Even though many of our graduates will have progressed in their careers since completing a case study, they are still of interest to students who wish to gain an understanding of the world of work.

Amending and reviewing legislation, providing research and advice on my briefs (Transport, Defence, Equalities, Health and BIS departments), acting as liaison between Commons Shadow Teams and Lords Opposition, organising meetings.

I would start my day by reading new briefings and recent press releases to keep up to date with my departmental news.

If I am managing a Bill currently in the Lords I would be preparing for the next upcoming Bill debate (Committee and Report stages) by amending the Bill, preparing responses to other Lords' amendments, speech writing and meeting with stakeholders and lobbyists to hear their viewpoints of the Bill.

Due to this my typical day usually consists of 2-3 meetings either on the Bill I am working on or with one of the departments I cover.

Look at the Lords parliamentary business for the day and over the next week to see if I need to research any upcoming questions and debates for Shadow Lords Ministers and other front-benchers.

I enjoy the fast paced nature of the job, you have to continuously react to events and news so nothing gets boring.

Definitely the work load, it can be overwhelming at times so the major challenge is prioritising and time managing and at the same time ensuring you do not make any mistakes with the sensitive material I handle on a day to day basis.

I am passionate about foreign affairs and research, working at Parliament is one of the avenues I can take to further my career in this.

Writing and research skills
Telephone etiquette, handling calls from a wide variety of people including media, stakeholders, MPs and peers.
When calculating data I often use Excel
Time management
Management of interns
Event and meeting organisation

I had a informal mentor when I started but it was more of a hands on, learn as you work process no formal training as such.

After graduating I immediately started an internship at the Bill Clinton Foundation in New York, I was a foreign policy intern to President Clinton's foreign policy advisor for 4 months

I travelled back to my second home Sri Lanka where I worked for a buying office as a merchandiser for 8 months

I moved to London in October 2011, initially unemployed but worked as a Christmas temp at Boots in Oxford Street

I started working part time at Boots and part time at Mass1, a political campaigns company which involved campaigning work (street teams, phone banking)

I left these two jobs and started working at Yelp as an Account Executive selling Yelp's online packages to local businesses. Left after 8 months into the job for an internship with the office I currently work for. After 4 months I was promoted to Research Assistant and then after another few months to my current position as Political Advisor

I see myself eventually working for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office either as an advisor, researcher or in the diplomatic stream.

Whilst studying get as much work experience as possible. Not only does it look good on your CV but it helps you find out which career you would be interested in following and you can make useful contacts. Keep updating your LinkedIn profile.

If interested in a political career, involvement in a political party is a useful, fun way of learning the ropes and again, meeting contacts. Get involved with your interest, for example, if you are passionate about development and want to work for an NGO volunteer or work for a campaign.

However, despite having clear career goals, be open to opportunities. Do not shut off certain jobs because it does not relate to your degree, be open minded and realise that you can always learn something new and it can be a stepping stone to what you really want to do.

I am a dual Sri Lankan/ UK citizen. I grew up in Sri Lanka so have an international student perspective on my experience in Sheffield too.