The joy of volunteering

Last year I asked an international  student involved in Royal Holloway Community Action to write a piece for this blog. It was never published so I am now putting this right by publishing it here.

Habitat for Humanity

“Seeing those genuine smiles on their faces brought a warm feeling through every part of my body. How is it that the people who have absolutely nothing can be the happiest people on earth? In the middle of the endless mountains in Outer Mongolia I volunteered as part of Habitat for Humanity to build houses. Seeing them laugh at how I hammered slanted nails into the floorboards made me realize that what they needed more than anything was people who cared and tried to help.

While I spent 6 years living in China, I volunteered regularly at a local orphanage and retirement home, experiencing similar moments. Having a baby grab and hold onto your index finger showed, even from babies, how simply closeness can have such grave effects.

After then moving to England for University I continued volunteering; now working with the Mental Health Befriending Scheme, befriending their service users and providing support. Even though the word ‘volunteer’ entails no money, the incentive of making a difference is worth more than money, and even though “make a difference” sounds cliché, it is possible. In comparison to the nomads of Mongolia, or the homeless orphans who have nothing, I discovered how fortunate I really am, and that makes volunteering simply mind fulfilling.

Most importantly, volunteering abroad can change who you are as you become more accepting of other cultures; you live their lifestyle, you learn about their lifestyle, and you get to go abroad: a win-win situation for all!”

Employers prefer students who have taken part in work experience, extra-curricular activities and volunteering. Royal Holloway Community Action has a wide range of opportunities – why not see what you can do?

You too can write for this blog. Email me here with your ideas.

Gunpowder and legend

Last year I wrote a short piece about why we celebrate Guy Fawkes Day and have lots of fireworks and bonfires around the country. Nations have often used a series of bonfires to convey information – from celebration to declarations of war. The bonfires were lit in celebration all over the country as news that the King and Parliament had been saved after the Gunpowder Plot was foiled

Nigerian careers fair – in Nigeria

According to their publicity, the  Elite Nigerian Careers is a recruitment initiative that connects Nigeria’s top talent from the Diaspora with leading multinational and local companies in Nigeria. The Elite Nigerian Careers Fair aims to give you the opportunity to interact with over 40 leading companies while you are on holiday in Nigeria.

This Recruitment Fair, which marks the launch of the ENC initiative, is dedicated solely to the Nigerian Diaspora returning for the Christmas vacation or internationally experienced candidates residing in Nigeria. The fair is aimed at bringing this outstanding talent pool together with leading multinational and large local companies.

Details on the fair are available here

Campus talk: Debra Barr

The college has invited Debra Barr to speak to staff and students on Tuesday from 6.00pm in the Windsor Auditorium.  This event is expected to be in great demand so come early to make sure you get in.

So what’s all the fuss about?

The magic list

There is a running joke that everyone always wants a list – a list of local jobs, a list of potential employers, a list of courses etc. And in reality there are generally no such lists because they would be impossible to maintain.

Unless somebody else maintains them. You may know that on this blog we have our own database of international-student friendly employers. Over the next few weeks I will be taking that off this site because it has become redundant.

Possibly the most useful “list” you can use is that from the UK Borders and Immigration Agency. Their Register of Sponsors details all the companies in the UK who have been approved to sponsor non-EU applicants.

What does that mean? It means that the companies have been proactive and applied for the right and are positive about the benefits of recruiting non-EU candidates. What this list isn’t is a magic list of employers who recruit non-EU students. Not all companies on this register will recruit at graduate level. But if they are not on this Register, they cannot recruit you. Therefore you need to identify companies on the register and then look them up online to find out about career options.

The current register can be found here. Details of sponsorship can be found here.

UK Interview Tecnique

I will be running the first of the UK Interview Technqiue sessions for international students today. It will take place in the careers centre at 1.00pm. There is no need to book, just turn up. The session is interactive so be prepared to take part!

The session is open to international students including students from other EU countries where interview style may be a bit different.

New resources for Indian students

UCL

Meena Gurunathan Raju, an assistant with UCL careers service, has developed a series of handouts for Indian students looking to find jobs back home. These handouts compliment the session we run at Royal Holloway called “Find that job in India” which takes place in the Spring term.

Meena’s handouts cover the general economic situation in India, a guide to job-hunting and a useful reference guide for Indian style CVs and application forms. Copies of these can be obtained from the careers service, Horton building. You can also download them here: Economic Overview; Job hunting; CVs.

Thank you to Meena and the team at UCL for sharing these resources.

Today! Living in the UK: Immigration

Immigration lawyer Vicash Ramkissoon from Duncan Lewis & Co will return to the campus today to give a talk on immigration options for non-EU students. This is always a very popular talk and pre-booking to attend is essential. If you are not on the list you will not get in!

The talk will consider the wide variety of routes into the UK as well as provide useful tips to ensure your application for Post-Study Work is succesful.

Forthcoming campus events

The fortnightly email from the careers service details events that are coming up. All students receive the email.  The event details may differ slightly from those published in the initial guide so make sure you follow the rooms on our website at www.rhul.ac.uk/careers to be sure.

1300 Students Attend Biggest Careers Event Ever!

From the college intranet:

The first of this year’s Part-time Job Fairs was a roaring success. Employers were delighted with the high attendance and students had a good variety of jobs to explore. Event hospitality featured alongside IT, market research, sport & leisure and voluntary opportunities. 18 organisations were represented including for the first time the TA, Royal Holloway recruitment and Egham Leisure Centre. Of course this is just the first of many events we have planned for the Autumn term to help inform students about career options. More details online.