What have you got planned for your summer? A two week holiday blowout after graduation? A few months back at your parents to relax following years of hard studying? How about doing something to help give your career a head start…
With more than 50,000 graduates leaving university each year, it can be hard to stand out from the crowd. And while your studies may have prevented you from working during university, a recent survey has found that suitable work experience is the true "key to the job hunt" in countless fields. And it will carry even more weight if undertaken in another country.
Why do work experience in America?
Getting a degree is no longer just enough to land your dream job. The financial crisis and growing competition in the employment market mean graduates need to make themselves stand out. And a stint of work experience in America could help you achieve just this.
A recent survey has found that three quarters of British graduates aren't considered ready to enter employment, meaning work experience could really help you get the edge on your rivals. Gaining experience in a working environment is renowned for its ability to improve your soft skills, with enhanced teamwork, communication and commercial understanding all set to help you stand out in interviews.
Having American work experience on your curriculum vitae will also help you leap out from the dozens of others under consideration for a graduate job. Working in another country is never easy, with your time in the US demonstrating the commitment you have for your career. Living in another country, often without the direct support of friends or family, will also demonstrate adaptability and a true eagerness to learn.
Despite its distance from the UK, America can be the ideal place to undertake summer work experience. Language and cultural similarities allow graduates to seamlessly slip into their placements whilst enhancing their skillset. Leaving the comfort-zone of the UK will also help you mature as a person, allowing you to deal more effectively with any future challenges in the workplace.
General work experience
Not everyone who leaves university knows what they want to do for the rest of their lives. Luckily not everyone who undertakes work experience in America has to, with a general placement often the choice of many British students and graduates.
The most popular choice for graduates unsure of their career path is to work as a counsellor at one of America's summer camps. Whilst fairly unknown in the Britain, summer camps are big business in the US and attract hundreds of thousands of kids each year. Often placed in charge of a group of children as well as a range of activities for a set period of time, graduates will be given an invaluable taste of responsibility and leadership.
Sector specific placements
However, if you already know what you want to do after university, then the opportunities are even better. British organisations such as Prospects can tell you everything you need to know about working in the USA and some of the positions that will be available.
Working in a sector you are interested in can prove a valuable litmus test for future jobs, especially when it is undertaken in another county. Due to America's countless multinational companies, your work placement in America could also lead to a job back in the UK if you make a great impression.
Your career could be shaped by some summer work experience and why those cheap flights to the USA could be the best investment you make towards your future.
Have you ever done work experience in America? What would you like to do if you did have the chance to go to the United States?
Emily Aitchison is a English Literature student at Edinburgh University working as a freelance writer.
There are so many opportunities to work online. For example
ReplyDeleteassignment help online. Plus the fact that you get experience and are not bound by time, which is very important for the summer.