Mentoring, Skills development, Wellbeing

Exploring intersectionality with females who identify as Black, African, South Asian and Caribbean

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Being at University may have provided opportunities for you to notice things about yourself that you might want to explore and talk about. This therapeutic support group taking place over 6 sessions can provide a safe space to explore themes with others who you may have things in common who identify as Black, African, South Asian and Caribbean. Commitment to all 6 sessions is required.

Group work can be powerful and offers you the opportunity to hear things you may be experiencing spoken out loud by others and perhaps yourself. Groups can provide a very supportive environment and equally can be very challenging. What have your previous experiences in groups like family, housemates, friends, work been like? There will be a maximum of 8, in the group to help facilitate a safe environment.

The group came about as a response to the feedback from students in the context of Black Lives Matter and the current pandemic. The group will be experiential, you are expected to bring yourself and be willing to share your thoughts with others and to be able to listen to others. We will decide together in week one which themes we would like to explore each week. We will use some mindfulness techniques to support us in being present.  Suggested themes include; Who am I? – What does it mean to be me?   – Friendships – Friend or enemy? – Being a friend to myself – self-love – Mental health – Self-care. These themes are not exclusive or exhaustive, you may have other themes that you want to suggest.

Please note that you need to commit to attending all 6 sessions which take place on Mondays from 2pm-3pm on the following dates:

15th February
22nd February
1st March
8th March
15th March
22nd March

If you are available for all 6 dates and would like to participate, please email wellbeingevents@kent.ac.uk to book your place, you will then be contacted for a brief 1:1 online meeting with the group facilitator at a mutually convenient time before the course begins.

Please think about why you would like to join the group and what you would like to get out of it.  This group cannot be a substitute for the safety and the environment that one to one therapy can offer. However, it could be a chance to reflect on your experiences and to experience your impact on others and their impact on you with an experienced female facilitator who identifies as Black.

If you have any queries, please email wellbeingevents@kent.ac.uk

Careers Service, Graduate Jobs, Skills development

SOCIAL WORK VIRTUAL EMPLOYABILITY DAY​ – 1st FEBRUARY 2021 ​

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Want to start looking for social work jobs with local employers?  Then this event is for YOU!​

Hear from a range of Social Work Employers from Local Authorities, Private and Voluntary Sector employers – Open to All​ Students. Please book online to reserve your place and access the Microsoft Teams Links at:​ https://careers.kent.ac.uk ​

The following Employability Talks will be taking place:​
12:30 – 12:50 – East Sussex Council ​
13:30 – 13:50 – Vocational Impact​
14:00 – 14:20 – London Borough of Bexley ​
14:30 – 14:50 – NSPCC ​
15:00 – 15:20 – Careers and Employability Service ​
15:30 – 15:50 – MA/Step Up to Social Work ​

Further information ​email: medwaycareers@kent.ac.uk or O.P.Mehmi@kent.ac.uk​

Mentoring, Skills development

Insight Event into a Career in Public Affairs

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I have a voice is a social enterprise that empowers people to engage with politics and we’ve teamed up with the Public Relations & Communications Association (PRCA) to offer a free virtual careers event to 50 university students. The remaining spots will be filled with industry bods so they’ll be chance for the students to reach out and network.

The event will provide students with an insight into what a career in public affairs might look like and access to industry leaders. This event is specifically targeted for those who are planning on entering the public affairs or political arena, or are curious to find out what this may entail. In addition to the event, I have a voice and NextGen are developing a mentoring scheme for up to 10 students. This will be launched at the event and will give students a chance to work with a mentor in the field, offering them specialist industry expertise and exposure.

We’re particularly interested in applications from students whose voices are under-represented in the political arena.

The application form is available here and the deadline to apply is 30 November.

International Students, Mentoring, Post graduate, Skills development, Work experience

Alfa Fellowship Program

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The Alfa Fellowship Program is a distinguished international initiative that each year offers up to 18 accomplished young Americans, Britons, and Germans the opportunity to complete a high-level professional development program in Russia. Over the course of the program, fellows complete work placements at leading institutions, attend professional seminars, and receive intensive language training.

The fellowship provides a monthly stipend, accommodation, insurance, all program-related travel costs, language training in Russia, and private tutoring in the U.S., U.K., or Germany.

Key goals of the Alfa Fellowship Program are to expand networks of American, British, German, and Russian professionals, develop greater intercultural understanding, and advance knowledge of Russian affairs in the West.

Participant Profile

Fellows have a demonstrated interest in Russian and European and Eurasian affairs, exceptional academic and professional credentials, proven personal initiative, and clear goals and expectations for their professional assignments.

Fellows are between the ages of 25 and 35 with graduate degrees and professional experience in business, economics, journalism, law, public policy, or related fields.

Fellows possess leadership potential and are active in community or public service.

While Russian language skills vary, most fellows have studied Russian for at least two years at the post-secondary level.

Eligibility Requirements

U.S., U.K., or German citizen between the ages of 25 and 35 (Russian citizens are ineligible to apply, including individuals who are also citizens of the United States, United Kingdom, or Germany)
Bachelor’s degree and 2-3 years of relevant professional experience in business, economics, journalism, law, public policy, or a related field

Desired Qualifications

  • Outstanding professional achievement and academic qualifications
  • Active involvement in community or public service
  • Russian language experience is preferred, however not required, at the time of application. If an applicant does not speak Russian, he or she will need to demonstrate proficiency in another foreign language to qualify for the program
  • Graduate degree in business, economics, journalism, law, public policy, international relations, or a related field
  • Evidence of leadership potential

The Alfa Fellowship Program is a professional-level initiative focused on the fellows’ assignments in Russia. The Alfa Fellowship Program will not sponsor independent or academic research.

The Alfa Fellowship Program includes the following benefits:

  • Round-trip transportation to New York City or London and accommodation (if needed) for selection interviews
  • Orientation seminar in Washington, D.C., including speakers, activities, travel, and accommodation
  • Program-related transportation between U.S./U.K./Germany and Russia
  • Pre-departure and Russia-based language training
  • Moscow Seminar Program, including briefings, assignment planning, and excursions
  • A generous monthly stipend during the program in Russia
  • All program-related travel within Russia
  • Accommodation in Moscow
  • Limited international health, accident, and liability insurance during the program in Russia

Application Deadline:

The deadline to apply is 1 December 2020.

For details regarding the application process and to access the online application, please visit:

https://culturalvistas.org/programs/abroad/alfa-fellowship-program

 

Internships, Politics, Skills development, Work experience

Paid Student Internship in the Global Europe Research Centre

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The School of Politics and IR is pleased to announce a vacancy for a student intern within its Global Europe Centre. The Global Europe Centre (GEC) is a research centre focusing on Europe, its member states, and its place in a changing world. It brings together leading international academics from politics and international relations, economics, law, business, and European culture in order to explore the contemporary policy challenges to Europe and its nation states.

School Research Centre internships are an initiative to support the development of student skills and employability, as well as helping to build capacity within and raise the profile of the School’s Research Centres. The internships are funded by the School and are available exclusively to SPIR students.

The successful student intern will (remotely):

  • Support the administrative and other work of the Research Centre, under the guidance of the Centre’s Director and other staff
  • Develop or work on a Research Centre blog, writing and commissioning content of interest to students, staff and other stakeholders and raising the profile of the Centre
  • Use social media (including Twitter and Facebook) to promote the work of the Centre and to raise its profile, and work within the School to engage students in the Centre’s work
  • Support the running of Centre events, and propose events and activities to further promote the Centre’s work amongst students
  • Support individual researchers within the Centre on research projects and activities where such work is available
  • Undertake any other duties to support the work of the School of Politics and IR, including employability and recruitment / marketing tasks

The successful student intern should:

  • Be an undergraduate or postgraduate student from the School of Politics and IR, at Stage 2 or above (including Bi-Diplôme and Joint Honours students)
  • Have a strong academic and attendance record. Priority will be given to students with a grade average of a 2:1 (60%) or above, and an attendance average of 70% or above
  • Be able to demonstrate an interest in the area of the research centre, either through module choice / academic record or extra-curricular activities
  • Be able to work independently on given tasks, and to show initiative and creativity
  • Have experience of using social media and writing blog articles or other online content

Applications

This is a paid internship (up to eight hours per week at the relevant student intern rate) and will last until the end of Spring Term initially, with the possibility of an extension to the end of the academic year.

Interested students should apply by emailing a CV and cover letter to Ngaio Lanfray at n.v.lanfray@kent.ac.uk

The application deadline is midday on the Thursday 19th November 2020. Interviews will be held the following week.

Interview feedback can be provided on request.

For more information please contact Ngaio Lanfray on the above email address.

The University’s Careers and Employability Service can provide CV and cover letter advice (www.kent.ac.uk/ces)

ASPIRE, Innovation, Skills development

Business Start Up Event – How to be Ready for Anything Workshop

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As part of ASPIRE, the business start-up initiative, join Julie Flower, founder of Specialist Generalist, for a fun interactive workshop exploring how we can use improvisation and drama techniques to develop creative problem-solving skills, build confidence and be comfortable with uncertainty.

Date: Wednesday 25 November
Time: 1.30pm – 2.45pm

Zoom link register here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0qdO6qrzwqG9fSynF_J6EUv4bszK5A_VA7

Things to note:

· It will be a very active and participatory workshop, with a mixture of whole group and small group exercises and discussion

· We would like you to be in a place where you can speak freely and ideally have some freedom of movement

· We would like you to keep your cameras on throughout

· Ideally, for the best experience, you should log-on via a laptop or desktop

· If you have any access requirements, or additional needs, that it would be useful for us to know about beforehand so that the exercises can best meet your needs, it would be great if you could let us know in advance. Email R.B.Smith@kent.ac.uk or call 01227 816492.

Featured, Final Year, Graduate Jobs, Skills development

Your Pathway to a Digital Career

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Are you in your final year of university and curious about a career in the technology industry? Are you studying a Non STEM degree but keen on pursuing a career in tech?

FDM are launching an exciting four-part programme of events to enhance your digital skills and potentially fast-track you to the final stages of our recruitment process!

We will provide you with an overall insight into who FDM are, explore common misconceptions of a career in technology and transferable skills applicable to the world of tech. You will then learn a new skill in coding with one of our FDM internal developers. The series will conclude with an interview with an FDM recruiter and if successful, we will fast-track you to the final stages of our recruitment process! The events will run on a weekly basis, commencing on Thursday 12th November and concluding on Thursday 3rd December.

Programme of Events

Thursday 12th November 4-6pm – Introduction to FDM: Non-Tech to Tech

Thursday 19th November 4-6pm – Coding Bootcamp: Part 1 with FDM Developer

Thursday 26th November 4-6pm – Coding Bootcamp: Part 2 with FDM Developer

Thursday 3rd December – Fast-track Interviews

Criteria to apply:

– On track to achieve a 2.2 bachelors with honours degree

– Eligible to work in the UK or EU

– Passionate about pursuing a career in the technology industry

– Geographically flexible within the UK

– Able to support yourself financially during the training period

– Able to commit to the full 2-year graduate careers programme

To apply to take part in this exciting programme of events, please submit your CV and cover letter to Kristy Littlewood at Kristy.littlewood@fdmgroup.com with the subject: ‘FDM Programme of Events’. Applications will close on Monday 9th November.

Events, Graduate Jobs, Skills development

Careers in Defence – Online Event for EMPFEST

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Join a panel of defence sector representatives, including Kent alumni, who will share their experiences about working in defence, discuss the opportunities available and the value that non-STEM graduates provide in their workplaces. Q+A with representatives from BAE, Dstl and Janes as well as Jack Radford (Military History), a returning placement student. Particularly suitable for Humanities/History, Business, Economics, SECL, SSPSSR, Psychology and all non-STEM

This event will take place on zoom and is bookable via Target Connect  https://careers.kent.ac.uk/leap/event.html?id=6743&service=Careers+Service

Students will receive 10 Employability Points for attending.

Ella Fleming – Senior Analyst in Dstl and Visiting Fellow for RUSI (Bsc International Politics, MA Conflict Security and Development) She has worked in Defence and Security for 3 years and has expertise in socio-cultural and regional analysis, intelligence analysis, gender in the armed forces and has experience in designing external outreach models and external partnership management. Her academic background includes a BSc in International Politics and an MA in Conflict Security and Development. She has recently finished her Visiting Fellowship at the Think Tank Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) working on the future of African Security and decline of UK influence, and will pursue a sponsored part-time PhD at Oxford University in October 2020 based upon this research area. Her interests include assessing emerging geopolitical shifts and trends that may cause conflict, sectarian violence or regional instability.

Martin Parr– honorary professor at the University of Kent and a senior principal consultant at Dstl. Martin Parr is an honorary professor at the University of Kent and a senior principal consultant at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl). Martin regularly teaches at the Defence Academy and on the University of Kent’s MBA programme.  Martin has worked with a number of government departments to establish key strategic initiatives. He has advised on the governance of UK government programmes that have annual budgets in excess of £1 billion, including the Ministry of Defence test and evaluation programme. Martin has co-chaired international research collaboration activities for NATO.

Rebecca Jaggon– Systems Engineer, BAE Systems (MA Control Systems Engineering). I have been a Systems Engineer at BAE Systems for 3 years, including a 2 year graduate scheme. In this time, I’ve worked on aircraft control sticks, heads-up displays and controls. Before this I completed a Masters in Control and Systems Engineering at the University of Sheffield, which gave me a strong background in modelling, a key part of my role. I also work a lot in requirements design and derivation. Whilst at university I had a job in IT; modernising databases for storing and automating the update of contractor information and rebuilding a company intranet. I also had a summer internship at BAE Systems working for 12 weeks on the development of Striker II, this led to being offered my graduate job with the company. Alongside my engineering role, I work in early careers and have taken on a role as a business representative in a national network for cultural and ethnic diversity.

Richard Blake –Procurement Graduate Scheme, BAE Systems (BA Business and Music). Richard Blake a second year Procurement Graduate at BAE Systems, based in Rochester, Kent. I studied at Canterbury Christchurch University reading Business and Music as a combined degree. I joined the company in September 2019 and have just started my third six-month placement throughout my two-year programme prior to exiting into a buyer role in the business. Outside of work I’m a keen musician, Trumpeter, as a member of the Princess of Wales’ Royal Regiment band as well as multiple amateur and semi-professional groups playing a variety of genres. I’m also a keen cyclist.

Sam Cranny-Evans– Editor of Janes Armoured Fighting Vehicles (BA War Studies at Kent). Sam Cranny-Evans is the editor of Janes Armoured Fighting Vehicles, his writing focuses on paradigms in modern land warfare, and how armoured fighting vehicles have evolved to meet those emerging demands.

Jack Radford– Defence Analyst, Dstl Professional Placement Year student (BA History with Professional Placement Year at Kent). Jack is a current student at the University of Kent studying History with an emphasis on Military, British and Russian History. He has recently completed a Year-In-Industry placement as a Defence Analyst with the Defence, Science and Technology Laboratory [dstl], an executive agency of the Ministry of Defence.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-r-radford-uk-analyst/
https://blogs.kent.ac.uk/history/2020/09/14/student-profile-taking-a-year-in-industry/

Alumni, Employability Points, Events, Graduate Jobs, Politics, Skills development

POLIR Alumni Careers Panel for EMPFEST 21st October 2pm

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Listen to POLIR Alumni talk about their careers since graduation followed by a Q&A with students.

Wednesday 21st October 2020, 2pm – 3.30pm

Sign Up Here: https://careers.kent.ac.uk/leap/event.html?id=6731&service=Careers+Service

The School of Politics and International Relations online alumni careers panel followed by a Q&A session with students. The event is part of the University wide EMPFEST – focused on highlighting career options and opportunities to students.

School alumni sharing their advice, wisdom and experience with students looking to pursue a similar career.

Speakers for online POLIR Alumni Panel – EMPFEST

Scott Macdonald – Head of Good Governance Fund, Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office

Sherah Beckley – Client Engagement Manager, Natural Capital Partners

Sulmaan Hanif – Business Development Director, Gartner

Rebecca Sangster-Kelly – Management Consultant, Chaucer

Kristina Block – Global Planning Editor, BBC News

 

 

Civil Service, Events, Politics, Skills development

Model NATO Student Opportunity with the FCO

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The School of Politics and International Relations has been invited to send four student delegates to represent the University at a Model NATO conference being run by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the British International Studies Association.

Fifteen UK universities will be taking part in the Model and each university will represent two NATO members. 

You can find a report on our participation last year here: https://blogs.kent.ac.uk/polir-news/2019/12/10/model-nato-and-nato-engages/

Model NATO will take place online and will take place on one day in the final week of January 2021.

APPLICATIONS

Students in their second year and above, including post-graduates are invited to apply.

To be considered for this exciting opportunity please email no more than 100 words explaining why you would like to attend to:

N.V.Lanfray@kent.ac.uk and R.Whitman@kent.ac.uk

By midnight on the Tuesday 27th October.

Successful applicants will be informed on Friday 30th October and will be required to attend an online briefing event in the following week.

MODEL NATO IN ACTION

The business of the Model NATO committees and their working methods will be explained to the selected participating students in a separate document to be sent in the coming weeks.

In brief, the Model will be principally concerned with reacting to a crisis scenario. That crisis will be presented at the beginning of the working day and elaborated upon by means of news and intelligence injects as the day proceeds. The committees will replicate NATO’s working methods – including, importantly, the requirement that decisions are reached by consensus.

Each NATO member delegation at the Model will be split between three committees: the North Atlantic Council (the NAC), the Military Committee, and an ad hoc Crisis Response Committee. Each university will have two people on each of these three committees – representing two separate NATO members.

The task of the Model is to respond to the crisis by mobilising NATO’s political and military resources. In undertaking that response, delegations will need to act in accordance with known national policy positions.

To assist the students in this endeavour, you will be sent:

  • Model NATO Handbook (containing Rules of Procedure, draft Agenda for the three committees and other important information);
  • Crisis Briefing 1 (outlining the crisis your students will need to prepare for – a second Briefing will be given at the commencement of the Model);
  • A guide to NATO policies and processes (‘NATO 101’);
  • Briefings on the two NATO member countries your university is representing, and a
  • Document on Model NATO’s working methods.

On the day of the Model, academics, staff from the FCO and NATO officials will be on hand to offer specific advice.