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Getting that first foot on the employment ladder can be just as hard as taking your first steps on to the property market. With students sending out record amounts of applications to land the perfect graduate position, how can you guarantee you don’t miss the boat and walk straight into a great graduate-level role?
Here are 5 tips that will vastly improve your chances of graduate-level employment straight from university.
1. Start looking early
Get serious; the sooner you start researching job opportunities the more likely you are to be aware of requirements, closing dates, and what’s right for your skill set before graduation comes around. It is not unheard of for students to proactively search the employment market within their first year of study due to increases in applicants and reductions in student confidence.
2. Get experience
It is now imperative to gain actual work experience before graduation comes around. Whether that is through part-time work, needed to finance further education, or a sandwich year, which includes a relevant internship, it doesn’t matter, either will be of benefit. Gaining a higher education level degree is by no means a guaranteed ticket to landing the dream job. Recruiters are becoming increasingly selective as competition is now rife between candidates within the job market, however, Universities now understand this and many offer fantastic work experience opportunities through forged with local businesses.
3. Network
Networking should happen organically through your time in further education and it shouldn’t be a forced or unnatural process. There will be many opportunities to meet up and interact with major employers during your time at university. Job fairs present a great, social, and informal opportunity to liaise with representatives from prospectus employers. This will in turn allow you to hand out CVs, gain contact details, and ask as many questions as you desire.
4. Study hard
Although this point is self-explanatory it shouldn’t be neglected or overlooked. Studying hard whilst at university is a no brainer, especially when you consider the financial implications of further study. There is no substitute for a 1st class awarded a degree, therefore always set your standards high and ensure you get your work-life balance suitably managed.
5. Create your very own “USP”
With employers receiving hundreds of applications for every position you will need to “stand out from the crowd”. Although this sounds cliché it is now more important than ever to have an eye-catching quality on your application. There will always be voluntary opportunities within charity work and the university student union so keep on the lookout.