You’re not alone: how a career coach can change the game

Finding one’s way in today’s job market can be daunting for any student. Learning how to discover one's strengths and interests can be overwhelming, and determining the best career route can be confusing at best. 

In days gone by, graduates entered the job market with little more than a certificate and high hopes. But these days, competition in the job market is at a fever pitch, and it's tough to land that first job. So, what does it take to get your foot in the door and stand out from the crowd? A chance meeting? A dazzling interview? A stroke of luck? 

Finding that first role, and someone to take a chance on us, is one of the biggest steps in one's career. That’s why it’s so important that we have the Careers Services Department here to help students navigate the market and achieve their goals.

^{Marie Tirvengadum, Head of Career Services}

While most consider a degree essential in the battle to stand out from the crowd, is it enough? Should you have an extra set of skills up your sleeve? The Career Services Department  certainly believes so.

The purpose of the Career Services Department of Swiss Education Group is to help each student navigate these challenges to find their unique path to success. Comprised of dedicated career coaches on each campus, Career Services offers a range of support and guidance to help students define their interests, determine their professional aspirations, and chart a path to achieve their goals. The role of career coaches is to demystify the industry and arm students with the necessary tools to succeed.

The Career Services Department accomplishes this via courses, workshops, and coaching such as: 

• Career Development Workshops and Classes: Our Career Coaches conduct workshops and classes on CV preparation, cover letter writing, company research, personal branding, and skill assessments. These workshops share valuable insights and tips on tackling the job market.
• Career Counselling: Through individual career counseling, Career Coaches assess each student's interests, aptitudes, and skills and match them with suitable internships or career opportunities. Since we offer worldwide internships and job opportunities, we also help students with visa applications and other administrative matters related to their placements, if needed. 
• Interview Preparation: Interviews can be very nerve-wracking, but with the proper preparation and some mock interview sessions, our students are able to go through the various stages of their applications confidently. After a few coaching sessions, students are prepared and poised to make a good impression on prospective employers.
• Career Fairs: The bi-annual International Recruitment Forum (IRF), held twice a year, is a tradition at Swiss Education Group, where recruiters from around the world and across various industries come to meet prospective employees. Both students and industry recruiters look forward to the IRF as it is an ideal platform to create professional connections. Students can apply directly for internships, management training programs, or their dream jobs at the IRF. Students who are not ready to find an internship use the opportunity to network with recruiters, gain insights into the various industries, and learn about future career prospects.
• Bridges Mentorship Program: The Bridges program has been developed to help our students who have already completed one internship and are looking to find a more specialized second internship in order to strategically stack valuable skills for their future careers. The mentors who participate in the program come from our pool of distinguished alumni and industry partners. They work with our students to help them make critical decisions for their careers, question their choices, and think about where their future will take them. This is an invaluable resource and one that we hope will continue to develop throughout our students' careers after graduation.

In addition to these services, career coaches also offer personal advice and vital reality checks to help students maneuver through the search for an internship to avoid unforseen obstacles. For example, obtaining a visa for certain countries can be problematic. Visa procedures can take too long and students in the middle of their studies frankly don’t have the luxury of time to wait for their visa to be approved. Additionally, some countries give priority to local students.

Another surprise can be language. Students sometimes arrive with the preconceived idea that everyone in Europe generally speaks English. Though English is a required language in the hospitality industry due to tourism, students soon discover that working in a foreign country requires knowledge of the local language as well. They quickly realise how important it is to learn the language of the country and to integrate into the culture. 

Career coaches also to help manage students' personal expectations. For example, if a student wants to apply for a finance internship, but doesn’t have experience or coursework in finance, coaches must be able to tell them that they likely won’t be hired for that position, and suggest alternate positions where they would more likely be hired. It’s about being honest and positive in equal measure.

A quality education is just the first step in launching a career. The second step, getting hired, is a real art. Career coaches teach more than how to write a CV or a cover letter and how to network or understand a contract; they teach students how to gauge if a role is right for them or not.

One-to-one meetings are set up to understand what career path students imagine for themselves. In these conversations, career coaches get a sense of their personality type, whether the student is an introvert or extrovert, and give them advice on securing the internship positions they need to progress. But it’s about so much more than just getting them that initial interview or that first internship: it’s about giving students autonomy and equipping them with the skills to go it alone in the future.

The Career Services Department is a valuable resource that students across all five of our campuses appreciate. We support our students throughout each stage of their studies and beyond. By taking advantage of these resources, students can build on their skills and feel confident when they enter the job market.