Career development

Your time at Maastricht University (UM) is about more than your degree. It is your chance to discover what you are good at, test that against the real world and build the skills you need for a successful start to your career. UM Career Services supports you throughout this process, from online resources and workshops to personal coaching.

On this page you will find our full range of services: the Personal & Professional Development Portal, our Canvas course, workshops, individual guidance such as the CV/LinkedIn check and career coaching, an explanation of the Career Compass behind our approach, and information on the Master Career Track for master's students.

Personal & Professional Development Portal

Your studies teach you a lot, but they are not the only place to grow. The Personal & Professional Development Portal shows you how to develop yourself as a student, next to and outside your degree programme. It helps you discover which skills you already have, which ones are still worth developing, and where you can put them into practice, for example through:

Resources, modules, training and events
Vacancies for (side)jobs, internships, traineeships and voluntary work
The Employability Scan, which gives you personal advice on the skills and experience that matter for your future ambitions

Whether you want to sharpen a specific skill, get to know yourself better, or simply see what UM has to offer beyond your degree programme, the portal is the place to start.

View our complete offer on the

Personal & Professional Development Portal

Canvas course

By enrolling in our Canvas course 'Your Personal & Professional Development', you stay up-to-date with our offer. In addition, you can find an overview of our offer and 12 modules to enhance your employability.

Stay up to date via the

Canvas course

Workshops

Next to your studies, UM Career Services organises workshops that help you build the skills you need for a confident start to your career. Our offer includes workshops on discovering what suits you and which direction fits your qualities, on learning how to network and make the most of your contacts, and on writing a strong CV and motivation letter. Other workshops help you deal with procrastination or prepare for a job interview.

Workshops

Individual guidance

CV/LinkedIn check

Would you like practical feedback on your CV or LinkedIn profile?

The CV/LinkedIn check is a 15-minute online session for students and recent graduates with a specific, practical question about their CV or LinkedIn profile. A Career Services student employee will check your profile using a set of practical criteria and give you concrete feedback you can use to improve it yourself.

If relevant, you can also share the vacancy you are applying for, so the feedback can be tailored to your application.

Please note: the CV/LinkedIn check does not include feedback on motivation letters or broader career questions. If your question is about your career direction, motivation, qualities, study or career choices, or if you are unsure what suits you, a career coaching session may be more appropriate.

This service is free of charge, available to all UM students and recent graduates (up to six months after graduation) and you can make unlimited use of it. We kindly refer PhD candidates to the Staff Career Centre.

Book your

CV/LinkedIn check

Career coaching

Would you like to better understand yourself, explore your options, make a career choice or take the next step towards the labour market?

Career Coaching offers personal and in-depth guidance tailored to your situation. Together with a career coach, you can work on different aspects of your career journey, using the Career Compass below.

Your coach helps you reflect on your experiences, recognise patterns, overcome barriers and turn insights into concrete next steps. This may include discussing your CV, motivation letter or LinkedIn profile as part of your broader career story, rather than a standalone document check.

Before your first session, you complete a short intake form. Depending on your needs, you can have up to three follow-up appointments.

Career coaching is free of charge and available to UM students and recent graduates up to six months after graduation. We kindly refer PhD candidates to the Staff Career Centre.

Career coaching

The Career Compass

The services of UM Career Services are built around our Career Compass. Today's job market looks fundamentally different from previous generations': careers change faster, skills date quicker, and most professionals shift direction several times over their working life. Helping students make one good decision is no longer enough; the real skill is being able to reorient themselves, again and again.

The Career Compass reflects that: not a roadmap with a fixed endpoint, but a way of developing an ever-sharper inner compass - everything you know about your values, interests, qualities and ambitions.

You build that compass through four movements you keep returning to, connected throughout by reflection - the process that turns experience into insight:

Awareness - what do I currently know about myself?
Exploration - what possibilities are out there, and which speak to me?
Direction - which path deserves my time and attention right now?
Execution - how do I turn that direction into concrete action?

Every experience that follows feeds back into the compass through reflection. The more you reflect, the sharper your inner compass becomes, and the more it can help you navigate your career, both now and beyond university life.

Master Career Track

The Master Career Track (MCT) is a programme for master’s students designed to inspire and empower you to kickstart your career after graduation. After completion, you will have all the tools to start a career that suits you. Check out the page about the Master Career Track to see whether your master’s programme participates in the Master Career Track.