Repeat After Me: 'I See Pride, I See Power...'

If you’re old enough to remember the quote ‘I see pride, I see power…’ from Cool Runnings (1993), this tip is for you. When Junior is reciting this mantra to himself, it’s a way of him overcoming the fear of his parents' disappointment. A similar attitude is needed when approaching the graduate job market. Create a catchy, short mantra for yourself that you can use when you get down about unsuccessful applications. This way you can motivate yourself to get back out there in the job market and search for the next opportunity. Positivity is also discussed in the following article by one of GRB's reporters, read more …

Graduate Job Searching with the January Blues

It’s not uncommon in the midst of our darkest months of the year for the January Blues to be having an effect on your day-to-day mood. This tip applies to you if you are letting these shorter, colder days get to you in too many aspects of your life. The key is not to let the generally downtrodden mood affect your graduate job search or the all-important January exams. Your number one rule for the month should be to keep a cool head (excuse the pun). If you haven’t heard back from the graduate schemes you would have liked to have heard from, there are plenty more graduate opportunities out there of which you can apply for all year round. Get your priorities in check and don’t fall into the trap of panicking submitting 50 sub-par applications.

New Year, New Start!

We’re 7 days in to 2013 and by now most people have made various new year’s resolutions; giving up alcohol, going to the gym every day and start saving to name but a few. Although these goals may be achievable for some, they certainly aren’t for others.

This week’s tip - instead of setting over 10 goals for January which are destined to failure; set one, yes just one goal that can benefit every aspect of your life. So if you want to improve your fitness in the New Year, which is proven to help focus in the classroom, prepare you better for target driven environments in the work place and also improve health which are all incredibly employable qualities, make this your goal. If you want to start saving, get a hold of your finances, set up a direct debit to a closed ISA that you will meet on time, it will help you to cope when you enter the big world of work. If you want to quit drinking, try finding other activities that you and your friends can do that are non-alcohol related, increasing your list of hobbies will only help your CV in the long run, not to mention the long-term benefits of giving your liver a 6-month break.

New Year’s resolutions are more achievable if they are for a positive change, not negative ones. Think of doing exercise as keeping fit instead of losing weight. Think of stopping drinking as getting some really exciting new hobbies instead of sitting in the corner of a night club wondering why your there. Finally, think of saving as gaining a new found independence and control over your finances instead of ‘cutting back fun’.

Thinking Outside of the Box

There are a plethora of opportunities out there in the big wide world but finding the right one is key to lifting off into a successful career post-university. Applying to every single vacancy that fit your description on the basic level is not really ideal, both for yourself (it’s very exhausting to churn out hundreds of quality applications a day) and for the companies you’re applying to (the company that you’ve applied to both the buying and the finance scheme to will be a bit confused as to your motives and ambitions). Below are a few suggestions of how you can think outside the box, but at the same time be a little more specific as to what you’re applying to.

Firstly, use the alumni service at your university, there may be useful contacts that you can perhaps contact by email or arrange a coffee on campus with to discuss what they have done with their careers. Try finding members of the alumni who have studied the same degree as you, been part of the same societies or have had the same work experience with you, something key in common.

Secondly, discussion boards on social media sites are grossly underused, for example, twitter have a discussion group called ‘Hire Friday’ under #HFChat, which is of great use if you want to hear suggestions and hear other peoples stories, a key destination for job seekers.

Thirdly, if you’ve been applying to some opportunities based on your work experience and others based on your degree, combining the two elements of your application could stand you in good stead for something you haven’t necessarily thought of before.
For more alternative ways to conduct an alternative job search, follow the link: www.grb.uk.com/hidden-job-market

Location, Location, Location

This tip applies to those still clueless as to what the future holds after university. Deciding on graduate jobs and schemes is a difficult task; it really is a big deal deciding what you’re going to be doing for up to 50 hours a week for the next 4 years. If you use this tip, you’ll at least be able to make an informed decision.

The first location stands for just that, your geographical location when you finish university, for some people the ideal situation is living at home with mum and dad, rent and bill free until you save up to move into your own place, but for some, getting far away from mum and dad and spreading your wings as a young professional appeals. There are serious pros and cons to both so make a list and also take into account where the opportunities are, be practical in your decision, be happy with your decision.

The second location applies to your location within the company, where do you see yourself in 4 years; make a list from 1 to 5 of the most important things to you. Do you want to progress as quickly as possible, learn your trade in a graduate programme that’s qualification or training heavy, are you driven by money, success, targets, all these factors need to be accounted for in your top 5.
The final location is with reference to the company, are they the market leader, a medium size company, an ethical company. Again, make a list of what matters most to you, do you care most about the company’s annual turnover, ethos or general environment, it’s important to be comfortable with the company so that progressing upwards after the scheme, if that’s what you want, isn’t too daunting.

Get a Routine and Stay in a Routine

This academic new year, you won’t be a fool for having said something along the lines of ‘this year’s going to be different’ or ‘I’m going to live in the library this year’, then actually getting to university and slugging it out in the library for the first week followed by a year of partying to reward your hard work. At times like this the old saying ‘work hard, play hard’ springs to mind. 

The key for this time of year is figuring out a routine, treat your course at you would a 9-5 job but with a little bit of flexi-time. This way if you are having a lazy day, you can do as many hours as your attention span allows, so long as you make up for it on your next productive days. Being a full-time student means full-time so stay focussed from 9 to 5, or even 12 to 8. Get a routine, include society meetings and events, be the full-time student you know you can be! 

Making The Most Of Recruitment Fairs

The season is almost upon us for recruitment and career fairs, these can be a priceless resource for your graduate job search and when approached well can really rocket your job hunt forward.

Firstly, make sure you dress appropriately. Ensure you make an impression by dressing smartly and appearing confident and professional.

Make sure you are prepared too, take copies of your CV with you. Don’t hand them out aimlessly, but if you are really interested in a role then ask if they are accepting CV’s currently.

Be careful not to take too many free items, you don’t want to appear as if this is the main reason for your attendance, and if you do take the free merchandise make sure you have a bag to stash it in, that way you keep your hands free for handshakes and accepting company literature.

Finally, practice your sales speech beforehand. You will have only a couple minutes to make an impression and inform the employer about yourself, going with a short, snappy pitch helps make sure you leave a lasting impression.

Also, collect business cards of the people you have spoken to and follow up immediately thanking them for speaking with you and reiterating your interest in the role you spoke of. You may not receive a reply but it could help bring your CV to the company’s attention.

Know The Hidden Market

There are loads of graduate jobs advertised directly from companies each year, however this isn’t the complete overview of what is available. In order to gain a complete insight into the job market it is important to consider a number of different avenues.

The internet is pretty much everyone’s primary resource these days, with instant ability to search for graduate jobs. But there are other useful sources, such as job boards and recruitment consultancies that can offer a broader insight into what is available.

Signing up to just one of these resources is not enough though, different job boards and consultancies will have different clients and therefore different jobs to recruit for, so signing up to as many as possible increases the opportunities available to you. These can be registered for either online or through events such as Fresher Fairs and Recruitment Fairs that the university will be holding at some point during your time there, so make sure you attend these and make the most of every opportunity available.

Don't Forget You

It’s a stressful time thinking about finishing university and all the different elements that come along with it. There is so much to do and we know that sometimes it seems like there just aren’t enough hours in the day for everything and it is very easy to let everything take over your life, but it’s so important to try and retain a healthy balance between work and relaxing.

Don’t lose touch with your friends and your social life, these elements are actually just as important as the work. Achieving a good balance, ensuring you see your friends and maintain an active lifestyle will make you feel happier in general and therefore more productive, aiding your university work and your job search.

Planning your time and writing out a timetable can help achieve this balance, ensuring you utilise the time you have in the best possible way. This structure will ensure you are reserving some time for yourself, enabling you to relax and rejuvenate, ensuring you give yourself the best possible chance of success.

Honesty Is the Only Policy

Everyone wants to give themselves the best possible chance of finding the graduate career of their dreams and because of this it is very easy to get carried away when writing your CV. However, it is so important to ensure that you remain honest and, yes, write up your experiences to paint your abilities in the best light, but do not stretch the truth to the point of no return.

Exaggerating your experiences and skills may seem like a good idea when you are receiving calls regarding interviews, but what about when you are questioned on these during the interview? Any interviewer for any role will ask you extensively about your previous experiences to gage how transferable your skills are, if you have exaggerated within your CV or embellished beyond what you have actually done it will be easy for the interviewer to stumble across weaknesses and you will appear unorganised and come across as an unprepared candidate.

Think carefully about what you have been involved in outside of your academics and what skills and abilities your work experience has provided you that can be related to the role to which you are applying. We are sure you will have plenty to discuss with any interviewer, without having to stretch the truth.

It's Never Too Late

A lot of graduates are now well in to their graduate job search, have begun interviewing and maybe even potentially have secured roles for the summer onwards. However, not everyone chooses to take this approach, some students prefer to focus solely on their exams and then think about their job search. Both approaches are completely fine, but if leaving it later, it is important not to lose motivation.

Leaving your graduate job search until after your exams avoids distractions, additional stress and timetabling conflicts between exams, revision and interviews. However, it also means that companies will have already started to fill their schemes and roles before you have begun looking, making your job search potentially more complicated, having to investigate less obvious avenues for applications. The most important factor is to not lose motivation; there are roles out there and a whole hidden market to discover. Join as many recruitment agencies and consultancies as possible to get the best overview of the job market as a whole and remember to always tailor your applications and avoid trying to cut corners.

Make The Most Of Every Opportunity

In today’s current climate it’s more important than ever for graduates to have work experience when entering the job market. Most commonly are summer internships and industrial placements whilst at university; both are invaluable when it comes to your graduate job search.

While at university, a lot of courses and universities offer the option of an industrial placement or, more and more commonly, require it to get the degree. Don’t shy away from this opportunity, leaving university with a degree that included a year’s work experience helps give you an edge.

For those who haven’t had that opportunity, the summer is upon us and a lot of graduates are still in the midst of their search for employment. A great utilisation of time would be to secure work experience in the form of an internship within a field of interest and that you are applying to. On your CV this shows a proactive approach to your spare time and helps ensure you have less of a gap on your CV as well as highlighting to employers that you will have the skills and attributes they are searching for.

Don't Be A Couch Potato

It’s easy to fall into a routine of university life and wanting to just do nothing after the stress and pressure of the exam period. However, this won’t help your job search or yourself in general.

Exercising is a crucial element of improving wellbeing and in turn positively affecting your job hunt. Through increasing exercise not only do you lose weight and tone up, subsequently feeling  happier, you also start to eat better and sleep sounder, which your energy levels improve leading to an increase in productivity. In turn this leads to reduced stress levels and increased confidence, two great characteristics to have when searching for your graduate job and attending interviews, leaving you with the best chance of success.

So why not get fit for the summer and improve your employment search, get together with friends, join a gym or commit to a form of weekly exercise and have fun.

Interview Follow Up

What do you do after a job interview? Do you go home and wait or do you improve your chances of progressing to the next stage and getting the position? Following up after an interview is a great way to make sure you stand out from the multiple applicants and here are some tips on how to write a great ‘Thank you’ follow up.

Always remember, a thank you is a nice touch, but it can be a great strategic move. Include anything you think of after your interview that you wish you had said in retrospect (not too much though, keep it short and sweet).

If there were any concerns shared about your suitability, address them and reiterate your reasoning behind this potential weakness not being a problem and your suitability for the role.

Finish by highlighting your three top experiences and qualifications and how they would benefit the company from what you learnt during your interview. Reiterate information you learnt and your increased interests and determination, promising to deliver in the role, as we are sure you will.

Do Your Research

Last week’s tip was to ensure you have researched the role you are applying to, and the career path you are set on. This week’s tip follows on in same nature; research.

Another element of research you will need to do is on the company to which you are applying. Ensure you have done this before applying, it will help you tailor your application to the company properly, helping you stand out from other applicants. You also never know when a company may call so doing this research at the earliest stage of the application will ensure preparation when receiving a surprise call.

When you are invited to an interview, do more research, don’t just rely on your initial research. This research will need to be far more in depth, and you will need to consider the external environment too, such as competitors and the market in which they operate. Doing this will enable you to tailor your answers, think of good questions to ask at the end of your interview and give a great overall first impression, making sure you stand out from the crowd.

Know What You Want

When applying to graduate jobs, in a time when too many people are falling into the trap of applying to any role, you need to know what you want. By this we don’t mean narrowing down your job search to only one specific type of career, we mean avoiding making a very common mistake; not truly understanding what you are applying to.

Research your chosen path thoroughly, just because you may have heard of the job role at university doesn’t necessarily mean you completely understand what that position entails. This may sound obvious, but it is a mistake we see regularly. As a job applicant you need to be able to answer what you understand about the career and role and why you are interested in it. For example, consultancy, there are many different types, yet more and more we speak to people who want to go into consultancy, but don’t realise consultancy ranges across every industry and therefore haven’t thought about which interests them.

Having a thorough understanding of the career path you want and the role you are applying to will leave any interviewer impressed and far more convinced of your interest, sincerity and suitability for their vacancy.

Think Carefully Before Making That Call

Missed a call? Do you think about who it could be before calling back? Do you even call back? Whether during a graduate job search, or just in general, it is so important to do this.

Firstly, if you have missed a call and there is a voicemail then listen to the voicemail. It will contain information on the caller and the reasons behind the call as well as possibly a direct line for you to call. This will allow you to prepare and seem organised and informed when calling back.

Also think carefully about your phone etiquette when calling into a company, our consultants advise that lines such as ‘Hi, My name is…I had a missed call from…earlier on today/yesterday etc. Is it possible to speak to them now?’ are always winners; it sounds professional and gives a great first impression.

Especially when applying for jobs, make sure you answer your phone professionally and with an engaging tone, never screen your calls and always call back using the best phone etiquette, you never know when it will count.

Be Patient

We know it isn’t easy to be patient when it comes to your graduate job search but it is important for a number of different reasons.

Firstly, be aware that you won’t be the only applicant for a role. It may take a little bit of time for you to receive feedback, do not chase progress after a few hours or a day, they probably haven’t even had time to look at any applications yet. It’s always good to be keen, but you don’t want to risk annoying your potential employer and seeming high maintenance.

Secondly, if you have any questions that’s great, but don’t expect an immediate answer. Questions about the role will more than likely be easy for the interviewer to answer, but if it isn’t and they have to find out give them time to do so. Questions you have after an offer of employment may also be simple to answer, but there are many variables here, such as number of new employees, number of the years the company have run the role and logistics of the job. It can be frustrating if you do not have all the answers immediately, but remember, they want you to work for them and you are in a great position. They will be doing their best to sort everything; it just may take some time.

Finally, everybody will receive rejection at least once before finding the graduate job for them, do not get disheartened. Be patient and keep going, you will succeed and it will be worth it when you do.

Always Make A Good First Impression

Sounds pretty obvious? Good. Then you are more than likely making a good first impression. But as recruiters we have seen and heard of our fair share of bad first impressions. And when we speak of first impressions this is with anyone involved in your graduate job search, both recruiters and graduate employers.

Make sure you have an appropriate voicemail set up; we recommend you check this regularly, you never know who has got hold of your phone. Graduate recruiters and employers alike won’t find things funny like your friends do; it could cause irreparable damage to your application. In fact, make sure you actually have a voicemail set up; the inability of a recruiter to leave a message may stop your application dead in its tracks.

Even more importantly, think about the first impression you are giving at your interview. Make sure you are dressed well and appropriately. No dresses or skirts above the knee, no low cut blouses, no unbuttoned shirts. If you are taking laptops or folders make sure they are clean and tidy, not run down and tattered. When sat waiting do not sit on your laptop, read through notes, but make sure you are able to react in an instant to the person arriving. Sit corporately, do not lounge around in their chairs, no matter how comfy they are. Finally, if you want water, accept their offer of a drink, do not take a sports bottle and swig from this throughout an interview.

With an ever increasing pool of talented graduates being produced by universities, these tips are of the upmost importance, no matter how obvious they may seem.

Being Numerically Minded

This week's tip comes from a recent graduate, Arnab Datta. Numeracy is one of the key skills needed to secure most graduate jobs, along with writing and IT skills. A basic knowledge is assumed for most jobs but of course there are certain career paths that required a more detailed understanding. So, how important is it to develop numerical skills during your studies?

A recent study has revealed that STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) graduates earn on average 4.47% more than other graduates. This report aimed to ascertain the ‘labour market value’ of qualifications, but other research has shown even greater discrepancies in favour of STEM graduates ranging from 18.8% to 33%. Still, there is not complete agreement over the value of science and engineering degrees, since other statistics have conversely shown that the salaries are lower.

Although a salary should not be your sole motivation for a graduate job, it is a fairly good indicator of the demand for graduates with certain degrees, and will help to assess your job prospects. The main reason why STEM graduates are in greater demand is that they have developed transferable skills, which can also be used in careers like Finance. Also, some STEM degrees enable a greater choice of modules at university and give the opportunity to learn more about business. This helps to create more well rounded individuals who develop both a theoretical grounding in their subject and a commercial awareness that they can take into the workplace.

Still, the most crucial message outlined in these types of research is the general importance of numeracy, since employers think that this is one of the skills that graduates lack most. Even if you do not study a Maths related degree, you should still try to keep your basic skills up to date. This will be useful for any career, since usually there are work plans and budgets to complete or proposals, which all require calculations. Making a mistake in the office could be costly, so you need to ensure that you are accurate. Indeed, numeracy skills are linked to IT, since a lot of work is done in spreadsheets. Therefore, developing considerable experience of this will definitely help in the future.

Overall, don’t worry if you are not that numerically inclined, since the key is to develop the core skills that are regularly used in the majority of careers. Still, it is worth bearing in mind that if you do manage to develop these types of skills, then it will not only help you to secure most graduate jobs, but will also put you more at ease in the workplace.