Being aware of the career support services there are in a university can be a great mediator for choosing your study. Such support systems can facilitate a smooth transition from graduation to your dream job. But do you know you can increase your career prospects while you are a student or recent graduate of WUR? Your guess is as good as mine! This blog will introduce you to the opportunities at WUR that will help you increase your career prospects.

Where you must go

Have you heard of the student career services? The Student Career Services at WUR specialises in helping students explore their career aspirations through personal career advice and coaching. It also offers students the platform to meet potential employers through career days and career weeks. The good news is that they provide career information for international students regardless of coming from outside the EU/EEA area. The information for international students ranges from where to find potential employers to the provision of information on regulations you need to be aware of if you are from a non-EU/EEA country.

Activities at the Student Career Services

• Career Day: On the career day, you get the chance to meet prospective employers where you have interviews
• Career Week
• Regular CV checks.
• Regular talk and events with potential employers.
• Webinars: The student career services also organise webinars on topics such as ‘Doing a PhD’ for people with aspirations of doing a PhD. Others include LinkedIn (both basic and advanced) training helps you boost your profile and increase your chances of landing your dream job.
• Help in finding internships.

A section of students and facilitators at last week’s Career Week.

What you must do to improve your career prospects

While the student career services are open to all students, from my experience as a WUR student, you can make the best use of their services by following the advice below:

• Create an account on the career platform of the Student Career Services and subscribe to their weekly newsletter: By registering, you receive up-to-date information about upcoming events.
• Build your profile on the student career services platform. When you register with the SCS, there are a few things you need to do to make your profile attractive to match you with potential employers. Some of these things are upload of your CV and picture.
• Please book an appointment and discuss it with them whenever you are in doubt about anything.
• You can also follow the student career services on Facebook and Instagram to stay abreast of their events and activities. You can also join the Student Career Services LinkedIn group if you are a student of WUR or a graduate of WUR looking for jobs.
• Read more on student experiences of the support they received from the student career services via the website.

A flyer with a list of career events mounted on campus.

Tips to International Students on career prospects in NL

If you are looking forward to working in the Netherlands after studying, the following tips might help you.

• Start learning the Dutch language at Wageningen into Languages for free. Read Luisa’s blog for her tips on learning Dutch.
• Start applying for jobs in the final year of your study with the advice of the student career services.
• Join the Career Week and Events organised by the student career services.
• Apply for internships you are passionate about and put up your best in your internship period. This can increase your maintainability after the internship.
• You can also attend academic conferences on your subject of interest if you intend to stay in academia.
• Last but not least, you can volunteer for organisations or companies during the summer holidays.

I hope reading this blog has enlightened you on how to improve your career prospects as a student at WUR. Feel free to post your questions in the comment section and stay glued to our next blog. ?