Employability

Are you interested in starting your own business, becoming self-employed, or freelancing? 

The Venture Programme is designed to help you build the skills, knowledge, confidence, and connections you need to succeed in your business journey. Whether you want to enhance your entrepreneurial skills, launch a startup, or pursue a freelancing career, the Venture Programme will challenge your ideas, introduce you to the business world, and give you the tools to turn your ambitions into reality. 

Open to all University of Chester students and graduates (within two years of graduating).  

For more details, current students and graduates can visit CareerHub.

Inspiring Futures is a dedicated programme designed to support students identified through the University’s Access and Participation Plan recognising that not everyone starts from the same place in life. We’re here to provide the resources, guidance, and opportunities you need to succeed in your career journey.

The programme includes the Futures Employability Fund, which provides financial support for eligible students and graduates to help you build skills, gain experience, and seize opportunities that may otherwise be out of reach due to financial constraints. This funding stream is exclusively for students and graduates (within 12 months of graduating) who meet the criteria.

The programme also includes opportunities for level 5 and level 6 students to apply into part-time fully funded Inspiring  Future Internships.  The Careers and Employabilty Team will contact Inspiring Futures students to notify them when these opportunities are open, or students can search Inspiring Futures opportunities on CareerHub.

For more information, visit CareerHub or email us at inspiringfutures@chester.ac.uk.

Chester Graduate Internships

We collaborate with local businesses to offer soon-to-be and recent undergraduates [within 12  months of graduation] the opportunity to apply into funded, paid work experience. Chester Graduate Internships can offer the first step into professional employment and help build valuable skills and experience.

Explore available Chester Internship opportunities on CareerHub.

Access the Volunteer Hub to find over 100 volunteer providers and 150 volunteering opportunities.    

Other services include:  

• Student-led Projects – led by students, for students.
• Give it a go programme: One-off volunteer opportunities.
• UCV (University of Chester Volunteering) Awards. Get recognised for your volunteering efforts through our award scheme with recognition on your Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR).

To find out more visit CareerHub or email volunteering@chester.ac.uk and follow us on Instagram: @UoCVolunteering.

We’re here to help you get involved and make a difference!

The Peer Mentoring scheme aims to support new first-year Undergraduate students (Levels 3 and 4) as they transition into University life.

Through the scheme, new first-year students can connect with a student Peer Mentor through our online Mentoring platform.

Peer Mentors are trained current students who have completed at least one full year of study at the University of Chester.

A Peer Mentor can:

• Help you feel more confident and connected in your first few weeks at University

• Suggest clubs, societies, and ways to meet new people 

• Let you know about useful support services and how to access them 

• Share tips on how to manage your timetable, coursework, or just juggling life and study

To find out more, please visit CareerHub or email: peermentoring@chester.ac.uk.

1. Every new first-year Undergraduate (Level 3 and 4) student is eligible to apply for a Peer Mentor. New Undergraduate students receive an invitation email from August onwards and the opportunity to register onto the Mentoring platform is open throughout the whole academic year.
2. After you register onto the Mentoring platform, the Peer Mentoring team will review your application.
3. Once approved, you will be able to access the Mentoring platform and request a Peer Mentor.

Get a Peer Mentor

To be eligible to become a Peer Mentor, you must be:

• A current student at the University of Chester
• Have completed at least one full year of study at the University of Chester
• Be continuing your studies in the next academic year

Eligible students are invited to register on the Peer Mentoring platform during the recruitment window, which opens each February and closes in July.

To find out more, please visit CareerHub or email peermentoring@chester.ac.uk.

• Developing your skills and capabilities to get a job – e.g. interview training, presentation skills, giving your elevator pitch, searching and applying to jobs, crafting your professional LinkedIn profile 
• Developing your digital / IT skills – e.g. PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, Teams, and other software
• Developing key skills needed in your future careers – e.g. Project Management, Working in Teams, Communication, Time Management, other specific technologies
• Courses to help you and your own wellbeing – e.g. Self-motivation, Wellness, Improving your Focus, Resilience, Stress & Relaxation

Do I need a LinkedIn profile to use LinkedIn Learning?

• No, but it helps. You can use LinkedIn Learning without having a LinkedIn (networking) profile, but there are several benefits of having both, such as being able to add certificates/badges to your LinkedIn profile when you complete courses.

How long are the courses?

• Courses do vary but tend to be on average around an hour long. You can pause and come back to it at any time. Every course is made up of smaller video components (usually 3-5 minutes each) – sometimes you don’t need a whole course, and a couple of the quick videos might help you with what you need.

How can I access LinkedIn Learning?

• Please use this link to take you straight to LinkedIn Learning
• You will need to be logged into the universities systems using your university username and password
• If you do connect your LinkedIn profile (see above) then you will also need to be logged into LinkedIn

The Careers and Employability service is transparent with our interactions with employers, allowing students to make their own informed decisions based on their own values.  We are proud members of Graduate Futures Institute, Institute of Student Employers and ASET and adhere to their principles in maintaining a supportive, data informed and impartial service to all students and graduates.

Sustainable and Ethical Careers and Employer Engagement Policy.

Employers wishing to advertise their vacancies or events on CareerHub must ensure that they meet the requirements of our New Vacancy and Employer Events Advertising Policy.docx

All policies are reviewed on an annual basis by the Head of Careers and Employability, as part of continual improvement processes.

At the University of Chester, we are dedicated to promoting ethical practices across all aspects of careers, work placements, and recruitment. Our Careers and Employability team carefully evaluates all third-party organisations to ensure they align with our strong commitment to sustainability, fairness, and responsible engagement. Any organisations using AI technology will be referred to the Technical Advisory Board for ethical scrutiny including use of onward machine learning and data privacy. An equal alternative option will always be available for any students or graduates not wanting to use AI competent of careers support  tools.  The Careers Service is transparent in ensuring students recognise where a third-party organisation is being used with special note around scrutiny of any third-party privacy notices. Any procurement of careers and employability tools must adhere to the university ethics polices and comply with the Career and Employabilty Privacy Notice which outlines all our third-party organisations.

Share Your Feedback

Careers and Employability is committed to providing a professional, inclusive and high-quality service to all students, graduates, employers and other service users. Your feedback helps us understand what is working well and where we can improve.

We welcome comments, suggestions and compliments about your experience of the service.

For general feedback, please send your comments via email to careers@chester.ac.uk  

If something has not gone as expected, you can raise a concern or make a complaint by emailing careers@chester.ac.uk or the Head of Careers and Employability at a.standish@chester.ac.uk.

Please include:

• Your name and student number (if applicable).
• A brief description of your feedback, concern or complaint.
• Relevant dates, appointments or activities.
• Details of what you would like us to consider or do in response.

If you need support to provide this information, would prefer to discuss your concerns in person or by telephone, or require information in an alternative format, please contact us and we will be happy to help.

What Happens Next?

We will normally acknowledge your email within three to five working days. If you have requested a response, we aim to provide this within two to three weeks.

We may contact you for further information to understand and consider the matter fully. Some issues may take longer to investigate. If this happens, we will explain why and keep you updated on progress.

Feedback and complaints will be handled sensitively and shared only with colleagues who need the information to review, investigate or respond to the matter. Records will be stored securely and used to help us monitor and improve our services.

Formal University Complaints Process

We encourage concerns relating specifically to Careers and Employability services to be raised with us first, so that we have the opportunity to resolve them promptly.

If your complaint cannot be resolved through the service, or if it relates to a wider University matter, you may wish to use the University's formal complaints process. 

If your complaint cannot be resolved through the service, or if it relates to a wider University matter, you may wish to use the University's formal complaints process

Students should refer to the University's formal procedure for information about eligibility, timescales and stages of review.

Other Service Users

Graduates, employers and other external service users who wish to make a complaint about Careers and Employability services should contact us using the details above. Where appropriate, we will advise if an alternative University procedure applies.

Please note that response times may be affected by University closure periods and public holidays.

Head of Careers and Employability - Angela Standish a.standish@chester.ac.uk

Employer Engagement and Work Placement Manager - Sally Harding sally.harding@chester.ac.uk

Careers Education and Student Success Manager - Vikki Brockhurst  v.brockhurst@chester.ac.uk

A full 'Meet the Team' show page including individual contact information is accessible to all our students and graduates through their online careers platform at CareerHub and on our staff/student intranet site Portal.   

To best support all our enquiries we use a triage system through shared inboxes ensuring enquiries are answered promptly and directed to the correct person, this ensures there is no delay where staff are part-time or away on leave.

Access to our inboxes can be found on our Careers and Employability page.