In today’s world having a degree does not guarantee a job and therefore it is very important to have a strategy for finding the right graduate job. Where a degree is a vocational degree it is likely, of course, that a graduate will have a clear direction in terms of their degree, however where a degree is business related or the Arts or Social Sciences or even Mathematics and Sciences then graduates may be looking for specific graduate roles or programmes.
Many graduates wait until after their exams before even thinking about applying for roles, however in today’s world that can mean ‘if you’re not fast you’re last!’ and those that get off the starting block early get the traditional established graduate programmes. The university Milk Round is a good starting point for these roles and some of these employers are looking for graduates that they believe are focused and organised enough to be studying for exams as well as filling in application forms and attending interviews, as it is this level of organisation and flexibility they are looking for in potential managers within their company..
Where you are using other methods to locate a job, it’s important that you have a plan to follow as finding a job is a full time job!
1. Make a list of companies you would like to work for and go on each individual website and find out if they have a graduate programme and apply from there
2. For public sector jobs, individual council or civil service websites and websites such as Scottish Jobs on the Web are some of the best ways of locating public sector programmes
3. If there are particular companies you want to work for and they don’t have a graduate programme, it is worth sending a speculative CV and covering letter and then following up with a phone call to try to get at least a meeting.
4. Where you have had a work placement whilst at university / college, assuming you have done a good job generally means that you will have some sort of advantage in that they know you and trust you, even if you have to go through the official recruitment programme.
For Graduate programmes its worth remembering that for many there is the implication that graduates will be ambitious and therefore will be willing to move for promotion and this is likely to include London as most companies will have their head office in London and graduates should decide if this is in their short to medium term plans before going down this road.
For most employers, experience is a key attribute which makes it more difficult for graduates to go straight into a mainstream job. However Scottish Enterprise run a scheme whereby graduates may be able to get paid experience in established companies on short term projects. Whilst obviously a permanent opportunity is the ideal, this is a way of gaining experience, ‘trying’ different roles and also determining whether you may want to work for a particular company if the opportunity arises and endearing yourself if it does!
It may seem obvious, but experience of any sort is better than no experience to most employers. Some graduates concentrate totally on their studies whilst at University and don’t take the opportunity to get a weekend or summer job, this is a big mistake as traditionally graduate programmes have a high dropout rate in the first year; and whilst the current economy may make that less of a problem, the fact is that employers are more comfortable when a graduate has a track record of having maintained a job whilst at university than not. Having had a job throughout university indicates that the graduate understands the work place and the difference between studying and working.
So no longer is it enough to have a degree to get a job, graduates now need a focused strategy in terms of job hunting just like everyone else, if not even more so as they are not going with experience and when jobs are scarce employers are generally go for someone they know do the job immediately.
Lesley Malcolm, Director, Clearwater Brookes Ltd, 0141 582 1474
Clearwater Brookes are a Human Resources and Training and Development organisation that specialises in management development, leadership, employee development and executive coaching
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