A couple of times a month I get approached by people who are seeking to move into an occupational psychology career.

Some people ask specific questions and I’m very happy to answer them. 

I’m always pleased when people have looked at my web site, have addressed the letter to me and are referring to the aspects of occupational psychology I practice.

But others send out a general form letter - there is little evidence they have looked on my web site beyond capturing my email address and whilst my site clearly states who I am they send the letter to Dear Sir/ Madam.

There can also be a request for sponsorship to help them with their studies, and/or seeking work experience on aspects of psychology which is not a core part of my business.

The people I help are those who relate to my business, refer to me by name and tell me what interests them about carer development. 

So how does this help you?

If you are looking to get into a new work area identify people within companies that you want to talk with - write direct to them, tell them you will follow up with a phone call and do so. 

Make sure the letter shows you have done your research; you will then stand a stronger chance of success.

I’ve probably spoken about this before but after two recent phone calls thought it timely to raise this again. 

Going to university can be a wonderful three years - a chance to grow and develop away from parents, to explore and to learn. 

But it’s all changed from 20 years ago. Nowadays so many people have a degree that it is not enough to make you stand out from the rest, you need to look to gain relevant experience whilst at university and be willing to take a non graduate job as a first step. 

But young people often believe the dream that they will gain a wonderful well paid graduate job.

So you need to apply for the supermarket and other entry level jobs, and not to apply and interview in a way that makes it look as if you are doing them a favour. They still want to believe that you want nothing more than to work at Tesco or McDonalds. 

With someone who graduates just over a year ago, continuing to apply for more graduate jobs may be setting them up for more rejection. If their work experience hasn’t changed since last year, and the economic climate being worse, the chance of being successful is low. They MUST look for ways to stand out from the crowd.

Now, for any unemployed graduate, the short term goal is to get a Christmas job, longer term is to get a job that gets them on the way to their desired career path – get some steps in place so that in a year or two they are doing what they want. They need to get examples on their CV and build up experience to help applying for future jobs.

Some parents probably do too much - whilst wanting the best for their child they are perhaps getting in the way of their child taking personal responsiblity. They are called helicopter parents and a quick search on google shows 334,000 links …

I’m not talking about young children, but those of adult age, whose parents attend career fairs with them, contanct career counsellors and will be contacting companies on their behalf.

When my age group (the baby boomers) were young we were just left to get on with it, and the next generation (generation X) from the 60s to the early 80s would be appalled by this level of involvement.  Parents of adult children now want to help as much as they can, and this is accepted. For example UCAS allow parents to find out about applications but should we not be motivating our young adults to do this for themselves?

Recently I’ve had a number of parents contact me to discuss careers coaching for their children - recently graduated not sure what they need to do and needing help.

When I talk to the recent graduate it is pretty clear that it’s not their idea and they don’t come across to me as someone who wants to work on their career future at this time.

I’ve now decided to talk with parents, explain about my work and then suggest they direct their child to my web site and that their child contacts me direct.

Like everything we find the right time for us to work on something and for many this could be late twenty’s or even later.

Tomorrow the A level results will be out and young people will again be considering University.

For some there will be confirmation that they can go to their first choice university and to take the subject they want to study.

For others they may have missed out on their first choice and decide to rush through clearing to get something else. These aren’t the only people who may need to stop and make sure they are making the right choice.

Far too many people drop out - they have either chosen the wrong course, the wrong university or hadn’t thought through what going to university means - in terms of the need to undertake independent study, or the financial costs.  In the news today the average debt students rack up is 4.5k a year.

So do seek out advice and make sure that you are making a well thought through choice, that way you will be less likely to make the wrong choice and most likely to get the most out of your time at university.

In the Times on Monday I read  news story - Students with great job expectations are heading for a reality pay check.

Students leave University with substantial debt and don’t get a job earning as much as they anticipate. According to research by a PhD student, John Jerrim, at the University of Southampton, students expect to earn £2,000 a year more than they get, with some expecting a 6 figure salary - where does that come from!

There was a case study on Anna Griffiths, who wants to work in fashion journalism or the sale room but will be working in a boutique this summer.

Poor Anna, she says "I certainly didnt think it would be hard to find work, I thought once I had a degree I would automatically get a job.  But my friends and I are finding there is nothing available and no one is taking any one on"

There’s a lot of compeition out there, and with the down turn in the economy a lot less jobs, so you need to do things to make you stand out from the rest.

I work with a number of graduates, a year or so after graduation, when they have not been able to get the job they want, or still don’t know the work they really want to do. Going through a programme with me helps to increase their self knowledge and following the research element of the programme makes it muich clearer for them why they want a particular job, they are therefore better placed to apply for jobs and also to convince more at interview.

You can read about my graduate programme here and Anna - if you are reading this, do get in touch!

Many of my clients wish they had first met me much earlier than when they do - they reach 5 years and more from university and realise they had not really given much thought to why they chose their career and the longer they spend in it they less happy they are.

I’m always delighted when I get to work with younger clients and over the past week I’ve worked with three 17 year old students.

Their personal stories are different, but what they share is a maturity to understand themselves and to ensure they are choosing the right subjects for A level.

Yesterday I saw Anne, she had taken 4 AS levels, was really enjoying 2 of them, struggled with one and the other was ok. As we talked about her life story and reviewed the results of the Highlands Ability Assessment it was clear that she was creative and enjoyed making things so Design Technology could be a good option for an additional A level.

The session I’ve undertaken with these students is what I call the Student Silver Programme which combines the Highlands Ability Assessment  with an extra hour of coaching so the young person spends 3 hours with me.

In each case the student has a list of possible career paths and the next thing for them to do is to begin to explore via the net.

I certainly don’t want to tie my students down to a particular career but aim to raise their interest in different options so that their choice of A levels and degree course will suit the different options they have.

If you would like to discuss, do get in touch.