University graduate & can't find a job ANYWHERE! Please please help!

Legacy_user

..........

Smidster

All you can do is keep going.

The job market is dire at the moment, in particular for us Graduates, but we just have to pray that eventually it will turn around.

KiKi

Sorry to hear of this. Unfortunately the job market isn't great at the moment for anyone - especially if you don't have much job experience. The best advice I can give you is to:

a) find voluntary work in the meantime, anything that gives you skills and stops you from being bored / getting lazy (it's very easy to get lazy when you're not working!)

b) write speculatively to any organisations in the area of psychology asking if they'll consider you for any positions coming up

c) write speculatively to any organisation in your field asking / offering 6 weeks 'voluntary' / unpaid work to get some experience in your field and make you more marketable

d) Join ANY groups that allow you to meet people in your field and network - and turn up. Lots of organisations do breakfast clubs and the like for free, allowing you to network and meet others.


You will - I almost guarantee it - get some replies in this thread saying something along the lines of "degrees are worthless, you've just wasted three years of your life and now you're finding out why. The real world is tough - grow up." Ignore them. Whilst it's tough right now, job markets fluctuate and there will be a time when your degree (or merely the fact that you have studied) will be very valuable to you. It is never a waste of time, you always learn something. But you do need to get some experience under your belt, and some of that might well need to be voluntary.

Keep on tailoring your CV, researching, writing off speculatively, networking, and applying for anything that will bring in some cash in the meantime. You're doing all the right things.

Best of luck
KiKi

tnajamie

i feel for you. Unpaid work is the best way to get your foot in the door, also voluntary work .. I understand it's annoying but all your time should be spent building your cv.

dawyldthing

keep an eye out for temporary posts leading upto Christmas - in particular Boots/Sainsburys/Tesco/Argos/ Royal Mail as they are all advertising online at the moment for the posts and for most of these as soon as they are online they are gone as literally the first person to apply will get them. I graduated last December, did teacher training but failed final placement, but can't get a job as a ta, hlta or anything. You just need to hope someone gives you a chance. I have only just been given one after a year of looking (but i've been working doing agency work since about a week after finishing - well worth looking into as although a lot of the work isn't challenging its usually minumum wage but it gives you something on your cv and for some posts you will start in the same week as you apply (for me i started the same day) as jobs are like gold dust at the moment. If you don't want to sign on definately sign up to some agencies. I don't know where you are in the country but a and t active, right for staff, taskmaster, rober half international/office angels and thorn baker have all been good to me work wise and would highly recommend all of these.

Good luck though

pmlindyloo

Have you tried widening your search area?

My daughter went to London and registered with all the temp agencies there. She did get a job and after 2 years it was made permanent. She had to do a commute of an hour and a half to begin with but eventually rented a place in Greenwich to cut down on her travelling. She is having a wonderful time!

I don't know if this would be feasible for you living in Windsor but even if it means long hours it may be worth it in the end.

Good luck!

LondonDiva

Which agencies have you signed up to so far?

DCFC79

Look a all of the recruitment job sites fro all of the supermarkets, also check the websites for any retailers on any retail parks you can easily get to 1 way or another.

TeaCake

Theres many of us in the same boat, I have 9 years of shop / customer service experience on top of my 1st class degree and still struggle to get an interview. MaccyDs didn't want me, ive applied to every xmas job ive come across so far and have sent out many speculative letters on top of applying for every job that I have skills that can be applied to the job.
Luckily I have discovered what it is I want to do with my life so im back at college 1 day a week to get qualified so I can apply to the 10's of job adverts in the job centre that I can't now due to not being qualified on paper for them.

Good luck with your search.

pinkshoes

I'm afraid it's a case of just applying to jobs (taking time to make sure the CV and covering letter is specific to each job, rather than a general one for ALL jobs), and fingers crossed for an interview.

A friend of mine also has a degree in psychology, and found her only way in was through unpaid voluntary work, and she had to move to Newcastle to do this (from Exeter!). Thankfully her parents paid her rent in a bedsit until she also found paid work alongside the volunteering.

If your degree was in engineering, I'd have no problem getting you a job!

MoneySavingUser

pinkshoes wrote: »

If your degree was in engineering, I'd have no problem getting you a job!

are you a recruiter? (just wondering - I'm not an engineer)