Employability uncovered

70% of employers agree that degree results alone are not the best measure of employment potential.

Graduates in the Eyes of Employers 2002

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21st century graduates need to demonstrate to employers that they can ‘hit the ground running’. In addition to working hard to gain a good degree, students should engage in extracurricular activities and obtain work experience in order to develop skills that will make them better prepared for the world of work. It is also important for students to become self- aware and develop the confidence to market themselves effectively when the time comes to apply for jobs.

Carl Gilleard – Chief Executive, Association of Graduate Recruiters.

Leaving university with a good degree is a pre-requisite in the graduate employment market, but alone this is not enough to secure your first graduate job.

How does an employer choose the right person from a hundred applicants all with the same class of degree? The skills you develop whilst at school/college and university and the experiences you gain will all help to give you the edge over the next candidate. The good news is that this means it is essential not just to bury your head in a book all the time you’re at university, but to continue with your interests and work experience which are all the things that help to enrich your life, not to mention your CV.

Analysis of years of national employer surveys suggests the desired skills for graduates fall into four broad areas. Do any of the words below in Table 1 describe you?

When you start to think about it you will be surprised to discover how many of the skills outlined in Tables 2, 3, and 4 you already have.

Take time out to review your skills – looking back to the original list in Table 1, what skills do you think you are good at and which ones do you think you could do more to improve in order to make yourself more employable in the future?

Many university courses may require certain skills, especially vocational ones like medicine or law. Look carefully at prospectuses and entry profiles on the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) website (www.ucas.ac.uk) to find out what they are looking for. Make the most of school/college organised work experience or work shadowing to get relevant experience. Take all opportunities open to you and be proactive. If specific experience or skills are required for a degree course, make your own contacts, eg with a local hospital or law firm. Remember your work experience doesn’t have to be all-singing and all-dancing. Showing that you have had the initiative to get into the right environment can be key.

Get involved in school/college activities

Why not get involved in your student council, and if you have not got one, suggest that one is started. Offer to help when you can, whether it is fund-raising for the school, or helping out at open evenings or with younger children. Watch out for sixth form conferences, eg Model United Nations conferences. And take any chances to attend taster days at universities or organised by professional bodies. Take advantage of schemes like Young Enterprise, which are an excellent way to develop teamwork and business skills.

Volunteering

Volunteering can help you develop skills, can be fun, and you can do it in the vacations and weekends. It is also a really good way to mix with people outside your school and show your interpersonal skills. There are loads of local organisations, but if you are stuck try the Volunteering England, or for local opportunities www.do-it.org.uk, and for international volunteering check out www.worldwidevolunteering.org.uk.

Part-time work

Never underestimate the importance of this. Communication, teamwork, drive and energy are all essential in many jobs, whether they are fairly mundane or not.

You need to know what you are good at and have the evidence to prove it. Be one of the smart generation and record all your activities, paid or voluntary, in or out of school. It makes for much easier CV writing, not to mention UCAS form filling.

Based on a survey of 200 employers (including BMW Group, Logica and PricewaterhouseCoopers), verbal communication is the quality that most employers seek in graduate recruits. This is followed by enthusiasm and written communication skills. Problem-solving ability, numeracy, business awareness and team work are also rated highly.

From Learning to Earning (2002)

Employers are looking for something more than a degree in their graduate recruits, expecting applicants to show an understanding of the world of work, awareness of business, the ability to help organisations tackle change and the ability to integrate knowledge, work experience and technical and interactive skills. A willingness to participate in continuous learning is also of high importance.

Enhancing Employability, Recognising Diversity (2002)

At Accenture we look for graduates with strong communications skills, excellent problem-solving abilities and a genuine desire to work hard. We do offer exceptional rewards and a forward-thinking working environment in return. The university experience helps students to develop these skills and make them more attractive to the job market.

Emily Cross, Graduate Recruitment Officer, Accenture

The main skills identified as being future skills were communications, customer handling, team working and management skills.

Employers Skills Survey 2002

Due to the size and culture of the Alliance & Leicester Group our graduate recruits are faced with meeting company directors from day one. It is essential therefore, that they have the confidence to communicate effectively to make an immediate positive impression on some of the most influential people in our organisation.

Mary Perrin, HR Business Consultant, Alliance & Leicester Group

Studying for a degree can provide more than just an in-depth knowledge of a particular subject. Whilst at university, and during vacation work, students also learn to be independent and develop team-work, research, problem-solving, communication, presentation and time management skills - all of which companies look for in the graduates they recruit.

Rachel David, Senior Graduate Resourcing Officer, Corus

We look for individuals with drive, commercial awareness and outstanding interpersonal skills; people who can think strategically and will excel and add value to our businesses throughout their career. At every stage in our recruitment process we test their abilities; to withstand pressure, to work in teams, to think strategically and consider the customer. My advice to students would be to look for, and take advantage of, any opportunities they have at university to develop these skills.

Kirsty MacCulloch, European Graduate Recruiter, ICI

In CCLRC we recruit graduates to help bring new ideas and approaches to what we do and the way we do it. We want young people who are passionate about their subject and are keen to work at the leading edge of science and technology. We are looking for the right combination of sound technical ability and good interpersonal and communication skills - people with the potential to progress to senior roles within the organisation. In return we offer the chance to work on exciting and challenging world leading projects and excellent training and development opportunities.

Rosie Sherry, Learning and Development Manager, CCLRC

When selecting engineering graduates, the engineering degree subject and to some extent their predicted grade is not so critical. It is their experience, skills and personality that is important. Therefore, I try to interview all candidates that get through the initial selection phase to judge for myself the person behind the application form.

Richard Humbert, Toyota Manufacturing UK

Fundamentally, employers who are looking for graduates to become sales professionals want graduates who are flexible, hungry and determined to succeed. Raw graduates do not have preconceived ideas or a history of job 'hopping'. They simply have the right attitude, building a strong future and a powerful legacy of professional excellence for their company and for themselves. Meta-Morphose International are market leaders in placing graduates with outstanding attitude with top employers in both the UK and Europe. The people we select are dynamic graduates who are interested in business and want successful long-term careers in sales. Our selection process is designed to focus on potential not experience. We provide award winning training and support at no cost to the graduate, our clients meet all our costs.

Sarah Pettigrew, Director, Meta-Morphose International

As an economics and politics graduate, there was an array of career options available to me. However, securing a job required more than just having a degree. I didn’t realise it at the time but the skills which I had developed at secondary school, college and university were just as important, if not more so, than my degree classification. Employers weren’t clambering over each other to offer me a job based solely on the fact that I was a graduate. I needed to show that I had other skills and was aware of the challenges that I may face in work. By looking back on my work experience and extracurricular activities, I was able to build up a profile of my skills - some of which I didn’t necessarily know that I had. Employers are more interested in how rounded an individual you are and how you will fit into the workplace than by the fact that you got great marks in modules that don’t have any bearing on their work. Yes, my degree was important in my applications to some extent, but my skills and personal characteristics have been much more influential, if not the deciding factor in getting my job. It’s important to remember that your time outside lectures and the library - and how you spend it - is just as important as the studying you do.

Sarah, economics and politics graduate (2001)

Websites

General links

• Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR)
• Enhancing Employability, Recognising Diversity.

Publications

Graduate Prospects publications

Graduate Prospects and AGCAS publications should be available in your university careers service. You can also order publications from us.

Enhancing Employability, Recognising Diversity, Universities UK/Graduate Prospects, 2002.

Others

• Graduates in the Eyes of Employers 2002, Park HR/The Guardian, 2002.
• The Art of Building Windmills: Career Tactics for the 21st Century, Dr Peter Hawkins and the Graduates Into Employment Unit (GIEU), 1999.
• From Learning to Earning, Nick Higgins and Cliff Pettifor, Trotman, 2002.
• Employers Skills Survey 2002, J Hillage, J Regan (Institute for Employment Studies), J Dickson, K McLoughlin (MORI), Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) Research Report RR372, September 2002.