If you are clear about what you want from a graduate job you’ll probably find it quite easy to decide which vacancies have your name on. However, if you’re still undecided about the graduate career path you wish to follow, there is an initial procedure you need to go through before you can start making graduate-job applications.

Take a deep breath and get ready to examine yourself and your graduate-job options.

Self-assessment

It is important that you don’t just start applying frantically for the first graduate jobs you see. Take a step back and begin by evaluating yourself and your skills – are you ready and sufficiently equipped to enter the job market? What do you have to offer future employers? And ultimately, what kind of graduate job will send you home satisfied?

Things to consider about yourself

• What are you good at?
• What kind of work environment do you enjoy?
• How do you interact with others?
• What industries interest you?
• What are your priorities (work, life, money)?
• Have you done your research into various graduate jobs?
• What are your personal circumstances and values?
• Are you making your own choices or just taking the advice of other people?

Read more on choosing what graduate job would suit you.

Review your career skills

• Evaluate your skills and experiences – consider your non-academic achievements and talents, eg computer skills and languages, and put together a skills portfolio.
• Decide what you need – analyse what skills a potential employer is looking for (study graduate-job advertisements, etc), and identify which of these skills you may be lacking.
• Prepare examples – you need to make sure you can demonstrate your career skills. Draw up a list of solid examples of your experiences.
• Gain experience – take opportunities to increase your skills with extra courses, more extracurricular activities or work placements.

Find out about reviewing your career skills in more detail.

Increase your career skills

The UK benefits from a highly trained workforce, but that means there is a lot of competition for popular graduate jobs. You have to stand out from the crowd.

What career skills are you missing? There are many ways to boost your skills profile while you are still at university. Extracurricular activities, such as sports, writing for the student paper or forming societies, are great for showing evidence of teamwork, creativity and leadership skills respectively. These sorts of things look great on graduate-job applications. 

Work experience is another great way to build your skills and confidence, and to get yourself noticed.

Types of work experience

• Part-time work
• Voluntary work
• Work placements

If you find yourself working in a dead-end job after graduation, think about doing some relevant part-time work in addition, or some volunteering. This will show a real dedication to boosting your skills and making yourself as employable as possible.

Alternatively, you could do a summer placement at a company you are interested in, or take some time out to work or volunteer abroad.

See the work experience and gap year sections of the website for more detailed advice on how to build your career skills.

Finding graduate jobs to apply for

You may be thinking, ’this is all very well, but where should I start looking for graduate jobs?’ Be informed about your options and do your research.

Sources of graduate-job vacancies:

• Find graduate jobs on the GET website
• your university careers service
• national newspapers (look out for supplements, such as the Media Guardian on Mondays)
• local newspapers
• contacts, eg from work experience
• employment agencies – don’t forget to try specialist recruitment agencies as well
• professional bodies
• specialist publications, eg New Scientist, Marketing Week
• Jobcentre Plus.

You could also think about making speculative applications to firms you are interested in. Sending off your CV with an enthusiastic covering letter shows initiative and is often very effective. Even if there are no positions currently available, you may get an offer of work experience.

Read more about graduate-job applications.

Find out more

• What are your graduate job options?
• What graduate job would suit me?
• Careers fairs and recruitment events
• Increase your career skills