1. NEWSLETTER
Career Options in the Sports
Industry
December 2011
HMRC Presentation
Career Options in the Sports Industry
EGGS In October the Guardian hosted a Live Q&A session on ‘Career Options in the
Sports Industry’. The panel was comprised of professionals in the sector whose
roles vary from Marketing Manager to the Head of Education and Training at
Competitions and more
IMSPA, from Managing Director of a Sports Company to the Head of HR for
Everton Football Club. We’ve extracted some tips from the session.
Graduate Schemes
Your sport credentials: ‘Go easy on overplaying 'sport credentials'.
People love to list their sporting CV - Captain of x, Winner of County Y
Popular Resources Champs etc. and think that this will guarantee them an interview in a
sports related field. They make the same mistake when they secure an
interview, talking directly about their participation in sport as though it
gives them a competitive edge (it doesn't). The skill set required for the
role is far more important - demonstrating leadership, personal skills,
creativity etc. Use your sport to demonstrate these qualities and you will
achieve much more’. (Michelle Leavesley, Citydesksport)
Networking: Networking is crucial – i.e. who you know! All students
should take networking seriously and get involved in their local Regions
Have you attended our events/ groups to grow their network of contacts. The Institute for the
EGGS introductory Management of Sport & Physical Activity should be the first port of call if
workshops? You can find you want to be proactive and set a brand new group. Social media is
out more about the great for networking too but…..
scheme:
www.glos.ac.uk/eggs Social Media: The experts suggested that ‘social media is a great tool for
developing networks and identifying key individuals within the sector. It
must be handled professionally if it is used as a virtual face to promote
yourself. ‘ (Melissa Barlow, The Institute for Management of Sport and
Physical Activity (IMSPA))
Sports Industry in the Recession: ‘The sports industry is proving quite
resilient to recession. People haven’t stopped going to sports events,
and with the Olympics there is a real momentum and buzz. Now might
be a really good time to get a job with a company looking for more
manpower around the Olympics, even if it is just a short term contract.
There will be a contraction after the Games I think, but hopefully there
will be some legacy. We then have the Rugby World Cup 2015 to look
forward to in the UK, and we're bidding for the 2017 World Athletics

2. Championships. I think there are jobs out there to be had, although it's
always been competitive and you may have to be prepared start as an
Popular resources
intern’ (Lisa Norman from Benchmark Sports International)
 Destinations® - More about your qualifications: ‘Qualifications are important in that they
show potential employers that candidates have attained a minimum
contains all the
standard of attainment. For me they set a baseline. Sport specific degrees
resources you need to are helpful in that they are specifically geared towards the sector. After
plan your career, this however, it is really about the relevant experience that people have,
including videos, paid or voluntary. If people have attained a number of practical industry
interactive tools, based skills, then this is what sets applications apart. Any contacts that
downloads and answers you can make whilst studying can prove invaluable. As an employer, I am
really interested in wider skills, once I know qualifications are there to
to frequently asked
support this’. (Steve Amos, Head of National Network at England Squash
careers questions. & Racketball)
Applying for roles in the sports sector:
 Useful Downloads –
here you can download * Competition is fierce so a really strong CV on no more than 2
pages is key
our useful guides on
* Relevant work experience is key so whilst working in a bar may
job hunting and bring in useful money it won't help you find a job
applications, vacancies * You're better to focus on a few job applications in areas which
websites by sector and you are really interested in and can demonstrate interest and
watch videos experience in, rather than send hundreds of applications for jobs
you're not really interested in - it shows!
* Don't send the same letter/ CV to various employers and forget
to change the name of the company or type of work you're
 Gradsouthwest – for looking for
the latest jobs and * Ensure that each letter and CV is tailored to reflect the job
opportunities, notified you're after
to us. * Tell us what you can contribute to us and not what we can do
for you
* Finally, do make sure everything's spelled correctly, the
grammar is correct and you've addressed it to the right person
(Catherine Eastham, Four )
 Prospects - the
official graduate careers
website packed with `
information about jobs,
sectors, postgraduate
study and more

3. Employer Presentation by HMRC Proves Popular
26 interested students recently attended a presentation
Hunting for the UK’s most given by representatives from HM Revenues and Customs.
talented undergraduates The session, organised by the Careers & Employability
Win big prizes from big recruiters! team, was all about the graduate scheme offered by this
There are 12 Awards up for grabs to employer - the Tax Professional Development Programme.
identify the top undergraduates in Open to graduates from any subject, it is a four year programme
IT and Computer Science, structured to identify and develop potential so that trainees are ready to
Management, Law, Arts and take up a senior tax position once qualified.
Humanities, Business and Finance,
Engineering, Social Sciences, Those who attended the presentation heard about the broad range of
Construction, Engineering and career paths this work can lead to and learned from current trainees on
Design, Low Carbon, Accountancy the programme about the challenges and rewards this opportunity brings
and Economics plus two special with it. The lively session was based around small groups, giving
awards: the ‘Future Business attendees plenty of chances to put their own questions about all sorts of
Leader’ Award open to students aspects, including the recruitment process for the scheme and the details
from any discipline and the ‘First of training and exam schedules during the course of the programme.
Year’ Award open to
undergraduates from any course Look out for future employer presentations by staying in touch with us on
who have just started their second our website or on Facebook.
year.
The rewards are great: winners’
prizes include laptops, internships EGGS
and all-expenses paid trips to New The Employable Gloucestershire Graduate Scheme – familiarly known as
York, South America, Florida, South EGGS is open to all students of the University and is designed to give
Africa and continental Europe and formal recognition to all your many and varied achievements outside
the final ten students in each Award your academic programme. Such achievements are valued by graduate
will be invited to the employers because they show that you are someone who is keen to
Undergraduate of the Year Awards explore your potential, develop your skills, take on responsibility,
in Canary Wharf London on 13th contribute to your community and reach your personal goals.
April, 2012 where the winners will Participation in the EGG scheme will enable you gather evidence of your
be announced to national press achievements and reflect upon the skills you have gained through them –
coverage by The Rt. Hon Michael then have your achievements verified by the University.
Portillo.
If you make the final 10, not only You will then be able to include information about your EGG certificate in
will you be very close to a fantastic your CV and in application forms for postgraduate study or employment
prize, you will have proved yourself and talk persuasively about what you have done in interviews. If the
to be amongst the best and most activity you have been involved in has been University-based, you will
employable students in the country. also be able to include your EGG in your Higher Education Achievement
Enter at Report – your formal record of all that you have achieved through your
http://undergraduateoftheyear.com university career.
Closing date for entries: 31 January
2012 The EGG scheme is designed to be very flexible, enabling you to decide
which EGG best matches with your activities and achievements. You can

4. start working towards an EGG whenever you like and you can work
towards more than one if you are keen! Detailed information about how
the scheme works is included on our Moodle site, but we also
Amazon Studios: Open recommend that you attend a workshop to talk to a member of the
Writing Assignment Careers and Employability team, to ask questions, to find out what other
students are doing and to plan your EGG strategy!
Amazon Studios is offering writers
a chance to pitch their ideas and Graduate Schemes
get hired to create a full-length Find some coming deadlines to graduate schemes commencing in 2012:
movie script. This open writing
assignment — which will pay up British Council English Language Assistants – 1 December 2011
to $75,000 — is based on a Microsoft IT Graduate Programme - 2 December 2011
project called Original Soldiers, a Four Communications Graduate Recruitment offering opportunities in PR,
short created by the Amazon
Public Affairs, Marketing and Media – deadline 31 January 2012
Studios team.
The competition is open to
Other opportunities
writers from all over the world.
Writers may submit pitches of Want to become a BLOGGER?
about 1,500 words detailing the IMSPA are looking for students and young professionals in the Sports
script they’d like to write based sector to become bloggers for them. Send them links to show the work
on the premise for Original you've done and how you can promote the needs of the new entrants
Soldiers — the story of an old- into the workplace - http://twitter.com/#!/imspa_uk
school strike force that has to
save the day when the humans’
droid army is disabled.
Global Premier Soccer Recruiting for
Pitch submissions are due by 14
2012
December 2011. For more details
about the competition, please Global Premier Soccer (GPS) is the elite
visit their website. organisation for dedicated players in America.
They are currently looking to recruit graduates
Good luck! and placement students for 2012. They are
offering various positions in Coaching and Sports
Management and this is supported by a generous
package that includes: competitive guaranteed
salary, money towards your air travel,
accommodation during your employment, staff development and the
opportunity to take US licence courses. If you are interested in this,
please contact the Staff Recruitment Coordinator Amy Walsh ASAP at
awalsh@mpsbr.com to set an interview or apply online at:
www.mpsbr.com/staff/join/490003.html.