Finding a graduate job

Competition for graduate jobs is fierce. It's not uncommon for many new graduates to spend months in an unskilled job before starting a professional career. But this needn't be the case for you - find out the search strategies that can help you kick-start your graduate working life this summer!

First, you need to consider your various options. Are you looking to go directly into a permanent job, or would you rather take a step back and explore another avenue for a while? You could:

• Find a graduate job
• Take a year out
• Study a postgraduate programme

Self-assessment

If you are looking to start your graduate career, you need to begin by evaluating yourself and your skills - are you ready and sufficiently equipped to enter the job market? What do you have to offer potential employers?

Things to consider about yourself:

• What are you good at?
• What kind of work environment do you enjoy?
• What did you study?
• What industries interest you?
• What are your priorities? (Consider work/life/money balance)
• Have you done your research into various jobs?
• Are you making your own choices or just taking the advice of other people?

Review your skills

• What can you offer - Apart from your degree, what other assets and talents do you have (e.g. communication and IT skills, languages)?
• Think about your experiences - Put together a skills portfolio based upon your achievements and experiences
• Decide what you need - Analyse what skills a potential employer is looking for (study job advertisements for this), and identify which of these skills you may be lacking
• Gain experience - Take opportunities to develop your skills, taking extra courses, or doing work placements.

Get experience

The UK benefits from a highly trained workforce, but that means there is a lot of competition for popular jobs. You have to stand out from the crowd, and work experience is a great way to boost your skills, your confidence and to get yourself noticed.

Types of work experience:

• Part-time work
• Voluntary work
• Work placements.

If you find yourself working in a dead-end job this summer, think about doing some relevant part-time work in addition, or doing some voluntary work. This will show a real dedication to developing your skills and making yourself as employable as possible.

Alternatively, you could do a summer placement at a firm you are interested in. You may need to weigh up the long-term career benefits if you can't find a paid placement.

If you are thinking of taking a gap year there are many options open to you, with numerous types of projects you can undertake. Visit the relevant advice section on Hobsons Graduate Careers website for more details.

Don't fancy any of the above, or don't feel ready to enter the world of work? You could consider some postgraduate study to increase your knowledge. See Hobsons Postgrad website for more details.

Job-hunting skills

First impressions last. Your application is the first glimpse of you an employer will get, so make your personality shines through on the page. A good CV promotes the skills, knowledge and experience an applicant can bring to a job.

How to sell your attributes effectively:

• Get it all covered - Personal details, education, work experience, specific skills, interests and referees
• Get the length right - Keep it short and snappy; no longer than two pages
• Prioritise relevant information - The earlier in the CV info is, the more likely the employer is to notice it
• Go into detail - Cite specific instances to elaborate on your experiences and focus on the particulars of your achievements
• Appearance matters - Present in a clear, consistent and organised manner, with your job and education history in reverse chronological order.

The same goes for covering letters - your application is your first point of contact with your potential employer, so it's important to include the right information.

Include:

• Who you are and what you're applying for
• What relevant skills, experience and education you have
• Why you want to work in this particular sector
• Why you are applying to this particular organisation

Target employers

If you have the skills, experience and the CV to show them off, the next step is to find potential employers.

As well as regularly checking Jobsite and the Graduate Careers Centre for graduate vacancies, you should think about making speculative applications to firms you are interested in. Sending off your CV with an enthusiastic covering letter shows initiative and is often very effective. But remember - target your applications to each specific employer. Sending generic mass-mailed applications rarely works. Employers want to see evidence that you have researched their company.

Careers fairs are another good source of information, and provide the chance to meet employers in person. Find out more about careers fairs.

The Hobsons Graduate Careers Centre has everything you need to start your graduate career. Find a job from our database of hundreds of graduate opportunities, work placements and current vacancies. Plus get information on key graduate career sectors and advice on making your applications stand out from the crowd.

http://www.graduatecareers.hobsons.co.uk