A QUARTER OF GRADUATE EMPLOYERS UNIMPRESSED BY YOUR WORK ETHIC – BUT IS CRITICISM FAIR?
Are you looking for a graduate job? Graduate employers have challenged young jobseekers’ assumptions by insisting that their attitude towards work is far more important than the amount of work experience they have, or the university where they studied.
When picking graduate recruits, businesses say they look first for the attitudes and aptitudes that will enable them to be effective in the workplace. Unfortunately, a quarter of employers also say that graduates’ attitudes to work are not satisfactory. So, if you’re struggling to find work, could this be what is letting you down?
The stat comes from the latest report by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), published earlier this week, in which graduate recruiters were asked to list their top-three factors when assessing graduate recruits.
‘Relevant work experience / industrial placement’ was listed by 64% as being in their top three most important factors. Sixty two per cent said ‘Degree subject’ and 55% said ‘Degree class’. Perhaps surprisingly, only 17% said the university the candidate attended was a top-three consideration when hiring.
Worryingly, there are concerns that universities are not making sure that graduates leave with basic skills – and many employers echoed the common complaint that candidates are not properly prepared for job interviews for the careers they say they want.
Around one in six businesses reports not being satisfied with the numeracy (14%), use of English (17%) and analytical skills (19%) of graduates. The report states:
“These are worrying figures. Businesses should be able to expect a satisfactory level of competence in all these essential areas among those completing higher education courses.”
Nearly one in five firms (21%) is not satisfied with graduates’ problem solving skills, which the reports says ‘Should be a prime output of higher education.’ Twenty five per cent said they were dissatisfied with graduate attitudes to work, 26% were unimpressed with your teamworking skills and 29% said graduates’ communication skills weren’t up to scratch.
A third of businesses (33%) reported that graduates did not have a satisfactory level of knowledge about their chosen career.
These stats look harsh for graduates – which is why want to hear from you. Graduate Fog listens to graduates and we know that things look very different from your side of the fence.
We know that many ambitious graduates feel you have a brilliant work ethic and would love the chance to prove yourselves, but feel you are being blanked at application stage because you didn’t study at Oxbridge. Either that, or you haven’t been able to collect much impressive work experience, because the best positions in your field are unpaid and you couldn’t afford to work for free.
So, do you feel that employers’ complaints are fair, unfair – or perhaps a bit of both? Post your comments below…
If anyone feels like they need some help with how to do well at interviews, there is a FREE online course coming up with FutureLearn.
I’m registered on it myself 🙂 I’ve done a few of their courses now, usually find them of very good quality and helpful with motivation. They are often designed and delivered by unis all over the country on different areas from science, to literature, self employment, business and self help.
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/interviews-3/welcome
Go Figure…but, then again, who can really be impressed with any employer replacing salaried jobs with a) apprenticeships, b) internships, or c) involved with the Department for Works and Pensions Slave Labour Programme ?
The world has changed. In my father’s day it was accepted that an employer had a duty to train up a school leaver. My father moved straight from school into an apprenticeship which was poorly paid but there was a guarantee of a well-paying job upon completion. These days an “apprenticeship” is a way of circumventing minimum wage legislation.
Attitude is of course important. It is really the only thing you are in control of in the job search. How many job ads demand a “positive can do attitude” as one of the bullet points in their person spec? That said it is easy for people with the stability of a pay packet to lecture about the need for the right attitude. Worries about being able to pay rent or afford food or clothing do not exactly lend themselves to feelings of positivity.
Lets examine credible research.
In 2002, the Government commissioned research to identify those factors which impacted directly on the UK Productivity Gap – and research concluded that Business Managers within UK SME’s had become obsessed with short term finance at the exclusion of long term strategic commitments (such as Innovation, Research and Development, Human Capital, Training).
Employers have ample opportunity to contribute to training and skills development…but, unless they provide sponsorship or placements for candidates at College/University, they have no credible perspective. They have even less to contribute if, for the sake of argument, they require students to take out Student Loans, who end up with (say) £40K Student Debt after finishing undergraduate training, bankrolled by the taxpayer.
The CBI (and by extension other bodies such as Chambers of Commerce, Association of Graduate Recruiters, Institute of Directors) should get its own house in order, start to lead on the subject, rather than adopt the attitude of proverbial losers, citing the “not my fault, guv” attitude and belief.
Sod off. Our generation has to jump through many more hoops than the previous generations and get next to nothing in return. We pay the highest tuition fees in the world, work dead end jobs for below a living wage and getting on the property ladder is a pipe dream for many. Employers should check THEIR attitude, as it is them and their privilaged generation which wrecked the economy and put many into a lifetime of servitude.