Staff at the University of Manchester Centre for Atmospheric Science organise public meetings for the North-West Royal Meteorological Society, and they’ve struck lucky with this month’s talk by Laura Tobin, a Met Office forecaster and weather presenter for the BBC, and a Physics & Meteorology graduate.

Here’s what they have to say:

Laura will tell us what it is like to be a weather presenter and forecaster and describe how weather model forecast data are turned into what we all see on the TV.

This promises to be an exciting talk and not to be missed by anyone with an interest in the weather and anyone interested in weather presenting in general.

Tell your friends! This is a free to attend, no need to register event. Just turn up.

• Speaker: Laura Tobin (BBC weather presenter and forecaster)
• Title: Forecasting the weather – from models to TV
• Date: Tue 7th Feb 2012
• Time: 6 pm (coffee from 5.40 pm) to 7 pm
• Location: C9, Renold Building, University of Manchester.

You need to plan well in advance if you want to study in the USA, so if you haven’t already started the process, you’re probably looking at starting a programme in 2013-4 rather than later this year.

• US Grad School Day – this annual information day in London gives you an insight into US university postgraduate admissions process. This year it’s on 6th March (6-9pm), and registration is now open. If you can’t attend (it’s a bit outside the GMPTE bus routes…) you can register with them and looks like they’re investigating running a webinar, so you might still be able to get the information on offer at the Grad School Day.
• UK Fulbright Awards – if you’re a UK citizen, Fulbright offer around 30 postgraduate scholarships a year. There have been changes to the process and timeline this year, so even if you’ve investigated these before, don’t rely on out of date information. Applications open on 1st August and close on 15th November, for 2013-14 entry.
• Fulbright Awards for other countries – the Fulbright awards are administered on a country by country basis. You must apply through your home country process (assuming it exists, though the list does seem very extensive) and the awards and schemes vary widely between countries. The Fulbright international website gives links to each country programme for further details.

Here’s advance warning of what’s coming up later this semester

Dates to book in in your diary now:

• Got a great business idea but not sure what to do? – a one-off event for those keen to find out about running your own business or becoming self-employed. 2-4pm, Wednesday 29th Feb – registration now open. This will be followed by further sessions on developing business plans, a “clinic” for running your own business and an introduction to social enterprises – see CareersLink for further details in the near future.
• Getting started with a career in the media – an interactive practical 1 hour session with our careers consultants, for those wondering where to start with this competitive career area. 12-1, Monday 5th March – registration now open.

Coming soon:

• Getting into International Development – a half day information event for anyone interested in International Development, Humanitarian Aid and related areas. The chance to hear from experts working in this field, including DfID, Mines Advisory Group and the British Red Cross. 1.30-5pm, Wednesday 7th March. Registration opens in a couple of days!
• Careers in the Environmental Sector – a half day event with the chance to talk directly to a range of people working this field. 1-5pm, Wednesday 14th March. Registration opens third week of Feb.
• Insight into Broadcasting and Journalism – a two day course with industry insiders as tutors. Look out for this running over the Easter vacation. UPDATE: Just confirmed – it will be on Monday 26th & Tuesday 27th March this year.

None of these events are recruitment events – these aren’t fairs with employers and vacancies. Why?

• Because employers in these fields don’t need to spend time and money on stands at fairs to get you interested – there are more than enough people trying to get into these jobs.
• Because many employers in these fields are small and can’t afford the time away from their organisations to recruit at a range of universities – but our alumni and other contacts have often, very generously, given up their own time to talk to you at these events.
• Because very few organisations in these fields have “graduate recruitment schemes”, recruiting in the Autumn. They’ll have one-off vacancies which might happen at any time of year, so it pays to get prepared beforehand with all the information you’ll need for your applications, and grab the vacancies whenever you spot them.

Even if they’re not advertising jobs, they do give you the inside info you’ll need to get into these very competitive fields – don’t miss your chance.

If you’re interested in a paid summer internship with IBM Research Labs in India, you’ve got until the 31st January to apply (given the time difference, that means today).

Full details are on the IBM Research – India website or there’s a pdf with further info here.

If you want to take up one of the 10-12 week internships, which start from around mid-May, you’ll have to negotiate taking any time out with your supervisor or course tutors if you’re still a student.

Sorry for the very short notice about this, but it was only confirmed yesterday afternoon (guess it reflects the kind of “keep your ear to the ground and drop everything when a chance comes up” mentality you’d need in TV production). As of posting (9.30 am, Thursday 26th Jan) there were still 17 places left – get in quick.

Here are the details:

This Friday 27 January – two lunchtime talks from the BBC at 12.00pm and 1.00pm (pick the time that suits you) in Room 5.7, Crawford House, Booth Street East, Manchester (above the Careers Service and across from the Aquatic Centre – the entrance is the one furthest away from Oxford Road)

This year the BBC launches the Production Talent Pool (PTP). The PTP will be a first step on the ladder for nearly 100 ambitious talented people who want a career in broadcast media. Successful PTP candidates are offered short-term, paid work in runner or junior production management roles across the BBC for up to 12 months.

The brightest and the best of those will be offered one of 12 places on the BBC’s prestigious Production training scheme which fast tracks individuals across 18 months to become Assistant Producer.

This session is aimed at final year students to give details of the scheme and information about how to apply.

Register here for the talk at 12 noon- 1pm, this Fri 27 Jan

Or

Register here for the talk at 1pm – 2pm, this Fri 27 Jan.

The talk will be given by Kate Hoyland, the BBC’s Manager, Trainee and Development Schemes for the BBC Academy.

Places are limited so please sign-up asap. Registration closes at midnight on Thurs 26 Jan.

Please note, information about careers in the media is regularly posted on the University of Manchester Media Club blog

It’s designed to get you started, and for the first time, we’ve included “screencasts” showing you how to set up a LinkedIn profile and advice on what to include, even if you’re a student with little or no work experience. This includes an example student profile to show you how easy it is to create an effective presence on LinkedIn. You should be able to see basic details if you don’t have an account or are not logged in to LinkedIn, but you’ll need to set up an account to get the full benefit.

The screencasts are videos of a computer desktop, showing you what to click where to set up your profile, plus a helpful audio commentary, with tips on what to add, and what to avoid. There are two clips, each less than 5 minutes long, so they’re ideal if

• you haven’t taken the plunge yet but want to set up a profile, or
• you have set one up but want to make it look more professional.

I’m really impressed with these new resources – and even more impressed that my colleague, Helen, managed to create them in the last few days of her pregnancy. I guess it was something to take her mind off waiting, but I think it shows dedication to student careers, above and beyond the call of duty!

One brief point – in Part 2 of her screencast, Helen mentions that you should look at a video on using LinkedIn groups as part of your network. I guess that time just ran out and she didn’t get chance to create this before her more pressing deadline. However, we’ll pick up where she left off, and one of us (OK, probably me ) will learn how to create screencasts and continue the series – watch this space.

Let me know if you find these useful and what other topics you want us to cover.

Whether you need a quick 15 minute drop-in appointment, or a full half hour pre-booked appointment with someone used to seeing people from your School, there should be some short notice appointments available. (I’ve currently got over 20 free appointment slots over the next 2 weeks – but then I only made them available today.)

To book just call in (we’re opposite the Aquatics Centre) or call our Careers Information staff on 0161 275 2829 – open Monday to Friday, 9-5pm. More details here.

Good idea to get in while it’s quiet!

New Year, New Challenge
I’m grappling with some challenging career issues at the moment, particularly around

• how people choose which career to go into, and
• why they are sometimes reluctant to let go of one “identity” and consider other possible “future selves”

In particular, I’m looking at PhDs who don’t want to think of themselves as being anything other than “an academic-in-waiting”, even when they know the stats.

I’m also pondering about all those undergrads who cling to the identity of “student” as long as possible and don’t apply for jobs before they graduate, even though that inevitably means their identity changes to “unemployed” (or sometimes “Masters postgrad”… don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone if that’s the reason why you’re doing your Masters – we all know it happens).

There are lots of careers theories, and I’ve had some good advice on starting points for journal articles on identity, career decision making and employability.

How to choose?
The problem is, I’m on unfamiliar territory with careers theory, and I’m feeling overwhelmed by all the choices in front of me; the unfamiliar jargon they use; the sometimes conflicting information. I’ve got loads of information and keep on finding more, but how can I tell which one is “the best”, and what do other people think are the good theories, and what if I choose the wrong one? That’s only the start though – once I find a theory I like, how do I actually use the information to solve the problem I’ve got?

And then I realised that whatever I choose to do, I’m getting an insight into what our students have to struggle with when trying to choose a career – all the careers information we fling at you; employer presentations which sound like so much corporate jargon; what your parents, friends, fellow students say are “the best jobs” (all different, of course); how on earth you get into those jobs from where you are now.

I’m feeling suitable chastened, and I think I’d recommend a crash course in trying to make use of careers theory for any careers person who’s getting exasperated at the lack of direction or action from their students.

Good luck to those of you making those difficult career decisions in 2012, and if it’s all getting a bit overwhelming, come and have a chat with a careers adviser. Some of us do know what it’s like to be lost in a sea of information with a difficult decision to make.

The BBC programme, “When Bankers Were Good” was a reminder that old school banking was about more than personal gain, with some arguing that those with ethical concerns about the financial system are exactly the kind of people who should go into banking (“Banking can be an ethical career choice” from the BBC News website – and if you missed their original programme, you might try here – though not sure how long that link will work )

With this in mind, one of my favourite quotes which I kept coming back to this year is a poem by Kurt Vonnegut, written as an obituary to his friend, Joseph Heller. (I’ll give you the gist as I can’t quote for copyright reasons, but you can find the full text, legitimately reproduced, here.)

It tells of them attending a party at the home of a wealthy banker. When Vonnegut asked Heller if it bothered him that their host probably earned more in a day than Heller earned for writing his classic novel, “Catch 22″, Heller replied that he had something their host could never have: “Enough”.

Having “enough” seems to be one of the key factors in whether you are content with your career. There’s a very interesting, if lengthy, blog post from journalist, David McRaney, which explores the psychology behind the subtle relationship between reward (financial or otherwise) and loving what you do. I’d recommend reading it if you’re interested in figuring out what will make you happy in your career: The Overjustification Effect.

… and with that thought (and my 500th post on this blog – hooray!), I’m off to stuff my face with mince pies and the finest wines available to humanity. See you after the January sales …!

Current job market
Unfortunately, this year I can’t do my Christmas vacancy round up chart showing how vacancies sent to the Careers Service have changed over the years. We’ve changed our database, and can’t be sure we’re comparing like with like for previous years (on the upside, we think we’ve got more accurate figures now).

However, here are a few stats:

• In November 2011, we carried  415 job ads for full-time vacancies – this compares to 316 for November 2010 (the first month we had data from our new database)
• I don’t have the full December figures yet, but in a spot check this week, we had over 350 active, full-time job ads on CareersLink. (Last year’s figures were 201, though that was on our old database.)
• Over 80 full-time job ads were added in the last week. Who says no-one advertises at Christmas? What’s more, a fair number of these new job ads had early January closing dates, so don’t delay “getting round to” applying for these jobs – mid January may be too late.

To be honest, that’s a better picture than I expected. I’m normally pretty bullish about the real state of the graduate job market, bolstered by knowing how many jobs we get sent, which has often been at odds with the media picture of “no graduate jobs this year”. I admit I feel much more nervous than in previous years about the future job market, but maybe it’s just the “hell-in-a-handcart” hype which has finally worn me down – here’s hoping!

Take a chance on different jobs?
One more worrying phenomenon we’ve spotted is the number of good jobs which we’ve advertised which have attracted few views, never mind applications. In November, there were almost 35,000 views of vacancies on CareersLink – but they’re not evenly spread. Cast your net a bit wider in the kind of posts you’re prepared to look at and you may find some plum jobs there for the taking.