The Civil Service helps the Government to develop and deliver its policies as effectively as possible. It is one of the largest employers in the UK and is a popular destination for many social sciences graduates. There are a wide range of sectors in the Civil Service offering a variety of roles in different professions.
Role:
The tasks performed by a senior Civil Servant will differ by department. However, typical activities may include:
- Formulating policies and overseeing their implementation
- Interpreting complex written information and statistical data
- Analysing the application of written information and data to specific policies and procedures
- Managing resources
- Keeping up to date with current affairs, including political issues and the economy
- Presenting these reports to other people including Ministers.
Skills Required:
The skills required to become a successful Civil Servant include:
- Organisational skills
- The ability to manage both resources and a tight budget
- Communication skills
- The ability to work both as part of a team and on an individual basis
- Analytical skills
- Report writing
Things to Consider:
Fast stream- The Fast Stream is a learning and development programme for graduates with the potential to become future leaders of the Civil Service. It is consistently ranked among the top ten of The Times "Top 100 Graduate Employers". This graduate training scheme gives employees a chance to work in different departments and learn about the Civil Service. The Graduate Fast Stream is open to graduates with a minimum 2:2 in any discipline. Fast Streamers usually work in more than one government department and in more than one part of the UK.
The gender ratio in the Civil Service is fairly equal and many women hold senior positions
Useful Links:
The University cannot be held responsible for external content
The Fast Stream is fiercely competitive so any work experience you can get before applying will help you greatly. It will be useful to browse the University's Placement help pages, including the Excel Placement content, available here.
Videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE6TfUCbnX4- YouTube video on the fast-stream
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQ2gnG9JsDM GuardianJobs video on fast-stream
Our Graduates:
Corin- a Politics and Economics graduate from 2012
Rupert- a Politics and International Relations graduate from 2013
Victoria Woodcock
Course: BSc Sociology and Social Policy 2005-2008; MSc in Social Statistics 2009-2010
Current position: Private Secretary to Cabinet Minister, Central Government
A video of Victoria explaining what her role entails and how her experiences at Southampton helped her is available through this link.
Demography and statistics careers
Career choices for Demography and Social Statistics graduates
Economics careers
Sociology careers
Career choices for Sociology, Social Policy, Criminology and Anthropology graduates
What's related
From working in the third sector to playing regular football for the Social Sciences team, the skills I have developed at Southampton will prove invaluable in any future job.