At this time of year most students, those in final years in particular, are thinking about careers. A good place to look for guidance is the careers service at UCC. It was recently named "Careers Service Website of the Year 2000" for Ireland and Britain by the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (AGCAS). Their all-encompassing vision is that "the Careers Service supports students to understand their career interests, evaluate and assess career opportunities and effectively implement their career decisions". Worthy goals, all achieved. The service is designed for UCC's 12,000 students, but is useful for anyone with questions on working after college. The homepage keeps it simple with three links: services to employers; services to students; and services to academics.

The employers' section has further links to recruiting graduates; facilities for employers; undergrad work placement; and vacancies and sponsorship. All of these are then further divided with relevant, helpful and easy-to-read information. This ease of use was one of the contributory factors in AGCAS giving the award to UCC. Among the criteria were how quickly and easily users are able to find the information they need and how likely they are to want to return to the site. In the students' section, the frequently asked questions area provides commonsense answers to questions like: "What are my options after my degree?", "What postgraduate options are open to me?" and even "How do I get a job?"

UCC's careers service was also commended for "Evidence that links to external websites are reviewed and updated regularly." The AGCAS must have overlooked the fact that the link for The Irish Times website is wrong (it's www.ireland.com, not www.irish-times.ie). With 18 different tests, the personality test section may help some people decide which occupation best suits their talents. You could change careers many times here.

Well worth a visit by students, employers and those who want to set up similar sites at other colleges.