Oxford

LINKEDIN
The biggest professional social network, with powerful search
tools. With a free account, try:
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Adding details to your profile: university, experiences, a list
of skills, languages.
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Adding professional contacts you know (anyone you’d be
happy to introduce to a future colleague if they asked).
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Seeking out Oxford alumni (over 140,000 and rising) in
industries, organisations and roles you are interested in.
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Joining groups for sectors of interest – to browse job
discussions, or to post a question. Join the Oxford Careers
Service and Oxford Alumni groups!
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Asking for introductions if you have a shared a connection
with someone it would be useful to talk to.
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You might also want to try alternative sites like Academia.
edu (academia), or ResearchGate, or Hiive (creative).
DEVELOPING YOUR CAREER IDEAS
OXFORD CAREERS NETWORK
The Oxford Careers Network provides career profiles of hundreds
of volunteer alumni across dozens of industries. This searchable
database enables you to find out more about careers in a sector, a
type of job, or a specific organisation. Many alumni are also happy
for students to email them through the OCN system or to provide
mentoring to current students: information on how to contact an
alumnus is included in each profile. Use your Oxford Single Sign On
to access the OCN at www.careers.ox.ac.uk/OCN
FINDING OTHER LEADS
Social media is of course alive with opportunities, not
least because as many organisations now use Facebook
and Twitter as key communication tools for promoting
themselves, increasingly using it to advertise competitions,
presentations and events, open days and even posting fulltime
and internship opportunities.
Connect online – but remember to set your privacy settings
carefully and have a profile picture that doesn’t alarm
potential employers.
B
WHAT DO I SAY? EMAIL/ SOCIAL NETWORK MESSAGE
To: alumni91@college.ox.ac.uk
From: Juliet.bloggins@college.ox.ac.uk
Subject: Advice from current student on [as [sector/job function].
Dear [Name]
I’m a [second year/finalist] at [college] here in Oxford and I’m interested in working in/
as [sector/job function].
I’ve been developing my ideas [briefly reference relevant courses/websites/societies/
reading …] and John Caruthers suggested that you might be willing to share your
experience in the field. I would truly appreciate a few minutes of your time to discuss
your insights into [the work or role/their company/how best to prepare...]. Perhaps we
can meet for a 10 minute chat/arrange a time to speak by phone/skype …
I know that you might be busy and if it will not be possible to [meet/speak] I fully
understand. Thank you for considering my request, and if there is anyone else
you’d recommend I contact to learn about the sector, I would greatly appreciate an
introduction.
If you don’t have
a direct email
address, try an
organisation’s
generic email
address, writing
to ‘FAO [name of
contact]’, politely
asking for it to be
forwarded
Make a
connection so
your contact
understands who
you are and how
you found them.
With best wishes
Signed ……
Build your credibility and show
you are serious by briefly outlining
relevant research, and explaining
where you identified them as a
potential contact. Perhaps the
College alumni office, their entry
in the Oxford Careers Network or
LinkedIn.
A reference from someone they
know can be a powerful incentive
to respond, but check first with your
source that they are happy for you to
use their name.
Asking for advice or information is
useful – it’s free to give and people
are usually happy to share what they
know. It also covers many possibilities,
including where to find information,
insider views on careers, tips for
getting in, other potential contacts and
even unadvertised jobs.
Explain what you are most interested
in. Try to be specific so they
understand what you hope for and
can judge whether they can help
you – if you ask a vague question,
you will get a vague answer, or none
at all.
Suggest a way forward, and
be specific about what you are
expecting: 10-15 minutes is realistic
for a first chat or call.
Show respect for their time, keep it
polite and positive and keep the door
open to future contact.
www.careers.ox.ac.uk 17