Trimester 1 isn’t far away and if you didn’t study in trimester 3, coming back on campus could be a shock to the system. To ensure that coming back to uni (or starting uni) doesn’t feel like jumping into a freezing pool in the middle of winter, there are some steps you can take to ease yourself in.
Luckily, your careers service are here to help in 2018 with interesting orientation seminars, new employers coming on campus and new content being added to our blog and Careers and Employment website.
We have your back this year and can’t wait to meet you if you are new to Griffith. In order to keep your career and study goals under control this semester, we have put together a check list that you can follow to ensure you are getting the most out of your Careers and Employment service whilst also maximizing your own personal productivity.
#1 Familiarize yourself with campus and service locations
If you are an on campus student, it will be highly beneficial for you to come on campus before uni starts and get familiar with where your classes are, what services are available to you and where those services are located. Let’s be real, with locations like ‘N54 -1.23’ the whole finding class thing can get really confusing. It takes a while to get your bearings. You may never figure out why there is a need for negative number locations (I still haven’t) but you will eventually learn where everything is. Knowing where Student Administration, Student Services, your Academic School and Unitemps are located will be very useful to you. Tick these services on your map and cross them off as you find them on campus.
#2 Sign into myGriffith and check key dates
myGriffith is where you will go to access your blackboard (where assessment and course notes are posted) as well as any important information related to your course, payment due dates (if you haven’t deferred your fees to HECS) enrolment dates and last dates to drop courses. Before you start Trimester 1, make sure all of your log in details work and log on to have a play with the site. The faster you learn to navigate myGriffith and get an idea of when all of the cut off dates are, the less headaches and calls to Student Administration you will have to make when the new trimester rolls around.
#3 Sign up for orientation seminars
If you are at Nathan campus, you will find that you are able to sign up for seminars Finding a Part Time Job and Mystery Career Chat in the orientation planner. If you are at Gold Coast campus, make sure you register for different topics in the Employability Boot Camp, which will take place on the 20th of February. You don’t have to be studying on the corresponding campus to attend the seminar. You can register for these seminars on Careerboard. For those students who are wanting a part-time or casual job that you are able to perform alongside studies, the Finding a Part time job seminar will be particularly useful, as it offers many helpful tips on how to locate job openings, make a good impression and secure work. If it’s your first time studying, be sure to scour the entire orientation planning schedule for any workshops that are relevant and may be useful. These workshops are an awesome way to get a head start.
#4 Follow us (and other useful Griffith services) on social media
If you want to be up to date all the time on cool things that are happening around campus, new services and general advice to make your life at uni easier, our Griffith social media channels are the fastest way to obtain that information. Liking the Griffith Careers and Employment Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest will help keep you up to date with new jobs up for grabs with Unitemps, employer events on campus, career seminars and inspirational stories from Griffith students and grads doing awesome things with their careers. Some other channels worth following include:
Student Administration Facebook
Student Administration Instagram
Griffith Student Services Facebook
It’s worth digging around on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn to find any Griffith channels that are personally relevant to you and your studies.
#5 Sign up for Unitemps
If you want to gain work experience alongside your studies, sign up for Unitemps now! Unitemps offer casual, part-time and full-time work placement for Griffith students and graduates. Unitemps consultants are available in the Nathan library and Gold Coast student centre Monday – Friday from 10AM – 1PM. Once you have signed up, you will be able to attend their prep for success workshops which can help you prepare your resume and learn how to do well in job interviews.
#6 Check out clubs and societies
Joining a club or society will not only be beneficial for building your social networks, but also looks impressive in the eyes of employers. There are many clubs that you can join at Griffith, ranging from culture to study discipline. There is really something for everybody and there is no excuse not to get involved. To future employers, being an active member of a club shows keen involvement in your university life, and displays qualities of leadership and the ability to take initiative. Not to mention, you will meet new people, potentially learn new skills and be invited to all of the networking events that the club will host. You can browse through the current clubs and societies here.
Getting through at least a few of these tips should help take the edge off your first few weeks on campus. Please drop into Unitemps and Student Services for a chat about the services we offer. We hope to get to know you better in 2018!
Griffith University Careers and Employment Service 