UNDERGRADUATES TWIG THAT THEY NEED TO GET ORGANISED
The hunt for a graduate job has never been so competitive – with a record number of job applications being sent earlier than ever before, according to new research by High Fliers.
The study of more than 18,000 students found that graduate job applications are at a record high, with students submitting an average of more than seven applications each before they even leave university, the highest level found in 18 years of their research. It suggests that news about the toughness of the graduate job market is filtering through to those still at university, who are realising they need to get organised if they are serious about finding work quickly once they graduate. The highest number of job applications was from students at the London School of Economics, who sent an average of more than 11 applications.
High Fliers, who produce graduate recruitment data, interviewed students from 30 universities across the UK. The found that applications are being sent earlier than ever before. 41% of finalists said they made at least one job application almost a year before graduation. This is compared to 37% in 2011, 31% in 2009, 28% 2006 and 25% 2001.
Martin Birchall, managing director of High Fliers, said that intensive job hunting has become the norm for most UK students:
“The survey shows just how hard today’s university students are working to secure a graduate job at the end of their degree. Record numbers of students are now choosing to research their career options in their first or second year at university, rather than leaving job hunting until the final six months before graduation.”
The study also found that graduates who had done some work experience when they were students were three times more likely to get a job. More than a third of applicants who had done some kind of work experience with a graduate employer had received at least one job offer by March 2013, compared with just 11% of applicants who had no done no work experience whilst at university. Birchall said:
“Work experience is no longer an optional extra for university students, it’s an essential part of preparing for the graduate job market.”
This research highlights that employers are facing an ever increasing number of applications for graduate jobs. The survey estimates that there have been 427,000 job applications last year from the 30 universities in the survey alone – that’s almost double from five years ago.
*HOW MANY JOBS DID YOU APPLY FOR BEFORE YOU GRADUATED?
Did you leave it too late? O did you start applying early – but just not have any luck? Looking back, when should you have started thinking about what you were going to do after uni? And when should you have started applying for jobs? Do you regret leaving it so late, or were you concentrating on your exams? Is it fair to expect students to start thinking about jobs before they’ve even finished their degree, or should you be allowed to enjoy your time at uni while you’re there? Please post your thoughts below!
This is totally true and I think actually may underestimate the number of applications graduates make for jobs before they leave university. I applied for 16 different graduate schemes in my final year starting in September because that’s when the large graduate schemes open for applications. Many have telephone interviews in January/February and assessment centres in April/June so if you want a place on a large graduate scheme it is essential to apply early!
Only 7? As well as long-shot grad schemes I applied for dozens of admin and retail jobs on jobsites – I really wanted to stay put what I now saw as my home city after uni. Was lucky to get c 18 months’ of work (summer part time, then 15 months’ full time) til my luck finally ran out.
grad schemes want such high GCSE’s and high UCAS points, they use this because there is that many graduates coming out of uni, they are using it as a way to filter out weaker educated graduates sad fact but true
I’ve made the awful mistake of applying for too many jobs and being successful at the interview stages of several jobs. Now I don’t know what to do! I have applied for a job that I would absolutely love to do and what I would consider my dream job, but I don’t expect to hear back from them for a week. However, I have just had a letter through saying I have been accepted for another job. I don’t know what to do! Help?
In response to the forum, I started applying after Uni. I couldn’t deal with it during my final few months. I don’t regret doing it in this way, as I know there is government support available to help me during this period – which although I was tentative to accept, I am grateful for.
BBC3 is looking for people in the 18 to 27 age range to be in a documentary about how difficult it is to get work:
http://indusdelta.co.uk/discussion/are_you_18_27_unemployed_and_eager_to_work_if_so_bbc3_wants_to_hear_you/13282
I’m not at all surprised by this. In my final year of uni, I submitted about 35 grad job applications between September and January, and I know others who have done a similar number. On the other hand, I also know people who didn’t apply to anything, so I suppose it balances out on average. I think this trend will definitely continue while the job market is as bad as it is now. It’s also interesting that many of the largest grad schemes (and the most competitive ones) tend to be open for applications between July and December, so if a person wants to start working the year that they graduate, it’s pretty much imperative they do the applications (plus online questionnaires, tests, interviews, assessment centres…) alongside studying. I personally found this really stressful and exhausting, especially since I spent most of my second year applying for internships (where the process is just as gruelling) alongside studying and running a society. In the end, though, I feel like applying early is the only way to get any sort of advantage in such a competitive job market.
7!? I had to send nearly 700 job applications before I graduated to get just one interview and, thankfully, one job offer.
@Jan: Yeah that sounds more like it.
I find this article very interesting. I am graduating in December of 2013 and have been lucky enough to have secured a job that I will begin shortly after graduation and I started applying in October of 2013. I have applied to probably close to 50 positions by now, and has had only four phone interviews. The job market is really rough, I was one of the lucky ones, or so my classmates tell me.
7? That’s nothing
I applied to 194 banks before even graduating and got just 1 offer
All the job websites seem to be permanently flooded with sales vacancies, and it’s often the same ones advertised over and over. That to me suggests that people aren’t going for them or aren’t staying long, meaning it can’t be that great a job