{"id":5582,"date":"2025-07-25T08:03:58","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T07:03:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/?p=5582"},"modified":"2025-08-11T12:53:49","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T11:53:49","slug":"how-can-you-plan-for-your-dream-job-if-it-doesnt-exist-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/?p=5582","title":{"rendered":"Work towards your dream job, even if it doesn\u2019t exist yet"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Thinking about what to do after graduating? Maybe you\u2019re wondering what the job market will be like in 5 years? How will the growth of artificial intelligence affect you? Your dream job might not even exist yet so how can you plan for it and what skills will you need? Here\u2019s some tips from OU Careers Consultant Leigh Fowkes for building your path to the future.<\/p>\n

Turn serendipity into opportunity<\/h3>\n

Leigh says:<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople who explore their career with an open mind are usually better at opening doors.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u2018Planned happenstance\u2019 theory says sometimes unexpected opportunities can lead to great careers. Have a plan, but ensure it’s flexible. Be open to new ideas so that you\u2019re ready to capture that life-changing opportunity. Open more doors by networking<\/a>, volunteering<\/a> or connecting with like-minded people – like through our LinkedIn group <\/a> \u2013 you might meet someone whose experience and contacts can help you get to where you want to be.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Showcase your essential skills<\/h3>\n

So-called \u2018essential skills\u2019 are often underrated by graduates, but they are highly valued by employers. These include creativity, influencing, problem-solving and time management. You may have these already from work and life experience or be gaining them from OU study. Find out what skills you already have using the skills audit activity from page 32 of Your Career Planning Guide<\/a> and develop your skillset further with these useful tips<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/h3>\n

Build your resilience<\/h3>\n

Resilience is also invaluable in a changing workplace. Build resilience strategies to help you bounce back from career setbacks and develop a positive growth mindset by watching Developing your career resilience<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Think outside the box<\/h3>\n

Don\u2019t restrict yourself to one sector. The NHS needs software developers, the Armed Forces have photographers and musicians, and all businesses have HR. Get a broader view of various sectors: browse the job market<\/a> and research and follow employers<\/a> you\u2019re interested in.<\/p>\n

Go digital<\/h3>\n

The transition from physical to digital in many job sectors is requiring more specific digital skills. As an OU student you\u2019re already building these skills through online learning, so this puts you in a great position to develop them further. Also, be aware of your digital footprint <\/a>and make it work to your advantage.<\/p>\n

Whatever the future holds, you\u2019re not alone. Careers and Employability Services <\/a>are here to support you while you study and for 3 years after you graduate.<\/p>\n

\n

\"OULeigh Fowkes is an OU Careers and Employability Consultant specialising in supporting WELS students. Leigh helps students navigate their futures, figure out their goals and build their confidence and skills to achieve them through one-to-one careers consultations and by designing career learning events and resources for the OU. Explore the rest of Careers Stories page for more articles from the Careers and Employability Services team.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thinking about what to do after graduating? Maybe you\u2019re wondering what the job market will be like in 5 years? How will the growth of artificial intelligence affect you? Your dream job might not even exist yet so how can you plan for it and what skills will you need? Here\u2019s some tips from OU […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,56,61,65],"tags":[86,45,100,30],"class_list":["post-5582","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-career-planning","category-graduate","category-jobs","category-networking","tag-career-planning","tag-networking","tag-skills","tag-volunteering"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5582","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5582"}],"version-history":[{"count":38,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5582\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8455,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5582\/revisions\/8455"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5582"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5582"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/careers\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5582"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}