University of Manchester Careers Blog

Written by Delia Goodwin, Careers Consultant (Disability) at the Careers Service

Does either of the above apply to you? Read on below.

Career planning with a disability

Join our webinar on 29^th April, dedicated to signposting final years with a disability or long term health condition/mental health diagnosis to information and support on a variety of queries you may experience when applying for jobs. The panel will host experts on Access to Work provision and sourcing inclusive employers, with panellists from DASS and Evenbreak. You may be DASS registered, or manage your condition(s) without support at the moment, either way you are welcome to attend this event.

Have you experienced long COVID?

With the emergence of many people experiencing the symptoms of long COVID/post-COVID-19 syndrome, it’s been reported that if you have had COVID-19 and are still experiencing the impact after a year or more, you will be eligible for support in the recruitment process and workplace.

What does this mean in practice? Anyone who has a condition which they have had for a year or more and which has a significant negative impact on daily life and activities, have legal protection under the Equality Act 2010. So, if this applies to you, you’ll be able to request “reasonable adjustments” when you’re applying for graduate roles. This could make the whole process much less daunting if you’re worried about the effects of long COVID on your health, especially when these may be unpredictable.

AGCAS Disability Task Group posted this article which refers to the legislation in detail. It provides examples of what individuals with long COVID are experiencing, plus what kind of adjustments may be appropriate. Any condition such as this or other fluctuating conditions can have varied effects and what is a suitable adjustment for one person may not be right for someone else. So remember, it’s not a definitive list but just some suggestions of what might work for some.

If you have any queries about this, come along to the event and/or book in for a 60 minute appointment with one of our Careers Service consultants. Remember, you can access the Careers Service for two years after you finish your course. This means you can continue to access all of our support and resources including CareerConnect.