Speaker You’re listening to Allied Health Podcast, talking all things Allied Health with your hosts, Danielle Weedon, physiotherapist, and Clare Jones, occupational therapist.

Danielle Weedon Welcome back to episode five of Allied Health Podcast. In this episode, Clare and I will be outlining the recruitment process and working with MediRecruit.

Clare Jones As allied health professionals ourselves, Danielle and I started MediRecruit years ago now, when we saw a need for a specialist allied health recruitment service that offered an innate understanding of allied health. Working with us at MediRecruit gives you access to a wide variety of jobs, including many that are not advertised. We guide and support you through the entire recruitment process. And importantly for new graduates, you have access to our job ready resources, such as cover letter and CV templates, as well as MediRecruit’s expert guide to interviewing. To start the recruitment process, we assess your individual needs and desires for your next career move, and where possible, we explore multiple job opportunities to ensure the role that you secure is the best match for you. We’re there to support you and provide our expert advice on essentials such as support and supervision, market salaries, negotiating a contract and managing multiple job offers. As health professionals ourselves, we have an in-depth understanding of allied health roles and as a result, we’re well placed to ensure the next step in your career is a success. And a question we’re often asked is, “how much does it cost to use our service?” And the good news is, for you it’s absolutely free. So for those of you who are new to the recruitment process, we’re now going to provide an overview of the entire recruitment process, from job advertisements to starting in your very first job as a health professional. OK, Danielle. So let’s say I’m an allied health graduate. Where do I go to look for a therapy job?

Danielle Weedon Jobs are advertised on many jobs boards, as well as other platforms across social media and university hubs. Take the time to review the content in the initial job ad and apply some of those tips that we outlined in episode two when filtering out which jobs might be right for you. It’s also important to keep in mind that at MediRecruit, we’ve got access to number of jobs that are not advertised publicly.

Clare Jones OK, so I’ve shortlisted a few jobs that I think would be a good fit for me. How do I start the application process?

Danielle Weedon Yes, this is the part of the recruitment process where you work on a CV and cover letter. We will cover this in detail in our next episode, including length, content, what to include in a CV. But it’s crucial that you have a CV ready to apply for any role, as well as a cover letter that is tailored to each job that you are applying for.

Clare Jones OK, so I’ve submitted my cover letter and a CV for a specific role. What happens next?

Danielle Weedon Hopefully, you receive an invitation to interview for a role that you’ve applied for. Make sure you request a detailed position description prior to the interview and that you prepare for the interview by asking what format the interview will take, where you need to attend, on what virtual platform you may need to attend on, and who will be on the interviewing panel. Remember to plan ahead and to research the organisation thoroughly before you attend an interview.

Clare Jones OK, so now I’ve been invited to attend an interview. I’m excited. I’m a little nervous, which is a good thing. What type of interview should I expect?

Danielle Weedon We’re seeing many, many forms of interview from phone interview, video conference, face to face, sometimes informal coffee interview or more formal panel interview. More and more of late, we’re seeing organisations start with a phone interview before proceeding to a more formal interview. Prior to interview, it’s important to ask what format the interview will take so that you can prepare for this. No matter the format that the interview will take, make sure you are professional at all times and make sure that you take with you a list of questions that you’d like to ask, because we always like to remind you that an interview is a two way street.

Clare Jones It certainly is. OK, so the interview’s done, I think it went well. They said they’d be in touch following interview. So what happens next?

Danielle Weedon You see following an interview, if an employer is keen to move to next stage, they’ll ask you for a referee contact details. We’ll also go into this in the next episode, but make sure that you get your referees permission to nominate you as a referee because before you pass these on to a future employer, there’s nothing worse than expecting a referee who doesn’t know to expect a call.

Clare Jones And what happens if I don’t hear back after attending an interview?

Danielle Weedon Hopefully, you’ll hear back either way, but it’s fair and reasonable to follow up with feedback from any interview, whether you’re successful or not. It’s a steep learning curve following university graduation and in your early years of career, so take on board any feedback you can and actually seek this feedback out for future interviewing processes. Plus, the opportunity to thank the organisation for their time and feedback may open doors in the future and Clare and I always say it, that the Allied Health world, is a very small one.

Clare Jones Such a small world. OK, so I’ve just heard that I’ve been successful and I’ve been made a job offer. I’m keen, but I’m not sure of next steps. So what now?

Danielle Weedon A future employer may make you a verbal offer over the phone as well as putting it in writing. This will usually contain details of the job that they’re offering you, the job title and level, as well as remuneration package, which for permanent roles should comprise of the base salary plus superannuation and other allowances like travel or bonuses. If you’re happy to accept the formal offer, a formal contract will be issued to you for reviewing and signing. Check the contract very carefully and also make sure you listen to our episode coming up dedicated to dissecting employment contract. Then if you are happy to accept a role, you’ll agree with your future employer on a start date.

Clare Jones So once I get started in the role, is that the end of the recruitment process?

Danielle Weedon Not quite. You’ll have a you’ll likely have a probationary period, which is usually a three or six month period. This allows you to settle into a new role and for your employer to train and induct you. Typically, we see key performance indicators, KPIs and billable hours slightly lower during a probationary period when you are learning the ropes. A probationary period also allows you and your employer to work out if the role is right for you both.

Clare Jones Great. So that’s a wrap for the recruitment process. Just remember, if you’re applying for roles through MediRecruit we’ll guide you through the entire recruitment process with our expert understanding of recruitment. And please tune in to our next episode, where we’ll give you our ultimate CV cover letter and referee tips.

Speaker We hope you enjoyed listening to the Allied Health Podcast. In the show’s notes, you’ll find links to our free recruitment resources, job opportunities and health care marketplace insights. To listen to new episodes, please subscribe via Apple, Google, or wherever you find your favourite podcast. And if you’ve enjoyed the show, please give it a five star rating and review. And be sure to tell your therapy colleagues and friends to tune in.