Join Us in Guiding Tomorrow’s Leaders

Written by Hayley Turner-McIntyre, Project Manager- Education

Here in the Education Works team, we collaborate with our university partners to offer students the opportunity to hear from industry experts in their field of study and interests, particularly within the business, consultancy, and data analysis sectors. Business volunteers have led on delivering a range of short sessions, including student lectures or panel talks – on-campus or online – to give an insight into their industry, personal career journey, and career opportunities within this sector. These insight sessions are particularly valuable to university students who are in the early stages of their career and are hoping to discover the exciting range of career paths they can choose from post-graduation, and to also give inspiration and guidance to those students who are still figuring it out.

What are the benefits of volunteering with universities?

• Support underrepresented backgrounds to improve their chances of securing professional graduate employment
• Improve students’ confidence
• Give students the opportunity to learn about a new role or industry
• Engage with and learn from a diverse group of driven students

We are incredibly grateful for our volunteers who have taken the time to support students taking the next steps into their professional development! Here are three ways that you can give back through volunteering with ELBA:

1. Hosting a virtual insight session
   Share your knowledge on a specific industry topic such as AI, finance, sustainability, and consultancy, or offer valuable career advice on things like assessment centres, mock interviews, CV reviews, or job applications. Conclude the session highlighting internships, work experience and graduate programmes available to students.
   Why do it? These 1-1.5 hour sessions will leave a lasting impression on students looking to take a leap from university to graduate employment.
2. Support university employer engagement activities
   Our university partners are always looking for business volunteers to share their experiences of their work and industry to give students an impression of the variety of professional opportunities in different sectors. If you are from the sector of law, finance or technology and have an hour to spare, get in touch!
3. Review a CV or LinkedIn profile from your desk
   Have limited time to spare but want to support? In just 30 minutes, you can provide a student with valuable feedback and guidance to help them feel confident and prepared for graduate job applications. We will send you a CV or LinkedIn profile of a university student, you send us your feedback, and we will share this with the student. It’s as simple as that!

If you are interested in supporting any of these initiatives, please email hayley.turner-mcintyre@elba-1.org.uk.

To stay up to date with the latest news, opportunities and success stories, please sign up to receive our monthly newsletter, here.