What to do after graduation: a checklist for UEL graduates

UEL doesn't keep student accounts going forever. Its certificates page even has a separate route for former students, beginning "If you are a former student and no longer have an active UEL account". The safe deadline for anything behind your UEL login is your last day of study, not your ceremony.

Your address on UEL Direct

This one matters more than it looks. Your certificate and Diploma Supplement are posted to the address UEL holds, by Royal Mail, and UEL points out that the delivery isn't tracked. Check that the address on UEL Direct is complete and current before you move anywhere.

Library loans, and anything you owe

Return what you've borrowed, and settle any debt to the university. UEL's rule for the ceremony is strict: a debt not paid off one month before your ceremony date means you're not eligible to attend.

The months after a degree have no timetable, which is exactly why they slip. You don't need the ideal job by your ceremony. You need momentum: a recent role, internship or project gives an interviewer something to ask about, where a gap gives them nothing.

Career Zone doesn't end with your course

UEL's career coaching is for alumni as well as current students. Through the Career Zone platform you can book a 30-minute one-to-one with a Career Coach and sign up for workshops and events. UEL's Graduate Success Service can be reached at graduatesuccess@uel.ac.uk.

Starting something of your own

Freelancing or launching a business? Career Zone coaching covers self-employment, and UEL alumni get 25% off co-working space at the Royal Docks Centre for Sustainability, on the Docklands campus.

"Career coaching at UEL helps current students and alumni plan their careers, build employability skills, and take confident steps towards their professional goals."

— University of East London

Planning to stay and work? Then your visa shapes everything else, from which jobs you can accept to how long a lease you can sign, so sort it first.

The Graduate visa

It's the usual way to stay on: most kinds of work, job-hunting and self-employment are allowed, and no employer has to sponsor you. How long it lasts depends on when you apply and what you studied, from 18 months up to three years for a doctorate, so check GOV.UK on the day you apply. No need to wait for graduation day or the certificate: once UEL has reported your completion to the Home Office, you can apply.

Heading home

Returning abroad instead? Deal with the UK paperwork in person: decide what happens to your bank account, give notice on your room in writing, and update UEL Direct with the address the certificate should go to. All three are quick in London and slow from another time zone.

Look up your tenancy end date today. A full academic year in UEL halls ends in early June, months before the September ceremonies, which can leave you needing a bed in London for your own graduation. One UEL answer: the Alumni Network Passport, a £15 card, lets holders book stays in UEL's own residential accommodation through Residential Life.

Deposit questions are easy to settle face to face and painful from a new city.

Staying in London?

One bill catches new graduates out: council tax. A home where everyone is a full-time student doesn't pay it, but once your course is over, that may no longer describe your household. Let your council know as soon as your situation changes; it's easier than a backdated bill.

Your student loan

While you earn below your plan's threshold, you repay nothing. Above it, you repay 9% of the difference on an undergraduate plan, or 6% on a Postgraduate Loan, taken through your pay. To see which plan you're on, sign in to your Student Loans Company account.

Your bank account

Many banks move student accounts onto graduate terms, and the overdraft is usually what changes. Check the date your terms change.

SportsDock, and your UEL email

Staying near Docklands? The Alumni Network Passport includes discounted SportsDock membership. Finally, list every account tied to your UEL email address, from software licences to subscriptions, and move each one before you lose access.

At UEL, the certificate doesn't depend on the ceremony. Production is linked to the confirmation of your award, not to attendance, so it can even arrive before you graduate. UEL expects your first certificate and Diploma Supplement within 12 weeks of your classification being published, though it doesn't guarantee that.

If it hasn't arrived after 12 weeks, contact the Student Hub, and don't buy a replacement until UEL has confirmed what happened to the original. The same team handles transcripts, your HEAR and award verification letters. UEL's warning is worth repeating: don't pay a third-party website for any of these unless the Student Hub has confirmed it's the right route.

Your coursemates are about to spread across London and beyond. Add them on LinkedIn while names and faces still match, stay in touch with your group-project teammates, and send your supervisor a proper thank-you.

Keep your contact details current, too. HESA runs the national Graduate Outcomes survey and will contact you by email or phone; UEL says it takes about ten minutes. The alumni team, likewise, can only reach you with events and offers at an address that works.