Career Anxiety and Aid at St Andrews

In the current job market, rife with worries about LinkedIn connections and summer internships, you would be hard pressed to find a student at the University of St Andrews who is not worried about their future career and how to translate their education into an actual, paying job. To graduate with a degree from a highly respected university may seem like a straight path into numerous fields. The reality of pursuing employment, however, is more complicated than writing a dissertation and getting a First. 

The general feeling of concern many students experience is shaped by the international nature of the student population. 1,500 students hail from the United States, and there are more than 135 nationalities represented in the student body of over 9,000. For these students a major concern is the university’s connections and reputation extending beyond the UK.

Third-year Sustainable Development and Geography student Lucy Wagner noticed how St Andrews’ edge as a top UK university doesn’t necessarily translate for international students looking for jobs outside of Scotland. “I think that St Andrews already imposes such an individualistic [approach],” she explained. “You are responsible for… basically everything.” Applying to “over 25 internships” and getting “zero of them,” she reflected that perhaps students looking for experiences outside of Scotland are not the “main target for the Careers Centre” and the opportunities that the University has to offer.

This is not to say that the University does not provide aid in preparing for life beyond uni, but that this help does not often come in the form of explanations of how to put your degree to use or how to find career paths in the world. 

Emma Love, a graduate of both St Andrews’ undergraduate programme and postgraduate programme, noted “there weren't many discussions on how I could use my undergraduate [degree] in future careers… they did emphasize transferable skills… [but there was a] lack of aid in exploration” of careers beyond school. 

The University does have a Career Centre open to all students for help with career advice, CV help, and interview practice. For Love and Wagner, however, this promise of help did not easily translate into useful opportunities while finding internships and jobs. Love explained, “A St Andrews degree will certainly help you if you are trying for a postgraduate degree,” but in terms of jobs, “it depends on which field you are entering and where.” 

Both Love and Wagner noticed the main benefit of graduating St Andrews as an undergrad stemmed from the “transferable skills” that your classes provide. For Wagner, her subhonours classes, broad and open to more than 100 students at a time, gave her the “very small things that make up a future career in public health that are the kind of boring, nominal things that you don't think of… but that you have to know how to do.”  

“So I think that St Andrews… going into third year has already prepared me more than I was originally asking for.” The emphasis on "transferable skills” and preparation for future employment here is the key; what skills you will need in your future job, rather than how to go about being hired for these jobs. 

Love had similar feelings about her time as an undergraduate. “I think with an English degree I have a foundation of transferable skills that could allow me to be placed in a variety of roles or paths. It wouldn't necessarily get me where I wanted for sure, but I feel that the MFA will help me in getting a placement in a more niche industry.” Both sensed that while their actual job hunts may not be directly aided by the University, the skills gained from graduating from such a rigorous and highly respected school would set them at an advantage. 

To understand why students felt this disconnect between the skills they have gained through their education and their pursuit of a job, I spoke to Lorna Dargan, Director of the Careers Centre. “The Careers Centre leads on employability support for the university,” Dargan explained, but forms “part of a wider ecosystem. Everyone at the university helps to make our students employable.” Wagner shared this sentiment. “I have a lot of support from staff… I could go up to any of them and say ‘I want to pursue a degree in this [and] they would really help a lot.” 

For Love's current job hunt, she plans to start working with Careers Connect and the alumni network. “I have heard good things from other graduates,” she said. 

Wagner sensed that while her connections with her mentors are strong, it may have to do with her studying in one of the smaller departments at St Andrews and the close relationships that she forged in her studies. While she did have support from her professors, she felt that the university can work on “fostering… better engagement between the students and… any professionals that can possibly help them in the future.” A wish that the university would make more of an effort to connect students with actual professionals in the fields rather than focusing on the technical aspects of job hunting. 

An important piece of this puzzle is the extracurriculars that students are participating in, both in St Andrews and outside of the university. The school is home to over 150 student-led societies, ranging from specific, degree-focused interests to broad, creative endeavors. And these tools can be harnessed by students to aid them in boosting their CVs and making connections in the world. 

Wagner uses the university in her future career path in a variety of ways: obtaining technical skills necessary for the fields she aims to enter, making connections among alumni and staff, and taking advantage of the far-reaching extracurricular activities that student life offers. While this approach may seem intimidating, Dargan warns against feeling “a bit behind and pressure to ‘catch up,’” saying “it’s never too late to start.” 

“Many students are engaging with career planning earlier than in previous years, driven by a mix of ambition and anxiety about a competitive job market,” Dargan explained. She encourages students to reach out, especially those who feel as though “they don’t know what they’re doing.” In her eyes, any place is a good one to start in the job search. “Students are panicking and applying to large volumes of roles, often using AI to help,” Dargan said. She recommends focusing on a smaller number of applications. “Writing a quality application takes time but is more likely to be successful.” 

The search for a meaningful and fulfilling career can be a daunting task. Often students can feel as though they are adrift with no clear direction on how to put their degrees to use in the ‘real world.’ The panic-induced sense that St Andrews does not offer much in the way of career help, especially internationally, can be quelled by active participation. In today’s job market it may not be enough to simply have a degree, but rather to have the benefits that come with attending a good university: connections, ambition, and skills must be forged and pursued, and passivity is more often than not unappreciated in the search for a career.  

Illustration by Magdalena Yiacoumi