Successful Graduate Job Hunting
employers will want you to complete their own application forms when you apply for internships or a graduate programme, the process of compiling your CV will enable you to draw together much of the information they’re looking for. Summarising your academic achievements, the student societies you’ve been part of, the volunteering or charity work you’ve done, and your part-time jobs whilst at university, are all elements you’ll draw on during the selection process with graduate employers. When it comes to applying to employers, you may well be tempted to turn to ChatGPT or other AI to help you answer some of the questions on the application form, write a cover letter to accompany your application, or generate practice interview questions. Just remember, for AI to be effective, the information you put in must be personalised and tailored to both your skills and achievements, as well as to what the employer is looking for, otherwise it’s not going to work. Watch out too, because some employers do explicitly say they will reject an application if they think you’ve used AI to complete it. At its best, AI can generate ideas for you and put structure around your ideas, but it will always need you to edit it, to ensure it reflects your own personal journey and your career plans.
Your careers service should have case studies or data on past alumni from your subject or faculty which can be a very helpful starting point if you’re trying to work out which types of jobs graduates from your course have gone on to do. Another way to access alumni could be through a mentoring programme. Many careers services offer students the chance to be mentored through the job-hunting process. Mentors can share their own journey to employment, their personal experiences in the working world, and help you understand whether your skills and outlook would be a good fit for the type of work they’re doing. And don’t forget that you may well have careers modules, workshops and external speakers through your university faculty, so keep an eye out for these during your first year too. For many second year students, the emphasis is often on landing a summer internship or work placement. Your university careers service will offer a varied programme of employer events, discussion panels, networking sessions and skills training that can help you find out which employers are running summer programmes and what it takes to make a successful application. At this stage, it’s helpful to make sure you have an up-to-date CV. Even though most larger
How the ‘Class of 2024’ Applied for Graduate Jobs
JOB APPLICATIONS IN FINAL YEAR
WORK EXPERIENCE
Two-fifths of students who did internships or work placements at university received a graduate job offer from the employer they worked for
Graduates made an average of 16 job applications each, during their final year at university.
SELECTION & ASSESSMENT
GRADUATE JOB OFFERS
Fewer than a third of graduates from the ‘Class of 2024’ received a graduate job offer before leaving university
4 out of 5 graduate job hunters found employers’ online tests and recorded video interviews difficult
Source High Fliers Research 14,271 final year students leaving UK universities in the summer of 2024 were asked about the job applications they had made to graduate employers and their progress with job offers, during interviews for The UK Graduate Careers Survey 2024
TOP 100 GRADUATE EMPLOYERS 41
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