display all of your academic and professional achievements, apply to jobs and stand out to recruiters.
• Pro tip: Informational interviews can be useful if you want to have an informal conversation with professionals in an industry or company you might want to work for. You can use your own network or search for potential interview subjects on professional networking sites or member organisations.

When searching for a job, a CV is one of your most valuable tools. Use this resume to convince your future employer that you are a valuable candidate. A good resume:

• aligns with the job description. Identify important words in the job description and reuse these in your CV.
• highlights important achievements in your previous role, rather than describing all your tasks and responsibilities in detail.

By tailoring your CV like this, the recruiter or hiring manager will immediately know whether you have the skills they are looking for.

Opportunities for students and recent graduates, such as internships, traineeships and fellowships provide a great introduction into the labour market. They may even lead to future employment within the company or organisation where they are conducted. 

Don’t hold back to apply if you don’t meet all expectations. Entry level jobs often require out of the classroom skills that you may not have required (yet).
But sometimes (depending on the job) it’s more important for employers that a candidate is highly motivated and has potential to grow instead of ticking all the boxes.
Make sure you stand out! Use your cover letter to highlight examples of your work ethic, transferrable skills and, most importantly, how your goals align with those of the company. 

Great! You’ve made it to the interview phase. But don’t let the excitement distract you. Preparing for a job interview is just as important – if not more – than tailoring your CV and applying for the job. Not only should you prepare for common interview questions such as 'What are your greatest weaknesses and strengths?' and questions about the company such as 'What do you know about our company?'. Also be prepared to respond to questions about the role with examples of your work and experiences. There is a wealth of online sources about typical interview questions, but one of the best ways to prepare for an interview is to conduct a ‘mock’ interview (or a few) with a friend, mentor, network contact or career coach. 

One way to boost your chances of employment in Belgium is to improve and certify your Dutch. The Dutch Language Union organises CNaVT exams for adults wanting to prove their Dutch language proficiency with an internationally recognised certificate.

Discover everything about the certification process.