We recently caught up with Dheeraj about how he secured a data analyst role with Atkins, his top tips for the application process and how Bright Network helped him secure the role.
What stood out to you about Atkins?
I really wanted to do data analysis so the role itself stood out to me. Atkins also does a lot for their employees including many benefits. It seems like they really care for their employees and don’t make false claims about how good it is to work for them. You can read some great things about them online on websites like Glassdoor with employees saying great things about them. They also offer a professional ACC qualification and the opportunity to do this really attracted me to the role and company.
How did you make your application stand out?
I worked on it a lot! Having written lots of applications before really helped me fine-tune my application and make it great. I’d written over 80 applications while looking for a job, so I had a good feel for what’s attractive to employers, what doesn’t do so well, and what I should talk about. One thing that helped me was having some previous experience which I could highlight and talk about in the applications.
What part of the application process did you find the most challenging?
The assessment centre. Doing it virtually was one of the biggest drawbacks. Because of this, I wasn’t able to interact to my full potential with the other candidates. There are so many technical issues that can arise and it throws people off sometimes. This was the biggest obstacle in the application process.
How did Bright Network help you secure this role?
Bright Network has so many resources online. Not only having the job board so you can find the roles you’re interested in and cater to your requirements. The CV resources, commercial awareness and Academy courses all helped me tailor my CV and make my application great.
If you want to build your skills at writting applications, check out our Application Processes Academy course.
Did you get any feedback in the past that helped you with your application?
I found that I didn’t receive much feedback when I was rejected, particularly in the early stages. I only received feedback when I got to the later stages of the applications, so don’t feel disheartened if you don’t get any feedback early on. It was hard to keep myself motivated. A couple of times I would take a week off and not make any applications to improve my mental health and wellbeing. It’s so important to make sure you’re prioritising this too.
What top three tips would you give Bright Network members looking to follow in your footsteps?
- Keep applying. No matter how many rejections you get, you’ll secure a role at some point. It will come around for you.
- Keep motivated and be patient. Some applications take a long time and, in some cases, even if they’ve taken 3 months to apply, they might not have rejected you. Patience is really undervalued.
- Do something outside of just applying to roles. Keep up with your hobbies, even if it’s just 15 minutes or half an hour, it does wonders.
Let us know where you've secured your work experience, internship or graduate role. We want to celebrate your success with a gift from us and exclusive invitations to evening networking drinks throughout the year.
