REAL LIFE: Assessment Centres

Looking for a graduate role when you graduate is not easy.
In my mind, I was a bit naive and thought that once I graduated I would have a job in a business field.
I did not realise how many graduates start their careers within recruitment or sales!!

So I searched for graduate roles that would allow me to get experience whilst working and in different departments of a business so I can find out what I do and do not like.
Once you apply for a role you cross your fingers and hope they like what they see on your CV.

The next stage is usually a telephone interview where they ask competency based questions and give you a little more information about the role. Thiss only lasts around 15-20 minutes; but it goes by so fast! It can be a daunting experience knowing that this is essentially the first impression you are giving to an employee of the prospective company.

If you pass that stage you get invited to take online tests. These online tests are not my favourite. You can spend so much time revising for these and still be thrown in the deep end! They take 1 hour to complete but the practice tests are there for you to take as many times as you want. I highly suggest practising the tests many times so that you are prepared. You can also use practice sites for before and/or inbetween different numerical & verbal tests.
 Practice Tests here!

Again, if you're lucky enough to pass these then you're on to a winner!
Next step is assessment centre.
The scariest part and also the final part!

I haven't had experience of many assessment centres but after each one I always learn more about what to expect and what is expected of me.
It does seem like a lot of hard work and a lot of time if you don't get a successful outcome. However, it is all about experience and learning about what you need to work on for the next one! As the saying goes. 'Practise makes perfect!'

If you have any questions then please ask and I shall answer them!

Until next time, xo.

FITNESS: Getting back to it!

When I worked in London I was leaving the house at 6:30am and didn't get home until 7pm. This meant that I found it difficult to include a fitness regime into my schedule. All I wanted to do after coming home from work was eat dinner and go straight to bed!
The only real form of exercise I was doing was walking 2 miles to work every morning which took me about 40 minutes.

So, when I left that job, I made sure to re-join my gym and start using my membership more effectively.
I starting going to group exercise classes because I felt more comfortable in a room full of women following an instructor, rather than in the gym, feeling alone, feeling like I didn't know what I was doing.
Attending my weekly classes on a regular basis gave me more confidence about doing exercise and not worrying about what others thought about me. I then started to use the gym more often, focusing solely on what I was doing. Each time I made it to the gym for a workout I felt proud of myself!

Now that I am used to attending my group exercise classes and the gym on a regular basis, I have decided to branch out and exercise away from my local gym. I recently rode my bike 16.5 miles, after 3 years of not riding a bike AT ALL!! This was such an achievement for me as it was tough and the terrain wasn't completely smooth.

Yes, most people want to go to the gym to get their 'summer body'; but, I believe that you should exercise all year round for a body that you want all year round and not just for bikini season!!
I still sometimes find it challenging to exercise but I always remember that no matter what exercise I am doing, I am ALWAYS lapping the person that decided to stay on their couch!

Until next time, xo.

New Beginnings

Hello everyone, 

My name is Celine and I have recently got back into blogging. I had a break from blogging in 2015, but now I am back!

My goal this year is to post at least once a week!

Let me bring you up to speed…

I finished my degree and gained a 2.1 Yippee!! I am now a graduate! All the hard work and the late nights writing assignments really did pay off. This is definitely one of my biggest achievements to date and I am extremely proud of myself. 

I also managed to secure myself a graduate training scheme in London. It was all so new and exciting. I did really enjoy myself at the beginning but after 6 months I left. There was no real future for me there and there was no real room for progression. However, at least now I know that I don’t want to work in that kind of environment. I left there in December 2015 and I am now on a quest to find my dream job! 

Now…

Now I am trying to scour the internet for my next role. It isn’t easy! In my head, I believed that I would get snapped up in January and be a working girl again! How wrong I was… 

It is now mid-March and I am still trying to secure an interview. I have had many recruiters approach me directly and offer my positions but they are all the same roles and not the role that I had in mind. They are all within the same environment that I had previously worked in.  I won’t let this deter me; I am confident that the right role will present itself and I am more determined than EVER to ensure I am employed as soon as possible.

Originally posted by gif-weenus

Until next time, xo.