Have you got an upcoming informal chat interview? If so, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll explain what an informal chat interview is, how to prepare for it, what to wear and ultimately how to impress the interviewer.  What is an informal chat interview? An informal chat interview is a casual conversation between an interviewer and a candidate that is less structured and less formal compared to a traditional job interview. It is typically used to get to know the candidate in a more relaxed environment, to see if they would be a good fit for the company culture. In an informal chat int ..read more

We’ve had a record amount of graduates interested in consulting recently. So much so we’ve decided to demystify what it takes to get into some of the top-tier consulting firms. Consulting is a rigorous career. Certainly not one for everyone. It demands a lot of your time, energy, and intellectual capacity. It is also deeply rewarding intellectually, and financially, and sets you up well for a career in whatever industry you may want to move to afterwards.  In writing this, we’ve endeavoured to be honest and reflect current hiring trends as we’ve seen first-hand from our grads. That being ..read more

International graduates face an enormous challenge in securing graduate-level employment in the UK. Currently, only 7%  of all international graduates succeed. And with 685,000 international graduates now enrolled in UK universities, an increase of 230,000 in just one year, the outlook for these grads is only going to get worse. Unless there are radical changes made by universities and educators 630,000 international graduates face the prospect of returning to their home countries after the expiry of their student/graduate visa. As the UK’s leading graduate coaching company we have a uniq ..read more

You’ve managed to impress your future employer with your CV and you’ve been invited for a sit down interview. Congratulations! You don’t want to embarrass yourself, so you spend an hour before the interview practising your lines and doing extra research on your dream company. After speaking with the interviewer for almost an hour, you’re exhausted but glad you got it done. A few days later, you receive an email you dreaded seeing: “After careful consideration I regret to inform you that on this occasion we have decided not to progress your application any further…” However, there is another po ..read more

When applying for jobs, many employers will ask for work experience. But how do you gain work experience when jobs require you to have work experience? In this article, we will take a look at the different ways you can gain experience in a workplace setting that you can add to your CV and bring up in an interview. Benefits of work experience The main benefits of work experience are twofold. The first is that it helps you get used to a working environment, giving you an opportunity to learn and practice key skills such as working under pressure and organisation. These skills can also carry over ..read more

‘Work-life balance’ is pretty much what it sounds like. It refers to the balance between the amount of time you spend at work and the amount of time you spend on the rest of your life. This can encompass anything from spending time with your friends and family to adventurous hobbies, or just reading a good book. It’s a subject with important ramifications for each of us, due to the impact it can have on our wellbeing, whether physical or mental. More and more of us are talking about trying to find some sort of work-life balance. It’s a discussion that’s always topical and never seems to have a ..read more

If you’ve ever been to an interview, then you know they can be nerve-racking. You worry about coming up with impressive answers to your interviewer’s questions, so you can give the best possible impression of yourself. But did you know that the questions that you ask in a job interview can be crucial to your success? At the end of a job interview, it’s common for your interviewer to ask whether you have any questions for them. It’s easy to forget about this aspect of an interview, but many successful candidates get their job offers at least in part because of the questions that they asked. The ..read more

In a job advert, you may have come across the phrase ‘competitive pay’, also commonly referred to as ‘competitive salary’. This phrase is usually used as an alternative to a company or recruiter listing the specific salary that is being offered. If you would like to receive fair compensation for your work and level of experience, it is essential that you understand what is meant by ‘competitive pay’ and what constitutes competitive pay. But what does this actually mean? In this article, we will look at what competitive pay means, how employers use the phrase and how you should approach negotia ..read more

The interview process can be a stressful and uncertain time for candidates, with employers holding their cards close to their chest. It may be difficult to judge how well you’ve done after an interview, which can be hugely frustrating. So how do you know if an interview went well? If you know what to look and listen out for, there are actually a few ways you can tell.  1. Interviewer Body Language One key observation to look out for during an interview is the interviewer’s body language. The employer’s general demeanour will give you a good indication of how interested they are in you as ..read more

If you are thinking about getting a job in an industry unrelated to your degree, you may be unsure about how to approach this problem. Fortunately, it is very common for people to take on a job that has very little to do with their studies, with just a little bit of direction. Most people will have friends who are working in an industry unrelated to their degree. For example, a recent graduate who studied biology is now a software engineer. Another recent graduate who read history at university is now working for a green tech start-up. Not only is it quite common; however, in many circumstance ..read more