7: Support and Personal Development

We provide many opportunities to develop your skills within and outside the curriculum and we encourage you to develop your transferable skills to enable you to become more competitive in the job market. You can do this by reflecting on the modules you are taking and thinking about the skills you have developed. This will also allow you to identify any further skills that may be useful to develop. You can do this via the department’s Module Skills mappingsection of our Careers webpage. There you will find a range of skills that you can acquire from each module.

The Warwick Award provides a structured way to reflect on and record your skills development - useful for future job applications - and events such as the Economics, Finance and Consultancy Fair will enable you to find out what skills employers are looking for.

Careers and Skills support within the Department of Economics

Our aim is to support your career planning by offering you a range of opportunities to develop self-awareness, acquire new skills and help you achieve your vision of career success. The Department has an Academic Careers Coordinator, Dr Farzad JavidanradLink opens in a new window who leads a team of people looking at careers, employability skills and a range of unique opportunities to help you acquire skills relevant for economists and with your career planning. You can find out more about the role of the Department’s Academic Careers Coordinator on the Department’s careers website.

On the Department'sCareers & SkillsLink opens in a new window online portal, you can find many useful resources tailored to the needs of Economics students. This includes:

Information on a range of exciting job roles across many sectors;
Mapping of the skills in your modules to employability skills;
Tips from past students on graduate careers and further study;
Career webinars with alumni from a broad range of careers;
Access to the University’s central careers resources and events via Student Opportunity;
Information about the Warwick EnterpriseLink opens in a new windowteam and help with developing your entrepreneurial skills;

In term time you will receive an email with a Careers Bulletin, a bespoke communication listing the most important careers and job opportunities relevant to students from the Department of Economics, developed by the Careers Link opens in a new windowteam.

Voluntary Year Out (VYO)

Students can take a Voluntary Year Out (VYO) of their studies in order to gain work experience (see University Regulation 36.1.10Link opens in a new window). Although you will need to find your own work experience, there is lots of support available to you within the department from the Academic Careers Coordinator and Student OpportunityLink opens in a new window. This includes appointments with careers advisors, help searching for roles, help making an application and many other resources. You can find lots more information on the department’s VYO webpagesLink opens in a new window.

Student visa holders are able to take VYO, but it does affect your visa and hence if you are interested in this opportunity, you should contact immigration@warwick.ac.ukLink opens in a new window.

Please note that the deadline for an application is 30th June.

Student Opportunity - Skills & Student Development

Student OpportunityLink opens in a new window helps you to develop your skills and confidence, connect with employers, gain international experience and create a career that's right for you. They and their Careers Team offer many workshops and initiatives designed to help you achieve your goals after you graduate. Support is available to you even after you graduate and no matter what stage you are in within your career plans.

Here are some examples of the most popular programmes they offer:

WorkReadyLink opens in a new window - a work experience toolkit to guide you on your work experience journey
TeamWorkLink opens in a new window - an online international experience programme, taking place part-time, for 4 weeks.
Thrive™Link opens in a new window - an award winning (Gold in QS Reimagine Education Awards in the 'Nurturing Wellbeing and Purpose' category 2024), interactive in-person programme delivered by an experienced team here at Warwick, where you can hear from inspirational speakers.

In addition, there are careers workshops, support to help you find internships and other work experience, as well as many opportunities and events to meet organisations and employees, from large careers fairs to alumni meetings, to employer-led skills events. There is also support with making applications, including CV review, interview support and a chance to practice psychometric tests.

You can find all the information on the Student Opportunity: CareersLink opens in a new window website, which also contains up-to-date careers information and resources designed specifically for Warwick students, and the popular Careers blog atcareersblog.warwick.ac.ukLink opens in a new window.

You can also attend a careers drop-inLink opens in a new window at the Student Opportunity HubLink opens in a new window at Senate House, or book a career guidance appointment with a Careers Consultant to discuss your career plans.

Details and booking for events and appointments run by Student Opportunity are atmyAdvantageLink opens in a new window .Link opens in a new window

Personal Development Module

In your first year, you’ll take a compulsory skills development module called the Personal Development Module (PDM). This module is designed to help you build essential personal and professional skills, while also giving you opportunities to apply and enhance your academic knowledge.

With the graduate job market becoming increasingly competitive, employers are looking for more than just strong academic results. The PDM helps you develop key employability skills, such as communication, teamwork, and self-reflection. This will strengthen your CV and prepare you for future career opportunities.

The outcome of this module will be recorded on your official University transcript (HEAR).

For more details, including module content and assessment, please visit the Link opens in a new window Personal Development ModuleLink opens in a new windowwebpage.

Undergraduates as Researchers

You will receive excellent research-led teaching and we strive to encourage passion for original and impactful research in our undergraduates. There are many ways that you can be a part of and contribute to research in the department.

Conferences and Journals

As an Economics student, you will have opportunities to carry out your own original research. Many of our students present their research in prestigious competitions, both nationally and internationally. The Department has a strong track record of undergraduate research being recognised and awarded, with students frequently accepted to present and winning prizes for outstanding work.

You can explore a list of major undergraduate research conferences below, and find further details about these exciting opportunities on our Research webpageLink opens in a new window.

In addition, there are also opportunities for undergraduate students to have their research published at Warwick in:

Warwick-Monash Paper Series: This is an international collaboration between the Department of Economics at Warwick and Monash University. The papers are hand-selected by an academic editorial board and are publicly viewable on the Warwick Economics websiteLink opens in a new window.
Reinvention: A journal of Undergraduate Research: This is an online, peer-reviewed journal published through IATL. Find out more on the Reinvention website.Link opens in a new window

Other research opportunities

The Undergraduate Research Scholarship Scheme (URSS)

The URSSLink opens in a new window provides students with the opportunity to undertake original research over the summer vacation. You will be supervised by an academic member of staff and can undertake individual or team-based research, including interdisciplinary work and are provided with living and travel expenses.

Warwick Internship Scheme for Economists (WISE)

This scheme provides Economics students with opportunities to intern within the Department. The internships are in many areas, including supporting staff with research, teaching related projects, administrative projects and many more. Students are paid for their work and will gain many valuable skills. More information is on theWISE webpageLink opens in a new window.

Warwick Award

The Warwick Award gives you the opportunity to develop vital skills to improve your employability after graduation. The Award is based around 12 core employability skills and recognises the transferable employability skills gained through your modules, the extra-curricular training and co-curricular activities that you participate in at Warwick. Further details are available at Link opens in a new window Warwick Award.Link opens in a new window

If you register for the Warwick Award, your PDM credits will automatically be transferred to Warwick Award credits over the summer.

References

When you apply for jobs, postgraduate degrees and scholarships, you usually need at least one academic referee who has some general familiarity with your work and progress over your degree course. Your Personal Tutor is the person who will normally do this, but if you need more than one referee, you might ask your RAE/RME tutor or another member of staff. Please note that many class tutors are Graduate Teaching Assistants and they will not be able to provide you with a reference.

Before citing anyone as a referee you should seek their advice and permission, as a matter of courtesy and to give your referee permission to divulge information about you to third parties seeking a reference. You will need to provide your referee with your CV, academic transcript (HEAR), any academic integrity investigations and a covering letter/letter of motivation. Please ensure you give any referee plenty of time to write a reference.