7 Tips On Finding Graduate Employment

The much awaited time has arrived. After what would seem like endless years of studying you have finally graduated. Everything should be plain sailing now. You find a well paid job; pay off your students’ loan and all the studying has finally paid off. Sadly though that is often not how things turn out... Unlike the sixties when only approximately 6% of the population went to university to study for a degree, today more and more young people are going on to higher education in the hope of achieving a better lifestyle . Therefore you are now one of many highly qualified people who are job hunting. So how can you market yourself to beat the giant competion?

Here are some top tips on how to stay ahead of the competition.

1. Make A Lasting Impression

If you have been fortunate enough to have gained some work experience or had an internship whilst studying for your degree, make sure that you make a good impression during this time as this could ultimately lead to them offering you a higher position within the company after you graduate. It is a fact that students who have worked in industry during their degree course have the edge over others when looking for work after qualifying.

2. Stand Out From The Crowd...Make Yourself More Marketable To Employers

It is important to remember that you are not unique having a degree therefore you need to get noticed and stand out from the crowd.
Do not follow the typical advice offered by recruitment and human resources or you will be like everyone else and won’t stand out from the crowd. You will need to concentrate on your presentation skills to promote yourself in order to show prospective employers why they should employ you.

It is also important to ensure that you have a good CV as this is what will ultimately determine whether you get an interview or not. Ideally your CV should fill two pages. If you can only fill one page it would be better to gain some experience such as doing some voluntary work. Although this option will not reward you financially it will help to display that you are willing to learn new skills and will show that you’re interested in working in the industry that you want to get into.

3. Apply For The Appropriate Job

You need to acknowledge that you will not be able to go straight into a managing director or top management jobs. It will take time and experience to reach the higher managerial positions.
When applying for a job make sure that you take into account your strengths and weaknesses. If you are a shy person then avoid careers such as acting or if you are an outward going person who finds it hard to sit still, then a boring desk job is not going to be for you either.

Sadly one of the most difficult hurdles that you will face when searching for jobs for graduates is lack of experience. Therefore if you are finding it hard to find work it is worth considering taking a lower paid job to gain the necessary work experience as a temporary measure before trying to get a better job more suited to your qualifications.

4. Enroll With A Recruitment Agency

Recruitment agencies can prove useful in finding employment. However before taking this route it is important to remember that they are not” talent spotters but are merely matching people for jobs that they have available. This avenue can still be useful though to provide a temporary solution to gaining the much needed work experience.

5. Take A Direct Approach

In addition to applying for positions that are advertised you could also take a more direct approach and send your CV (ensuring to provide a good biographic account of yourself) to lots of different companies in the hope that they will consider you for any future positions. You could even try E- mailing your details to various companies, or the more confident individuals among you could even promote yourself using video marketing. That way the prospective employer can actually put a face to the name and connect with you more.

6. Get Networking

The saying “It’s not what you know but who you know “is very true. With this in mind gather up your contacts to help you promote yourself. It is surprising how many contacts we all have access to that may be able to help us in our search for work. They can range from family, friends, neighbours or even university lecturers who often have contact with various industries. Don’t be afraid to approach them.

You could also join professional social networking sites such as LinkedIn that can help you to find the right contacts.

7. BeYour Own Boss

If you do not want to join big corporate organisations and become a small cog in a big machine or you fail to find work in your given career then another option is to consider starting your own business working from home. There are many working from home ideas and most don’t require huge investments of capital. They just require time, commitment and educating yourself with new information, all of which you will have already programmed yourself to do whilst at university. Often in university you will have been taught marketing and presentation skills so you will already be qualified in many aspects of operating an online business. The main difference being that there is a potential to earn large sums of money for your effort from selling on line which can be hugely advantageous to help to pay off student loans quicker. Online businesses also are recession proof and actually thrive during economic downturns as you will be offering customers solutions to their problems and being paid for it.
You will also have the freedom to work your own hours and set your own goals, both personal and financial and the only traffic you will encounter on your way to your office is your partner on the stairs!
Working from home offers the advantages of not having a boss, being able to live anywhere that you choose without having any geographical disadvantage, no massive overheads and actually being able to earn what you are worth.

To close, jobs for graduates jobs for graduates
are becoming harder and harder to find. In order to avoid the dreaded transition from degree to dole queue you will often need to be prepared to diversify a little in order to eventually find the graduate opportunities that you seek especially if you have a degree in degrees termed as “managerial subjects” as often these degrees focus on being too analytical and do not offer what businesses want when trading gets tough i.e. “doers” rather than” thinkers”.
However do not despair as it is still a fact that graduates still earn significantly more than non graduates over the course of their careers. Making the right choice of degree and university along with gaining valuable work experience along the way, can greatly improve your job chances as can changing your career path if needed.