Career Confidence for Women

Posted on: 13 April 2020 in Connections in action

The Career Confidence for Women programme supports female students from underrepresented groups from their penultimate year of study to the end of their university career.

The Career Confidence for Women Programme has been developed with two main aims. Firstly to enable our female students to feel more confident about exploring their career options and secondly to address the challenges that employers face in attracting a diverse workforce.

The Career Confidence for Women programme supports female students from underrepresented groups from their penultimate year of study to the end of their university career. Programme initiatives include:

• Employer-led masterclasses on topics such as Building Your Personal Brand, Communicating with Confidence and Confidence in the Workplace
• Speaker sessions from inspirational business women, sharing their stories and advice for a successful career
• Networking sessions and skills sessions with top graduate recruiters
• Assignment of an employer mentor and a careers and employability mentor
• Advice and insight into how to make the most of employer activity on campus
• Training sessions on relevant platforms
• Access to a participant LinkedIn group

Uptake from employers keen to be involved in delivering these initiatives has been brilliant, and as a result there have been a broad range of industries represented. These employers have been able to engage with a diverse talent pool whilst also participating in less traditional, recruitment focused activity, allowing them to build meaningful relationships with the students.

Feedback from the participants has been overwhelmingly positive:

The programme has been really empowering and motivating. After being so stressed in my search for placements, I’ve been reassured completely and my confidence in myself has definitely grown. (Career Confidence for Women 2020 participant)

Now in its second year, the Career Confidence for Women programme continues to grow and provide more opportunities for participants to develop their confidence and reach their career potential.