A day in the life of a job seeker in the events industry...

When you first apply for university you are promised to walk into a glittering career in whichever job you choose after graduation. Unfortunately, at this time, this isn’t the case for most graduates. With constant news coverage of high unemployment rates amongst young people it is easy to lose focus and positivity when applying for jobs. 

I am a recent graduate looking for work in the events industry. I luckily have some experience of the industry, thanks to a 2^nd year university placement at Mosaic Events and a year out, before university, working for a wedding planner. However this hasn’t yet been enough to secure me that dream job. After a brief spell of waitressing and a travelling adventure to fill my summer, job hunting for me didn’t start until late September. Here are some tips for fellow events job hunters, to help you keep your sanity when filling in those dozens of application forms and hopefully in the end secure you that elusive job!

·         Stay positive! I know this sometimes can be tricky however remember there are a lot of people in the same position so you are not alone.

·         Use rejection: Even though it is disappointing being rejected, use it to your advantage. Make sure you request feedback from every rejection you receive, it could enhance your application and will definitely help with any future job applications.

·         Take a break! Those applications forms can sometimes send your mind into a spin so make sure after each application take a break and get someone else to read over your application so they can point out any errors or improvements you could make.

·         For events don’t only use recruitment and job centre sites to look for jobs, venue websites will also have a recruitment or careers section which is always worth a check. This can sometimes be time consuming but is definitely worth checking.

·         Set up job alerts: Not only can you set up job alerts through recruitment sites but you can also set them up through some venue websites also. This will take some time off your search as the jobs will come to you.

·         Expand your area: The North East (where I’m from) isn’t known for its great amount of employment opportunities, particularly in events. So if your chosen area is not coming up with what you want and you are willing to travel that extra mile for work, expand your search a little. You never know what travelling that extra half an hour for work will come up with. 

·         Volunteer: That phrase ‘It’s not what you know, it’s who you know’ isn’t always correct, however volunteering on events or in an office to gain some experience will look great on your CV and will always put you in touch with people in the industry. 

Events management is a popular industry so stay positive and enthusiastic about every opportunity which comes your way and don’t panic!! 

Ruth Turner