New College Society Careers Forum

What is it?

Old Members from a broad cross-section of career sectors are invited on an annual basis to spend a few hours at College with current students to help them explore career options, through individual conversation.

Why do we do it?

The importance of the support provided by Old Members at this event is underlined by the fact that the job market can be increasingly challenging to navigate, even for talented Oxford graduates. The research says that as many as a quarter of them have no real idea what to do in terms of career choice, even in their final year. To this point, the feedback from those students who have attended has been uniformly positive. They tell us how this really fills a gap by providing objective advice and allowing them to explore a variety of possibilities in a very supportive environment. The event attracts around 35-40 Old Members, and around 150 students from the undergraduate and graduate community. Here is are quotes from students who have attended in the past.

'I am begining to worry about my future after Oxford, and this was an opporunity to speak to people who have been in the exact same position as I am currently, and get advice on what I can do in the future.'

'I know what industry I want to work in, so it was an opportunity to speak to people informally who could tell me about it and give me advice.'

'I attended last year and found it really useful then, and am now in my final year so looking for all the careers help I can get'

'The best thing about the event was its informality. The chance to simply sit down and launch right into a question without small talk or much in the way of protocol was enormously valuable.'

The forum also complements our other Networks (City and Professional, Government and Public Service, Entrepreneurs, Life Sciences and Media) in that it provides a key networking forum for both our students and Old Members. Representatives of these Networks are often there at the Careers Forum.

Interested in helping out?

If you are interested in helping out at future events, please email the Development Office with your current job title, company, and preferred email, and telephone number.

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