Two good starting points for information are:

• Tthe postgraduate section of the Careers and Employability Service's website
• The International Students section of the Graduate Prospects website.

You can, of course, come and have a discussion with one of our Careers Advisers.

The information that follows is in two parts:

• International Students considering postgraduate study
• International Students currently undertaking postgraduate study

International Students considering postgraduate study

Before you make any decisions about pursuing postgraduate study then you need to research this area carefully and to ask yourself a few questions:

• what would you hope to get out of it; what is the most important aspect?
• what are the objectives?
• taught or research?
• what are the options around this; how do they compare?
• what are the costs?
• what are the eligibility requirements (e.g. previous degree?)
• again, how realistically will this option meet the objective?
• Have I gathered various opinions about this option? (e.g. academic member of staff) and have I checked this out with a Careers Adviser?

For those considering postgraduate study at Swansea University please check the  postgraduate prospectus.

The National Recognition Information Centre for the UK (known as NARIC) is an useful resource should you need a comparison of your International qualifications against UK standards.  General enquiries are answered free of charge but if you required an individual assessment and a letter of comparability, then there is a charge for this service.  You could also try the UCAS site for information on international qualifications. Alternatively, speak to your departmental admissions tutor or even try to equate the grading in percentages or numbers that universities/employers would understand.

International Students currently doing postgraduate study

You already made a decision to do postgraduate study at Swansea and are underway on degree or due to start.  However, the nature of a postgraduate programme means that you will need to consider certain issues in relation to Career and particularly applying for jobs.  For example:

• If you have little in the way of ‘Careers ideas’, you do not have 3 years to resolve this. You need to think about this as soon as possible.
• Some large graduate programme employers have closing dates as early as October/November and December.
• Some of these employers may not ask for a Masters and will give more emphasis to a good undergraduate degree and other competencies or attributes. If you are interested in these employers, speak to a Careers Adviser regarding how to ‘maximise your postgraduate study' in your application.
• Some of these graduate programmes begin the following August or September. You may still be studying at that time, so take care to check on these details and enquire as to how this affects you.
• A Masters Degree may not guarantee a job but there is value outside the ‘Masters title’ itself e.g. ‘ability to think at a higher level’. Be sure to consider these points in any application you make.
• Remember also that for any International Student starting a Masters during or after May 2006 they are eligible to apply for the PMI 2 initiative enabling Postgraduates to work in the UK for up to 12 months on completion of their degree.  For more details on this please refer to the UKCISA website.

You should enquire at the Careers service reeption desk for a free copy of 'Your Masters, what next?' as it has very useful section such as 'how to use the skills and knowledge gained from your Master's in job applications.  This booklet is produced for us in limited supply, but the same information is available from the Prospects website.