How to make yourself job ready

How to make yourself job ready

It can be a shock to start work after full-time education. But as thousands of students leave school, college and university, now’s the time to get into practice

By Tim Gibson

As the summer beckons, students up and down the country are preparing for the end of their time in education. Undergraduates will be nervously eyeing degree results. College students will be preparing for A-Levels or vocational assessments. Younger pupils will be wrestling with GCSEs.

The "nine-to-five" can come as something of a surprise if you’ve grown accustomed to the flexibility and informality of student life.  

For many, this period spells the end of their time in education. Once the final exam is sat or the last piece of coursework submitted, they’ll head out to the big wide world, hoping to find a job that makes the best use of their talents.

We’ve written elsewhere about the best way to spend your time while looking for a job and about finding the right opportunity for you.

But how do you get yourself ready for the lifestyle change involved in moving from full-time education to a working environment?

It can be a major shock to start work after years in education. Although it’s by no means a walk in the park to be at university, college or school, you tend to have more flexibility about your time, and fewer expectations about things like what you wear, when you take breaks, and even when and where you work.

The "nine-to-five" can come as something of a surprise if you’ve grown accustomed to the flexibility and informality of student life.

How to make yourself job readyThe trick is to start building routines into your life even before you pick up your first job. Set an alarm and make sure you’re up and ready to leave the house by 8.30am. Dress smartly, rather than slopping around in joggers and a hoodie. Eat a proper breakfast and do something proactive. You may spend a couple of hours visiting recruitment consultants to register your details. Perhaps you’ll do some internet job hunting in a cafe. Or simply spend the time reading the news and engaging with the world. That’ll ensure you have something interesting to say when you’re interviewed.

Another tip is to identify gaps in your CV and use the time before you start work to fill them. The most successful candidates are those who ask how they can sharpen their skill set while job hunting. They show a hunger for work and a desire to improve their profile.

Set yourself some projects that are relevant to the sort of job you hope to secure.  

Set yourself some projects that are relevant to the sort of job you hope to secure. For example, a candidate who wanted to work in a manual role. While he was looking for the right opportunity, he decided to make wooden garden furniture that he could sell to friends, deliberately working a seven-hour day in his dad’s workshop

The benefits were twofold: he had a bit of money coming in while he looked for work. But more importantly, it got him into the habit of working throughout the day. When he started his first job a month or so later, he was accustomed to early rises and long days. It all felt perfectly natural to him.

A further benefit of being proactive is that it sends a positive message to employers. A common complaint among employers is that younger people don’t have a good work ethic. If you can go into an application process with evidence of your motivation, diligence, and general get-up-and-go, you’ll immediately stand out from the crowd.

So there you have it. You may feel as if completing your studies is a liberation. But if you want to find the job of your dreams, it’s when the hard work really begins.

 

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Published: 28 May 2025
© Copyright Just Recruitment Group Ltd 2025

Jobs currently available

Customer Services Executive
Sector: Customer Service
Salary: Discussed on application
Location: Sudbury, Suffolk
Role: Full Time
Contract: Permanent
Job ref: TB14
About the role

Just Recruitment is recruiting for a Customer Services Executive for a manufacturer based in Sudbury, Suffolk.

As a Customer Services Executive, you will play a key role within the sales and marketing team — delivering exceptional service to both new and existing customers while managing ongoing accounts.

You will answer customer questions, solve problems, and provide information about the company’s products and services — all while building strong relationships and ensuring long-term customer satisfaction.

Key responsibilities include:

  • Assess incoming enquiries from direct communication or the sales team
  • Create quotations and tender documentation
  • Follow up on quotations at appropriate points in the process
  • Manage the CRM system
  • Manage the lead generation tools
  • Processing incoming sales orders
  • Liaise with the order fulfilment team for the smooth supply of products to customers
  • Manage any after-sales requirements
  • Help project manage key projects and clients

Role requirements include:

  • Must possess excellent communication skills, both oral and written
  • Previous experience in a similar role is preferable
  • Experience within the engineering/manufacturing sector is preferred
  • Good knowledge of and proficiency in Microsoft Office and basic database skills
  • Must be able to understand business calculations and be competent to correspond via email in a professional manner
  • Must be an excellent face-to-face communicator
  • Telephone communication skills are of a high standard
  • One of the keys to success is to develop professional relationships with decision makers, and so the ability to ‘connect’ with people and build networks should come naturally
  • You will be based at the Sudbury office, with occasional requirements for site and customer visits

Skills and qualifications to include:

  • A highly capable person with strong planning and scheduling skills
  • Self–driven, results-oriented, and with a positive outlook and a clear focus on high-quality standards
  • An independent person with good organisation and planning skills, who is capable of objectively assessing and improving their own and the department’s performance
  • Must be reliable, tolerant, and be able to work under pressure. The ability to be professional at all times and represent the company in a professional manner is a prerequisite
  • Tenacity and the ability to see things through to the end goal are desired traits
  • Must be able to work alone as well as work within a team
  • When required, able to work extra hours to accommodate the business needs, which may include occasional travel


Just Recruitment acts as an employment agency for permanent roles.
We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applications from all suitable candidates.

 

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Technical Sales / Applications Engineer
Sector: Engineering and Manufacturing
Salary: £26,000 - £34,000 per annum
Location: Tiverton, Devon
Role: Full Time
Contract: Permanent
Job ref: TB13
About the role

Just Recruitment is seeking a Technical Sales / Applications Engineer for a leading client in Tiverton, Devon — an excellent opportunity for a graduate, higher apprentice, or experienced engineer to develop their career within a technical engineering environment.

Reporting to the Technical Sales Manager, this role will focus on the promotion and sales of company products to prospective, new and existing customers.

Scope:

  • Providing a Technical Sales Service to Customers
  • Dealing first-hand with customer enquiries, by telephone and digital meetings where required
  • Solving Design Problems and providing new design solutions
  • Checking and validating applications, preparing costings and quotations
  • Preparation of drawings
  • Assisting the manufacturing team with design builds

Required qualifications/experience include:

  • Ideally qualified to HNC minimum in mechanical engineering
  • Consideration given to applicants with a Mechanical Design background and good CAD skills
  • Knowledge of Machine and Production processes is advantageous
  • Working knowledge of 3D design tools such as SolidWorks or AutoCAD

 

Just Recruitment acts as an employment agency for permanent roles.
We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applications from all suitable candidates.

 

Read more
Procurement Manager
Sector: Purchasing and Merchandising
Salary: Discussed on application
Location: Sudbury, Suffolk
Role: Full Time
Contract: Permanent
Job ref: TB11
About the role

Just Recruitment is working with a growing manufacturing business based on the outskirts of Sudbury, in the search for a talented Procurement Manager to join their expanding team.

Required skills and qualifications:

  • CIPS Qualified - min level 5.
  • Substantial experience in a procurement leadership role within the food, ingredients, manufacturing, or FMCG sectors.
  • Experience in leading and developing high-performance teams.
  • Strong Negotiation and Supplier Management skills.

The key purpose of this role is to lead the delivery of greater strategic and operational value of the procurement function and help to deliver business-critical goals.

This is a hands-on, strategic, and operational role that requires a confident leader with deep procurement expertise and the ability to inspire and develop a team.

You will work closely with the Supply Chain Manager to shape and implement a fit-for-purpose procurement strategy, ensuring alignment with business goals across quality, cost, sustainability, and risk management. This role is pivotal in maintaining robust and value-driven supplier relationships while enabling continuous improvement in all procurement activities.

You will also oversee raw material planning and call-offs, ensuring that the business maintains the right balance between availability and inventory control — essential for production continuity and working capital efficiency.

This role includes direct line management of a Procurement Specialist, supporting their development and day-to-day activity management.

Key duties include:

  • Develop and implement a comprehensive procurement strategy aligned with business objectives, operational needs, and sustainability goals.
  • Identify, evaluate, and manage suppliers across raw materials, packaging, and indirect categories to ensure quality, continuity and cost-effectiveness.
  • Collaborate with the Supply Chain Manager and other departments to align procurement with broader supply chain goals and business plans.
  • Contribute to the company’s sustainability, traceability and ethical sourcing commitments through strategic supplier partnerships.
  • Oversee the procurement of raw materials, packaging, indirect goods and services, and CAPEX items, ensuring optimal quality, cost and delivery performance.
  • Manage tendering processes, contract negotiation and supplier onboarding activities.
  • Ensure the ERP system is updated and used effectively for procurement activities and reporting.
  • Monitor and report on procurement KPIs, savings and supplier performance metrics.
  • Build and maintain strong relationships with key suppliers and service providers, driving continuous improvement and innovation.
  • Lead supplier performance reviews, audits and corrective action processes.
  • Identify and assess risks within the supply base and implement mitigation strategies to ensure business continuity.
  • Lead, mentor and develop the procurement team to achieve high levels of engagement, performance and professional growth.
  • Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration and continuous learning within the team.
  • Support the wider Supply Chain team by contributing to cross-functional initiatives and projects.
  • Ensure adherence to company procurement policies, financial controls and ethical standards.
  • Support internal and external audits with relevant documentation and compliance reporting.
  • Drive process improvement initiatives and embed best practices across the procurement function.

Build and nurture key working relationships with Production, Quality Assurance, Finance, Warehousing, Sales and Commercial Teams, Suppliers, Logistics Providers and Regulatory Bodies.

This is an excellent opportunity to drive change within a business — offering a great working environment.

Working hours for this role are Monday to Friday, 8am - 5pm, although some flexibility is required.

Please note that due to the location of the business, you must have access to your own transport.

Just Recruitment acts as an employment agency for permanent roles.
We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applications from all suitable candidates.

 

Read more
Purchasing Supervisor
Sector: Purchasing and Merchandising
Location: Ipswich
Role: Full Time
Contract: Permanent
Job ref: JC24
About the role

Just Recruitment is partnering with a growing, industry-leading organisation in Ipswich to recruit a Purchasing Supervisor.

Working collaboratively within a fast-paced, team-oriented purchasing function, you will take responsibility for taking the highly successful Purchasing Team to the next level of procurement. Reporting to the Purchasing Manager, the emphasis of the role is to work with existing team members to build key skills and to improve current processes. It will involve resolving daily issues, building and maintaining supplier relationships and helping to build the future purchasing team.

Duties include:

  • Primary responsibility for the daily management of specific team members.
  • Provide structured training and guidance to proactively encourage individual and team development, ensuring team succession planning.
  • Empower the team to take ownership of their roles/responsibilities.
  • Responsible for managing up and organising updates/meetings with the Team Manager.
  • Actively work with other supervisors and management to ensure a consistent approach within the department.
  • Resolution of daily issues—including data collation of issues.
  • Manage supplier relationships and performance.
  • Lead on supplier lead time reviews and relevant internal updates.
  • Present data on monthly spend and KPIs, and non-conformance tracking.
  • Lead on-demand planning, working with the external Sales Team and suppliers to provide forecasting.
  • Participate in pricing reviews.
  • Deliver guidance and training daily to the team.
  • Proactively work on team engagement through coaching, mentoring and regular 1-2-1s.

Key skills/qualifications required include:

  • CIPS level 4 achieved or prepared to undertake.
  • Leadership skills.
  • Ability to develop and maintain commercial awareness, internally and industry-wide.
  • A proactive approach with a “can-do” attitude and the ability to motivate others.
  • Analytical skills with strong problem-solving ability.
  • Proven negotiation skills.
  • Good understanding of supply chain procedures.
  • Proven advanced level of Computer literacy - Microsoft Excel/Word/Access.
  • Sound Administrative experience. Knowledge of ERP.

Hybrid working will be available after successful completion of the probationary period (min. of 3 days in the office, up to 2 days at home).

 

Just Recruitment acts as an employment agency for permanent roles.
We are an equal opportunity employer and welcome applications from all suitable candidates.

 

Read more