Cambridge graduate can't get a job.

lincroft1710

ILW wrote: »

I went to Cambridge.

Nice day out it was too.

Can I be an investment banker now please?

Get in the queue!!!

I went to Cambridge on a day trip some months ago and I'm still not an investment banker.

C_Mababejive

I wonder if the OP has considered..
a)Taking any job
b)Working for themselves..

The important thing is to generate income. You can work on the dream job whilst you are doing that.

I do think the days of being a graduate automatically guaranteeing you a dream job ended maybe 7 or so years ago

Hiccups_2

Chomeur wrote: »

I went for a job interview at RBS. They required candidates to take a written test. I was later told that I had scored the highest anyone had ever scored on the test. They rejected me because they said we wouldn't get on. (I'm a really nice guy, honestly, so if there was fault in regard to getting on, it wasn't on my side).

Clearly, there was more to this assessment than a written test. You have left out all details of the other aspects of the assessment day(s) and have focused on the one thing which you want to focus on. Usually assessments for graduate recruitment also involve, for example, "psychiatric" profiling, interviews and team working tasks. How did you perform in those? I guess that's what let you down.

Chomeur wrote: »

I went for a job interview with a City firm. I heard nothing from them after the interview until they wrote back four months later. They said that my details were very impressive but unfortunately they had no positions suitable for someone of my areas of expertise (I am quite certain that they did have such positions).

So what are your areas of expertise and were they in any way connected to the job you applied for? The city firm did not think so and they gave you a diplomatic response which roughly translates to "we don't think you will be able to do this job".

Chomeur wrote: »

I was told at a job interview at another bank "The trouble is, in a way, your thinking is too far advanced."

Again, you appear to be focussing on what you want to hear. They gave you a diplomatic response to give you a gentle let down but what they were essentially saying was that employing you wouldn't be profitable for them, because you obviously came across as someone who was challenging convention and as someone who was unecessarily trying to reverse established norms.

It's the culture of Oxbridge that teaches you to always question and challenge in this way. Unfortunately, not everyone is the "genius" that Oxbridge longs to nurture. Many Oxbridge graduates get caught up in this mode of thinking but forget think laterally and look at the bigger picture. It's not profitable for a business to re-invent the wheel.

You are guilty of giving yourself an ego boost by hearing what you want to hear; which is that, "you're the best" and "you're far too clever for us". You are looking at the world of work from an academic standpoint and are assuming that is all you need to be a success. It sounds like you haven't adapted to the world of work, in which case academia may be the best place for you.

I know others have made some cynical comments about organisations that won't employ people who stand out for the right reasons, but that mode of thinking is usually found in smaller organisations. I seriously don't think that is the case with the OP.

Chomeur wrote: »

It feels like everyone is afraid of me. Might it be worth me going to the doctor and asking for a prescription for some lead tablets to make myself a bit thicker?

Or you could work on your Emotional Quotient.

somethingcorporate

I joined a Grad scheme 4 years ago with a number of Oxbridge graduates. Less than 6 months after joining it meant nothing. Some of us have progressed faster but has had little to do with where we got our degrees from but how good we are at the job. There is very little correlation between the two!

OP, good luck in your search but your education from 20 years ago has left you feeling bitter and the world now owes you nothing. You have to go out and earn it like you did for your degree.