Transcript No Slide Title

Providing a national careers
advice via email service
Lucy Madahar
Graduate Prospects
Overview
Graduate Questiontime
 Aims & rationale
 Staffing
 Technical design
 Marketing the service
 Types of careers queries
 Key results
 Issues for graduates
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Graduate Questiontime
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Free careers advice via email/internet service for graduates
available on prospects.ac.uk
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Services for Graduates project (CSU/AGCAS)
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Harris review
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24/7 access to careers support
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Decline of the formal Mutual Aid system
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Web-based database with integrated monitoring, admin and
client feedback systems
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Meet Guidance Council quality standards/Matrix
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“Highly commended” national career award from ICG
Choosing a model
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Counselling
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Coaching
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Medical
Adviser is in control of progress
Open-ended & process oriented
Focus on what is wrong: defining
the problem and fixing what’s
broken
One-on-one in-person
interactions: the 50-minute hour
Good model for psychological
issues and crisis situations
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Proactive
Client is in control of progress
Goal-setting focus
Outcome-oriented
Structured
Assignments
Shorter interactions
Phone, e-mail interactions OK
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Role of the careers advice provider
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Traditional role
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Pragmatic role
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CAS’s seen as a rescue
operation
Graduates are the passive
recipients of therapeutic advice
and a “job”
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CAS’s seen as a vehicle for career
self-management
Graduates can actively learn to
build on the strengths of their
education and experience, and
use their inner capacities for
creating their own futures
CAS’s seen as the bridge
between where graduates are
and where they want to be
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Target audience
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Available to EEA graduates (including HND
Diplomates and new 2 year degree graduates)
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Graduated from university within the last 5
years
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Seeking work and/or study within the UK
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Questions in English language
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Referrals given to non-eligible users
Staffing
 Who
is the E-Guidance team?
 Working
 Team
hours & remote working
communication
 Professional
 Information
development & support
resources
Technical issues
 Relationship
with system not with adviser
 Machine capability of clients
 IT capability of clients and advisers
 Not just an email system
 Integrated monitoring and client
feedback routines
 Client and adviser security
 Secure web-enabled database
Graduate Questiontime system
Registration required
 One query, one answer is normal
 10% submit more than 1 query
 One enquirer, interchangeable advisers
 Anonymous advisers
 No specialisation : generic advisers
 Advisers also deal with first level enquiries
 All can see each others’ responses
 Quick response times
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Marketing issues
Dealing with a transient
population
 Manipulating demand
 Marketing activities
 Results of Marketing
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Prospects.ac.uk home page
My Prospects email
messages
E-Prospects
Graduate Prospects
publications
HE Careers Services
Posters
Graduate Fairs
Key results
 Number
of users/queries
 Peak times
 Types of queries
 Subject of queries
 Time management
 Matrix quality standards
Issues for graduates
 Accessing
careers advice at a time/place
to suit them
 Keep it simple
 Qualified careers advisers
 Confidentiality
 Response times
 Contacting the same adviser
What have I learnt
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IAG at a distance: quantity & quality
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Managing a remote team
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Predicting demand & promoting the services
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Email/Internet as one of several guidance mediums
is here to stay
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Successfully provided quality IAG available 24 hours
per day, 7 days per week via the Internet from
anywhere