Careers and your future

Supporting our graduates in securing graduate-level employment and postgraduate study is given the highest priority at the University of Exeter. We aim to be the university of choice for career-minded students and employers from all sectors, locally, nationally and from across the globe.

Evidence shows that gaining a good degree from a good university is no longer enough to secure graduate level employment. You need to be able to demonstrate how your degree, skills, work experience and commercial awareness equips you for graduate level work or postgraduate study. We will help you get an excellent degree and we are committed to offering you an exceptionally wide range of opportunities to gain the graduate-level skills, experience and expertise employers are looking for.

More than 60 per cent of graduate employers do not mind what subject you are studying, as long as you can show how your experiences have impacted upon your personal development. Employers like to recruit graduates who can show evidence of having ‘joined in’, worked as a team, shown leadership or spent time travelling and experiencing new situations and cultures. Everything you do socially, academically and in the work place can potentially make you more employable, as long as you can reflect on your experiences, understand their value and can explain their value to someone else. We will help you to identify and articulate these skills to any prospective employer.

There are many ways to add value to your CV and job applications while you’re a student at Exeter, from management training to business placements, one of the UK’s largest student volunteering programmes and pre-teacher training, to a world-wide network of study abroad opportunities and careers advice from our own successful alumni.

With our Careers Zone, plus work experience and careers training, Exeter offers a comprehensive range of services and activities to help you become a successful graduate in the job market or in further study and training. Six months after graduation 93 per cent of Exeter’s first degree graduates were in employment or further study.* We are proud of our track record of our graduates who have gone on to rewarding and interesting careers and are dedicated to helping our current and future students emulate these successes.
*(Figures as at Jan. 2010, as a percentage of those respondents available for employment or study)

Services for students

The investment made by the University in the employability of its students is evident in the creation of a new £48 million flagship building which acts as the hub for the newly created division for Employability and Graduate Development. The division’s Career Zone offers you help in all stages of your career planning and job hunting. The professional careers staff based in Exeter and Cornwall will guide you towards making an informed choice of career or postgraduate study and have a wealth of expertise, opportunities and useful resources that you can take advantage of during your time as a student at the University. Details can be found on our employability website.

Contact with employers

The University enjoys superb links with hundreds of international, national and regional companies and organisations and many of them specifically target Exeter graduates. We are in the top 20 of Higher Education Institutions that were targeted by the largest number of top employers in 2010-2011 (The Graduate Market in 2011, High Fliers Research). You’ll have access to around 700 graduate employers who advertise vacancies at the University and you’ll have the opportunity to take part in mock interviews and presentations with employers and meet them face-to-face at our careers fairs. 

Further information

• Download the Employability Guide for Prospective Students (pdf)