Where to find jobs?

steveandel

My OH graduated last summer with a 2:1 in languages from a top university but is struggling to find a job in Leeds. She doesn't really want to do translation or anything like that and isn't fussed about getting something relevant to her degree. She's been looking in local papers, on local counil websites etc for jobs but can't seem to find any that a) she likes the sound of and b) thinks she can get.

She likes the idea of something office based and some administrative work but not just admin work cos she'd be bored to death within a couple of weeks. She needs to be stretched a bit.

Loads of them state that you need however many years experience etc, even just for a fairly junior secretary on a lowish wage. She's clearly not stupid but empoyers don't seem to be able to see past their own 'experience' requirements when considering applicants.

Anybody got any ideas about good places to look for jobs or any other advice? Thanks!

BrunoM

Sounds like temping might be a good idea, to get a feel for what secretarial or admin work involves day to day in different industries, that sort of thing.

Either way, lots of online job resources out there to take a look without any real effort

https://www.monster.co.uk
https://www.adecco.co.uk
https://www.totaljobs.com
https://www.jobsite.co.uk
https://www.workthing.com
https://www.reed.co.uk

for big, searchable job databases - some of the above have real agencies with offices behind them which you can then go ahead and register with your local branch if you so chose.

Oldernotwiser

steveandel wrote: »

She likes the idea of something office based and some administrative work but not just admin work cos she'd be bored to death within a couple of weeks. She needs to be stretched a bit.

And what has she been doing for the last 11 months that's stretched her? You have to start somewhere and if she'd started work after graduation she'd have a year's experience under her belt by now. Sometimes you just have to get on with it and learn what suits you as you go. Temping sounds like a good idea.

Conor_3

steveandel wrote: »

She's clearly not stupid but empoyers don't seem to be able to see past their own 'experience' requirements when considering applicants.

For a start, if you're applying for a job as a secretary at your local Estate Agents, a degree in foreign languages is about as irrelevent as it gets. RSA Stage 2 typing/shorthand is more relevent.

Why employers look at experience more than degrees is that people with degrees are ten a penny and many of those degrees are ones that require little actual real intelligence to pass, such as the new "media" types. Once upon a time it used to mean something but nowadays, the low standard of graduates has altered that. The IT sector went through a similar thing. Back in the day, a MCSE was a guaranteed job however it was possible to get a MCSE and have zero real world experience. A term was coined, "A paper MCSE", meaning you had the certificate and no experience. Many companies got their fingers burned and finally woke up to the realisation that a degree merely indicates you've learned the theoretical side.

She may have a degree but she's no work experience, hence they have to train someone up. Whilst they're training that person, they're effectively useless and tying up other productive employees to train them. A lot of companies simply don't have the time or money to be able to afford to do this and if it's in a sector where there are plenty of people on the dole who have experience, they don't see any need to bother.

Sadly she's in a catch 22.


If she thought a degree was a way of bypassing the "start at the bottom and work up" phase, she's going to have a rude awakening.

She needs to apply for the jobs she doesn't think she'll stand a chance of getting. She may be surprised and you'll not know if you don't try. Also try the employment agencies. It's a good way to get experience in a short time and it's relatively risk free.

steveandel

After graduation she was living at home with her family in an area with virtually no jobs going. She signed onto numerous agencies and eventually managed to get 2.5 months experience temping at the local council. We then got engaged spent the next 2/3 months looking for a house nr Leeds (5hrs drive away from where she lived). She was up and down the country quite a lot whilst we were sorting out our house so it wasn't possible for her to have a job during this time. We moved in 2 months ago and she has been looking for jobs since then with no joy. She has signed on to a few temping agencies but they haven't found her any temping jobs at all.

My gripe about companies looking for experience is that for companies with highly skilled employees, yes ok they take quite a time to train, but for a bog standard admin role you can learn all you need in 2 days which really isn't too much of a strain on resources is it? And in the long term, having someone intelligent as opposed to someone who just 'knows the ropes' is surely better for the company?

She did her degree because she wanted to, not to 'jump' the recruitment process and I appreciate that some degrees are pretty much worthless now. However, a 2:1 from the University of Durham, AAAAB A-levels and 6 x A* and 4A's at GCSE should show some differentiation from someone who's got a degree in a Mickey Mouse subject from a 'new' university? I think employers aren't paying enough attention to the actual degree anymore.

BubbaUk_2

also https://www.jobsearch.co.uk

lynzpower

My gripe about companies looking for experience is that for companies with highly skilled employees, yes ok they take quite a time to train, but for a bog standard admin role you can learn all you need in 2 days which really isn't too much of a strain on resources is it? And in the long term, having someone intelligent as opposed to someone who just 'knows the ropes' is surely better for the company?

She did her degree because she wanted to, not to 'jump' the recruitment process and I appreciate that some degrees are pretty much worthless now. However, a 2:1 from the University of Durham, AAAAB A-levels and 6 x A* and 4A's at GCSE should show some differentiation from someone who's got a degree in a Mickey Mouse subject from a 'new' university? I think employers aren't paying enough attention to the actual degree anymore.

Its not so long ago that I graduated with my degree, and although I worked like an utter trojan throughout it, there came a time when most graduates have to accept the fact that their degree isnt worth anything, as its work experience employers want.

You say "bog standard" it reminds me of my attitude when I finished uni,. I felt like i was *above* "tinpot" admin jobs and the world was my oyster. Errrr except it wasnt.

If she doesnt want to use her degree for a language based career, she may well have tpo accept the fact that there was no point in doing it. She will be up against people the same age as her who left school at 16 and have X amount of years experience - admin isnt BOG STANDARD, it is ensuring organisaions run effectively, setting up systems, being meticulous, being committed to sometimes the very routine jobs, otherwise organisations can and do collapse with poor administration in place.

Everywhere Ive worked, both in professional and administrative roles, its been the admin or the secretary that holds it all together.

One, I think she needs to lower her expectations considerably
Two, she needs to hassle the agencies daily to get work

Hope this isnt too harsh, but I feel its such a shame that people go through education in this country graft thier bum off, and come out and find its predominantly worthless. However, this is the world we live in and adaptability is key

Oldernotwiser

steveandel wrote: »

My gripe about companies looking for experience is that for companies with highly skilled employees, yes ok they take quite a time to train, but for a bog standard admin role you can learn all you need in 2 days which really isn't too much of a strain on resources is it? And in the long term, having someone intelligent as opposed to someone who just 'knows the ropes' is surely better for the company?

.

I think that this must be one of the most patronising, ill informed posts I've ever read. There are various types of administration jobs none of which could be learnt in a couple of days.
Having a degree, even a 2:1 from Durham, doesn't necessarily mean that person's more intelligent than a non graduate. The way she's been wasting time since she graduated doesn't speak well of her intelligence and certainly not for her common sense.

Conor_3

steveandel wrote: »

However, a 2:1 from the University of Durham, AAAAB A-levels and 6 x A* and 4A's at GCSE should show some differentiation from someone who's got a degree in a Mickey Mouse subject from a 'new' university?

Only if the degree was applicable to the job she was applying for, i.e Linquist/language teacher.

Unless they're industry specific for the job she's applying in, whilst they look nice on a C.V, someone who has a vocational qualification in the industry they're applying for a job in will win hands down in the recruitment process, even though the qualification may only be City and Guilds.

Employers have been screaming from the rooftops for quite a while that GCSE and A levels are completely and utterly irrelevent to the job market and do nothing to demonstrate someones suitability for job, and that vocational qualifications should be offered instead. The trouble is that the educational establishments refuse to listen to any criticism and sadly it's the kids that suffer. This is compounded by the so called "careers advisors" who are so out of touch with industry that it's not funny.

Conor_3

steveandel wrote: »

but for a bog standard admin role you can learn all you need in 2 days

ROFLMAO. Funniest thing I've heard.

Oldernotwiser

Conor wrote: »

Employers have been screaming from the rooftops for quite a while that GCSE and A levels are completely and utterly irrelevent to the job market and do nothing to demonstrate someones suitability for job, and that vocational qualifications should be offered instead. The trouble is that the educational establishments refuse to listen to any criticism and sadly it's the kids that suffer. This is compounded by the so called "careers advisors" who are so out of touch with industry that it's not funny.

Employers have been screaming about low standards of eduction generally rather than demanding vocational qualifications. They also complain that young people are unprepared for the disciplines of employment and that preparation for the "world of work" is almost non-existent.

There has been no such thing as Careers Advisers for a couple of years now. Connexions Personal Advisers have to be very client centred and are not supposed to put industry's needs first. These are changes initiated by the government and many people who have previously been Careers Advisers are unhappy with the current service but have no say in the decisions that have been made regarding careers guidance. There is no longer such a thing as a "Careers Service".