Career Plans (oh so serious)

There came a point this year when I had to face the whole careers decision situation and actually get serious about it. Looking for summer internships was by no means easy. The Internet is a wonderful place but the vast sea of information is also quite daunting. Especially when your starting place is as vague as 'maybe something in science would be nice'...

So I can't remember how but I stumbled upon gradcracker which helped give my searching some direction. I'd definitely recommend this to anyone who's looking for a career in science. I saw how many opportunities there were in the oil and gas industry so starting researching that and terms like 'geophysicist' drew me in.

And then I got rejected from Shell and a couple of others and didn't even hear back from a couple of others. But the important thing is what I learnt for this year:
1) apply as soon as possible
2) practice as many numerical tests as possible because under the pressure of a time limit its very difficult to remember how to calculate percentage difference
3) Get 2nd and 3rd opinions on my CV and potential answers

But also I need to get my general knowledge up for interviews and not be too shy to ask my person tutor for a letter of recommendation.

I did however get accepted for a discovery day at BP which was a real eye opener. We had talks from current interns, senior staff as well as members of HR involved in the selection process. I met some interesting peers as well! I really got a feel for the company and can easily imagine a life there. I remember coming home in my free BP hoodie so excited. I felt like I finally could see life after university and it was a lovely life with MRI scanners and rock samples and graphs and numbers! I guess I'll apply this year, I'll give it my all and if I don't get it then I'm sure I'll learn some more for when I apply for the graduate scheme. And hey, if none of that works out its cool, something else will come up. Whatevers meant to be, will be but that doesn't mean I'm going to sit back and wait for it to come to me.

That said, I'm also looking at the nuclear energy industry and at research placements at universities.  Watch this space.