Hi everyone ,
im looking for advice on how i may get my first health and safety position, i have been applying for many positions but have yet to have any success, i have my nebosh gen cert and will complete my NVQ diploma in the next month, unfortunately there is no chance of a H&S position with my present company and no real prospects for the future, i have paid for all my training myself and have used all last years holidays or many hours of unpaid overtime to achieve these qualifications. I have so far only had one interview and feel it is lack of experience that is holding things back, my main job responsibilities at present are quality assurance, could anyone offer some advice on how i can secure a health and safety position and start my journey as a health and safety practioner. I will continue to seek positions while adding to my training but i would like t know how others went about securing their first H&S job.

Hi
Getting your first full time position in a health and safety role without previous experience can be difficult. From your post you state that the role you are in at the moment is in quality assurance. You may wish to consider a role that may include health , safety and quality; there are a few of these out there.
Don't be despondent at not getting a H&S job straight away you may have to apply for lots of H&S positions before you even get an interview then go to lots of interviews before being even offered a position.
One big thing in your favor is that you seem committed to getting a H&S job and are willing to go that extra mile to get one.
My advise is don't give up, keep applying for as many H&S roles that you can; and if you go for an interview and don't get the job, learn from the experience and do better the next time.
Before I got my present role as a H&S manager I must have applied for at least 40 roles got about 10 interviews and finally was offered a position.
If you need experience consider a voluntary unpaid part time position. Get yourself to some local branch meetings of IOSH and do a bit of networking.
I know my local branch as a couple of committee members, myself included, who help out in this regard.
So in conclusion, don't give up, plan ahead and keep sending those job applications in. Good luck, and keep us informed of your progress.

Steve W1

Throw your net as far and wide as U can using both agencies and other ways to establish your name e.g. attend business fairs, the local round table, HR group meetings etc. and have personal cards printed and sensibly distribute them as often as possible and use every meeting with somebody U know/do not know to press your good qualities and job wants

Treat getting a H&S job as a full time occupation [I repeat;- treat getting a H&S job as a full time occupation] whilst earning money elsewhere if u can especially in these very very hard times

best of luck

Just an update, so far i have applied for over 10 positions, i have so far had one interview and got to the second interview stage and then i got a phone call to tell me i am down to the final 2 and still in with a chance however they are going to re-advertise the position as they never got as many applicants as they would have liked, bit of a slap in the face i think as its plain im am not their first pick , they said they would contact me in the next few weeks but 5 weeks have passed and i have heard nothing so it looks like i wont be offered the job. Im disappointed they could not at least have called to let me know one way or the other, maybe they were not the company for me, the search goes on.

Peter

Hi I am about to go down the same route of job hunting for my first dedicated H&S post.

I hold an NVQ 5, OHSAS 18001 (internal) and IEMA Foundations Environment Cert, As well as about to complete an MSc in Risk Crisis & Disaster Management. I am also booked on a NEBOSH NGC, as believe having a NEBOSH tick in the box will enhance my employability within H&S (any guidance on this welcome). I am also open to other courses so any pointers welcome.

For the last 6 years I have worked for a major Oil and Gas company as their security lead, which and a fair amount of H&S oversight. Working hard on trying to reflect this on my CV so prospective employers can see I have gained substantial experience.

Many of the comments above have provided some useful tips such as networking with the local IOSH branch (teesside for me) which is something I will do.

Mark

The best advisor on this matter in the forums is Jodie..but good luck to your new role and welcome

regards

aww thanks Pradeesh!

One bit from me- don't be scared to say you don't know- show you are happy to learn- they want honesty as well as the wow factor.

Good luck!

Try and not feel down about it, I didn't get my first health and safety position until over a year after I completed my NGC- its dependent on the market at the time. And you got interviewed- that's a major thing. I applied for so many jobs I lost count and had 2 interviews- 1 was my first role, the other turned me down then called up a week later to offer me the role.

Perhaps look at positions that are not solely health and safety to begin with. My first role was health and safety administrator/operations assistant, which gave me great experience in understanding health and safety practically in the flesh. Also, wherever there is an oppurtunity to network- do. Get yourself on LinkedIn if you are not already on there and start speaking on the forums- there's always someone who knows someone looking for someone.

Also, don't be scared to apply for multiple roles in a single organisation. I was interviewed by a well known retailer in March, I got down to the last 2 but didn't get it because I didn't have recent retail experience- which I understood and accepted. I was told though there was a position going in the Buildings Dept which I might like as I have the Fire Cert. I've got a couple of weeks left on my probation here and I absolutely love it.

All I can say is don't give up and keep going- perhaps have a look at your CV and covering letter, make sure it is tailored to the Health and Safety profession, if you can't use safety experience, think what experience you do have and how this would fit into a safety role. If you are self funding courses, sing it from the rooftops.

If there is anything I can do to help, please PM me

Jodie

Without wishing anyone else ill will, the person that beat you to that particular job will obviously have a probation period. So a letter reiterating what a wonderful company they are and how it is what you always wished for and if something similar come along or if things don't work out with their current choice, keep your info on their file etc etc etc could not hurt.

Or even if they would be willing to pass your details to other prospective employees you would be happy.

Chris

oops should say "employers" in the last line of my post.

You want to think yourself lucky you got a response telling you, you didn't get through. I got down to the last two once and just heard nothing from the company at all. Time is money I guess.

Good luck with your quest

Chris

I recently applied for a post with SSI. I am already a Health and safety manager in my current role but feel like I need to move on. So not only do I have the qualifications but also the experience to back it up. Anyway first interview in 12 years and was pretty relaxed. I did not get the job but asked for feedback which was really great, the reason I didn't get the post was that I didn't talk about the things that are bread and butter to me. I knew where I went wrong and taken it all in my stride. I will keep applying and know eventually something will come my way.

CV is so important, have recently interview people for work at my place it gave a great insight to how a CV should be approached, some where poor and give the impression that the person couldn't be bothered, others droned on and on. The best CV's were sharpe and to the point.

On a side note how on earth could you provide enough evidence to pass the NVQ without doing the role in almost a management position? Being a health and safety advisor in my opinion would not have brought around enough in depth evidence/ plus the on site observation, good luck anyway

I was a self employed Joiner from leaving school in 2000, I did my NEBOSH General in 2009 and NEBOSH Construction the following year. I too applied for 100's of jobs and never got a reply. H&S can be a bit of a Catch 22, cant get a job in H&S unless you are in H&S! I then paid for a professional CV to be completed and sent it off to a Recruitment agency (I can give his email address out if you PM me). I then attended my 1st Interview in 2014 and got the job at a Construction firm who turn over £100m a year! Been here a year now and never looked back (although wearing a shirt and trousers everday is an issue!) My now current boss said my work background was what he was looking for, and convinced him to choose me. Luckily I had been working on sites across Europe and in many differnet types of Joinery works.

So to sum it up... Get pro CV written (worth the cost), register with a good agency, get as much experience as you can (even apply to do some work experience) and most importantly keep trying!

Hi Chaps,

Read the post and found it quite helpful just a quick one if I am looking to have my cv done professionally is there any recommendations as there seems to be a lot out there so am a little cautious

Jamie

Personally I wouldn't let a 3rd party write my CV, you will know your own strengths and weaknesses.

I'd suggest having a good Linked-in profile is worth as much, if not more than a good CV.

I've been very critical of the quality of CVs that have come across my desk over the years, I was proud of my CV, I'd put a lot of effort into it so it must be good, right...?

Wrong, when I was speaking with a recruiter recently they had a look at it and made some changes, it turns out I'm not current, things change and move along and my CV didn't evolve.

The big thing for me is to involve trusted people (friends and family) in checking CVs, practicing for interviews and reading profiles. I'd suggest doing this even if it feels really awkward.

Hi

Going way back to post #1 you say you are in QA?

Why not purse QA as a career? Sorry for the bad language on a H&S forum.

If you are already experienced in this area you have more chance of getting a position with an employer you want to work for with more prospects.

Salaries and prospects are similar, the roles have some overlap and in these days of HSQES/ SHEQS or whatever there aren't many QA people with significant H&S experience compared to H&S people with QA experience. (in my experience Q tends to be the bolt-on given to H&S people not vice-versa).