This information answers briefly the question "What can I do with my degree?" You should read it alongside the AGCAS information booklet, Your Degree... What Next? which looks in detail at career planning and graduate employment. If you are taking a joint honours or combined degree, you are advised to refer to the two or three relevant Signpost Sheets.

It is very difficult to generalise about the destinations of classics graduates as they move into such a broad variety of careers. Occasionally advertisements for new graduates for management posts say classicists preferred and recent research into the value of a classics degree showed it to be an extremely useful subject as classics graduates are so versatile, having often studied some history, literature and philosophy as well as languages.

Choosing a career involves more than just finding out about what is open to you. Knowledge about yourself is central to the process. It is valuable to start by looking at your individual values, interests, abilities and skills in order to relate career options to you. Your careers service will have resources to help you with self-assessment. You should also check if they have the PROSPECT(HE) career choice program.

The main skills that students of classics are able to demonstrate are logical thought processes and good communication skills, both written and oral. You have proved you are good at mastering difficult languages which require rigorous attention to detail and a liking for precision. You usually have good imaginative powers, developed from studying past cultures, which can be translated into the ability to enter into the thoughts and worlds of others which is extremely useful in a work context.

There are only a few jobs which are directly related to a classics degree. For the following occupations a degree in a classical subject is essential. For detailed information refer to the relevant AGCAS information booklets listed in brackets below.

• Classics Teacher - in state secondary schools or more commonly, independent schools, sixth form colleges, further or higher education. (Teaching in Schools and Colleges in the UK)

• Editor of Classical Texts - Copy editing of classical typescripts. Checking the text reads fluently, aptly and is translated correctly. Ensuring internal consistency and that the text is free of errors of language, spelling or punctuation. (Publishing Business)

Jobs where the transferable skills learned from a classics background are particularly useful include the following. For detailed information refer to the AGCAS information booklets listed in brackets below.

• Archivist - reserves, stores and safeguards records for permanent retention. Makes records accessible for administrative or historical research purposes. Works with the public preparing exhibitions and giving lectures. Latin is necessary for work with older archives. (Heritage Management and Museum Work)

• Museum Work - the collection, documentation. preservation, display and interpretation of materials for public benefit. Increasingly includes fund-raising, marketing and resource management as museums become more commercially orientated. (Heritage Management and Museum Work)

• Diplomatic Service -policy making (administrative trainee) or general management (staffing, finance, immigration, consular work) roles within embassies or high commissions abroad, and in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London. (Administration and Public Sector Management)

• Technical Author - involves preparing technical publications which convey technical information which is intelligible to anyone. You need to produce clear, logical, unambiguous and accurate text. You must be able to communicate effectively with very different people from engineers to school children. (Information Technology)

• Computer Programmer - translates instructions from English into a language which the computer can read and act on. This computer language has to be designed so that there is no scope for more than one interpretation; therefore it is a rigorous and disciplined activity. (Information Technology)

• Accountant - collects, analyses and presents financial information to evaluate the financial consequences of past actions or to assess the financial implications of alternative courses of future actions. You could work in private practice, industry, commerce or the public sector. (Accountancy, Taxation and Financial Management)

• Solicitor - prepares deeds and contracts of all types, manages legal cases, instructs counsel (ie barristers) in the higher courts and acts as an advocate for others in the lower courts. You could work in private practice as a generalist or specialist, in industry, public service, law centres, magistrates courts or the armed services. (Legal Profession)

• Administrator - planning and organising services, providing information and collecting data to form the basis for future actions within the organisation, informing the world outside the organisation. Servicing committees by drawing up agenda, providing background information, taking minutes, writing and circulating reports. You could work in public service, industry (company secretary), education, health service, charities, voluntary or international organisations. (Administration and Public Sector Management)

The statistics of what graduates from your course have done may be available at your careers service for you to look at.

You will find that about 40% of vacancies advertised for graduates in the UK do not ask for specific degree subjects. Possession of the degree itself is taken as evidence of intellectual prowess. What is more important to the potential employer is the range of transferable skills and experience which you can demonstrate. Possession of work experience and relevant postgraduate qualifications may also help make you more attractive. For more information about some of the areas of employment commonly entered by graduates of any degree discipline refer to the AGCAS information booklet Your Degree... What Next?.

Classics graduates are employed across all sectors of work including Civil Service, local government, the professions, industry, publishing, commerce, cultural and heritage organisations, schools, colleges and universities.

It is possible to study at postgraduate level in subjects both directly related and unrelated to your first degree. You should carefully consider your motivation for study, how it fits in with your long-term career plans and whether it is likely to enhance your employment prospects. There is no general clearing house for postgraduate study equivalent to UCAS, although there are some specific clearing houses eg for teacher training, social work, etc. It is important that you begin investigating opportunities for postgraduate study early and in most instances applications should be made directly to the institution concerned. Start with the AGCAS information booklet Postgraduate Study and Research and the directories Prospects Postgraduate Directory and Postgrad - the students guide. In addition you will find it helpful to use the Postgraduate Opportunities section of PROSPECTS WEB which contains information both of taught courses and reasearch opportunites.

There is no guarantee of funding for postgraduate study and it is often easier to obtain a place than finance. Refer to Prospects Postgraduate Funding Guide and the AGCAS information booklet Postgraduate Study and Research for further details relating to finance and the application process.

Other alternatives to entering employment or postgraduate study immediately after graduation include taking time out, voluntary work or starting your own business. These options also need thorough investigation and planning. Look at the AGCAS information booklets Your Degree... What Next?; Alternative Work Styles including Self Employment and Working in Europe - First Steps and your careers service reference files.

Whether you have definite ideas or are in the early stages of career planning your careers service can help.

Your careers service will be able to offer you a range of services which may include:

• individual help from a careers adviser about your future;
• group sessions on topics like interviews or application forms;
• computer-aided guidance systems such as PROSPECT(HE) ;
• extensive information on careers and graduate employers (some of it to take away) in reference folders,
• vacancy information;
• details of vacation work
• Postgraduate Opportunities (information and directories).

For more information on any of the areas mentioned above, and on what students with your degree have done in the past, ask your careers service.

Lynne Brooks , University of Central Lancashire

© Careers Services Trust