Job hunting as a Graduate

tiamaria

Hi, Thanks for the reply Jeff. Yes, he has been trying all sorts of vacancies. He's done all you said but of course he just has to keep on trying I know even though it's disheartening right now. The burger bar is just to give him some money in his pocket but he will keep on looking. I think he may have had a better chance had he graduated in something more specific like accountancy, but it was difficult as he didn't know what he wanted to do except he was good at Maths!

I Guess we all thought that with a good degree he would have a choice of jobs but hey - welcome to the real world..

Jazzyjeff_2

tiamaria wrote: »

Hi, Thanks for the reply Jeff. Yes, he has been trying all sorts of vacancies. He's done all you said but of course he just has to keep on trying I know even though it's disheartening right now. The burger bar is just to give him some money in his pocket but he will keep on looking. I think he may have had a better chance had he graduated in something more specific like accountancy, but it was difficult as he didn't know what he wanted to do except he was good at Maths!

I Guess we all thought that with a good degree he would have a choice of jobs but hey - welcome to the real world..

I graduated with a degree in Accountancy and have found it true that some employers for accountancy related jobs prefer a different degree - especially Maths. Does he know what he wants to do? Is Accountancy something he thinks would suit him? Sounds like maybe the area you live is a tough place to find work...applying to lots of accountancy practices & even the big ones like PWC E&Y KPMG DELOITTE with the degree he has and I'm pretty sure he will get a job somewhere.

Where I live its not that hard at all to get temp work within finance, JP Morgan for instance have such a big base not too far away that he could probably apply through their main temp agency (hays) and get a job the very next day.

He's just got to keep going and I'm pretty sure he will find something

3plus1

Tiamaria, if your son wants to go into accountancy, a 2:1 in maths is strong enough. However, he needs to also have work experience - not necessarily related. Has he worked part time during his degree to help fund himself? Even bar work, shop work, etc. can show the sort of transferable key skills that the big accountancy firms look for.

To get into the big four, he'll also need to have done really quite well in his A-levels/Advanced Highers/IB, but the big four are only four firms, and there are plenty of smaller accountancy firms with less strict requirements.

I've just entered the accountancy profession as a graduate... of languages. Your son's degree is a lot more relevant than mine!!

For accountancy and general management jobs, a maths 2:1 degree should be an asset, not a problem.

I agree it's a good idea to work to bring in the pennies, even if it is at a burger bar... but don't let him give up hope, just yet. Getting a graduate job is really difficult, and he needs to learn how to sell himself. That's the part I initially struggled with - it just takes practice, though.

Hope that helps.

DireEmblem

Hi,

Forgive me if i missed it, but what did you graduate with, and what are you looking for?

I would reccomend going in with your CV and signing up to all the recruitment firms - let them come to you with job vacancies, even give you a lot of help for the interview, after all there is a bonus in it for them...

Firms I know of in Edinburgh are Joslin Rowe, Morgan Mckinley, Pertemps, Eden Scott, and many more, especially just of Rose Street. Some will even run through your CV. Dont be put off by the fact that they will most likely find you temporary jobs, the more experience you have the better being a new graduate, and you can use it to ensure that the job is really what you want to do. Use the experience you gain through these positions as leverage to show that you are trying to better youself and get into your ideal position.

Oh and most of all dont just follow the herd with applying to all the graduate recruitment positions, these are often hard to get, and far easier to obtain if you are working in the company.

tiamaria

Thanks again for your responses. He had finally decided that accountancy was the way to go until last week when he was contacted by an agency about a data analyst vacancy & he thought it was a job he could do well, sadly he didn't make an interview which is why he's especially feeling low now.

Jeff - yes, you are right about the area, west Cornwall is not great for anyone starting a career:rolleyes: However, the job I mentioned was in Milton Keynes so he's prepared to move if necessary (& it probably will be).

He was also really keen on KPMG but they turned him down, saying he didn't have the grades, academic qualifications not were not enough compared to large amount of applicants.

Most of the large firms take on during September so he may have more luck in mid 2008 when they are looking for graduates.

As for the burger bar, he worked there throughout college & is going back as a Manager which he had previously worked his way up to, so yes, he does have some work experience.

Thanks for your support, I will pass on the names you mentioned in case he's missed them and no, he won't be giving up just yet.

Blacksheep1979

would highly advise having at least a part time job as any gap in employment looks badly. As for most grad jobs not going to new grads thats not really true in many investment banks both for IT and other roles.

Jazzyjeff_2

He can't get disheartened by a couple of rejections before even an interview. It can take being put forward for 20-25 jobs and 10 or more interviews before getting a job (and thats not bad!).

There are many reasons why he might not of got an interview, the most likely is that they were looking for someone with post graduate experience in a similar role but they agency either just put loads of CV's forward / wanted to bulk up the amount they sent over / thought it was worth it as a long shot because of his degree.

Even now I'm qualified I have just started looking again and have been put forward for around 6/7 jobs, had one interview, no job yet. This is all perfectly normal and I'm sure the perfect job is round the corner for me.

As where you live seems to be such a big problem would he consider moving to do temporary work and beef up his CV. If he widened his search area and got a good temp job somewhere else it really would help him a lot in the long run.

helloecho

I graduated in 2006 with a Social Sciences degree (so not career-specific at all) and decided that I wanted to go into publishing, either print or online. I'd had a few weeks work experience here and there but nothing solid, no experience of working in an office, nothing. This is one of the most competetive sectors to work in, so it was fairly soul-destroying.

After about 10 or 15 failed interviews, including second-round interviews, I was offered an internship in the press office of a government agency. It was for 6 months and unpaid, and I provisionally accepted, but it got me thinking. I got back to the companies I had been previously interviewed by who I had been impressed with, and explained that I was looking for some experience to build up my CV, asking if they be willing to take me on for a month or so, unpaid, to to give me some experience. Suddenly they were fighting over me! I went with a lovely publishing company who offered me a week-long, paid, training week, and at the end of the week they employed me as a researcher (a position they created especially for me!) Six months down the line I was promoted to an Editor, and even after being at the company for a year I still can't believe I'm doing my dream job so soon after leaving Uni.

I hope that doesn't come across as too big-headed, but I would truly recommend offering yourself for free to any graduate having trouble finding a job. Even if they don't pay you anything, if you can come to some kind of agreement that you go in 3 days a week or something, still allowing you time to keep down a part-time paid job to support you. Whether they decide to employ you or not, it will look good on your CV, and build up contacts in the industry.

pinkshoes

Agree entirely with helloecho!

The market is flooded with graduates, so the big companies often want good degrees (2.1 or better), good A Levels (3 As in "proper" subjects), as well as work experience (not necesarily in relevant field, but experience that can help you develop skills that can be used in other fields) and extra curricular activities (hobbies, sports, interests etc...), so unpaid work experience is often a great way to get relevant work experience on your CV!

misscomickat

It's all very well for those who can afford it, to go and work for 6 months unpaid, but personally I think that is exploitation, and pushes out people from poorer backgrounds.

Work experience is very valuable, I did lots of work placements while at university, but there is no way I could have worked for free after graduating, I needed to earn money to live.

I would suggest that the OP's son gets any job in the meantime, preferably something in his chosen field with an agency. There are plenty of agencies out there.

It can take a long time for people to get into their chosen career field after graduating. I was lucky and got a place on a trainee scheme (which I've since left).