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DISCLAIMER: Note that this is targeted at university students aiming to get generalist graduate positions (as opposed to standard entry level positions or positions which require specialist degrees) in the corporate world. This advice does not guarantee graduate employment and should only be taken as guide which really only just scratches the surface.
What is a graduate job?
A graduate job is a position aimed directly at those who have graduated from university with limited work experience. Generally, graduate positions offer much more development and training opportunities than a normal entry level job. However, the sad fact is that not everyone will get such a job once they graduate because there are far more university graduates than positions.
This brief guide is based on learning experiences of past applicants of graduate positions which we hope will educate you a bit about the world of graduate applications. A lot of people don’t actually know about the reality of this until later in their degree. Hopefully after reading this guide you would at least gain some awareness of how to increase your chances of landing a graduate position in the future whilst you still can at university.
First of all, time to bust some myths.
COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS
1. I will graduate with a university degree so I’m set in terms of graduate jobs and employers will come to me
These days, having a university degree is just a minimum eligibility requirement for a graduate job. Having a degree alone does not guarantee you a graduate job and it is not uncommon to see people who have graduated unemployed. Applying for a graduate job is a competitive process where you have to stand out against every other applicant. Having a degree alone does not distinguish you from the crowd because obviously every other applicant also has a degree.
Employers do come to campus and appear to make you feel special at careers fairs but don’t think that this means employers are fighting over you. The reason they do that is just a marketing strategy to get as many candidates to apply as possible so that they are more likely to get top quality candidates to choose from.
2. Good academic results will guarantee my graduate employability
Employers do not want candidates who spent their entire university life studying to get high distinctions and nothing else. They want more all-rounded people who have good academic results, extracurricular activities and work experience. The reason for this is that university work provides limited development when it comes to soft skills like teamwork, leadership and interpersonal skills. These skills are much better developed in extracurricular activities and work experience. However, don’t interpret this as meaning that academic results don’t mean anything. They do hold significance to an employer as part of this expectation of all roundedness.
3. My first job will pay well and I will love it.
First of all, not many people actually land the graduate position they want in the first place (if they are successful in getting any graduate position at all) and settle for what they can get for the sake of employment. The graduate position you desire is most likely going to be desired by hundreds of other applicants so many will be left disappointed.
For large organisations, it is not uncommon to have 2000 applicants for less than 10 positions. Don’t just put your eggs in one basket and expect to be successful. You need to apply to as many companies as you can and be prepared to settle for less. It is not uncommon to have a graduate job that you don’t like but keep in mind that it is the experience that counts and you can move on to a more desirable role later on. A foot in the door is better than having a closed door.
Salary is the last thing you should be thinking about when it comes to applying for graduate jobs. Don’t be surprised if your graduate salary is lower than you had hoped for. Compared to full-time workers, graduates have little in the way of work experience so the ‘bargaining power’ lies with the employers because graduates are replaceable. Once you acquire more work experience down the track then you would have more scope to negotiate salary or move to a better role.
MAXIMISING THE CHANCES OF GETTING A GRADUATE JOB
The following is a description of important aspects that you need to consider getting into shape during your university years. Note that this list is not exhaustive.
1. General experience
Recruiters (at least human resources staff anyway) look for evidence of transferable skills when they sift through applications. For graduate roles, there is great focus on soft skills which may include but are not limited to:
• Communication skills (verbal and written)
• Analytical skills
• Teamwork and leadership skills
• Interpersonal skills
• Innovation skills
• Research skills
In interviews and often written applications themselves, these skills are assessed through behavioural questions. Examples of common ones are:
• Tell me about a time you resolved a conflict between members of a team
• Tell me about a time you developed an innovative solution to a problem
• Tell me about a time you exceeded a customer’s expectations
• Tell me about a time where you had to persevere to achieve a desirable outcome
We won’t go through the details on how to answer the questions (which is another skill altogether), but ask yourself this – have you been in those challenging situations in a professional environment? If not, then you should try to get yourself in these situations (and be able to handle them properly with a good outcome) often through university, extra-curricular activities or work experience. Otherwise, you haven’t got much to say if such a question pops up in an interview which is perhaps indicative of underdeveloped skills in relation to the expectations of the organisation. It is somewhat expected that a graduate with well developed skills would have been in these situations before and have acted on them with a good result.
2. Academics
As a benchmark, you should be aiming for at least a credit average (preferably distinction average or better) because it demonstrates to a recruiter that you are at least competent enough to learn things quickly. Any fails on your academic transcript will greatly reduce your chances of graduate employment unless there is a very good reason behind it that is outside of your control.
Why is this important? In the workplace you will be overwhelmed with new concepts which you have never seen before and in order to thrive, you must be able to pick up things very quickly. The ability to successfully absorb large amounts of information in a short space of time at university is therefore seen as a transferable skill.
3. Extra-curricular activities
Get involved clubs and societies at university or engage in activities outside of university. This includes any volunteering, sports, hobbies and competitions. Make sure that you are actively involved in these activities. For example, being the treasurer of a society counts for much more than just turning up to a free BBQ organised by the society. The former demonstrates that you have developed good teamwork, leadership and analytical skills.
Make sure you get involved in activities that you actually want to do rather than get involved just for the sake of your resume. A recruiter can form a view about your passions and personality through these extra-curricular activities and assess these with the culture of the organisation. If you’re doing something just for your resume which you’re not really interested in then recruiters could potentially have a false impression of who you are as a person and it won’t look good if it comes across in the interview that you weren’t really passionate about those activities.
4. Work experience
Whilst graduate recruiters don’t expect a lot of work experience from applicants, don’t get yourself in a situation where the only work experience you can put on your resume is one you were forced to do in high school. Throughout your degree, try to acquire a variety of jobs if you have the time for it. In other words, don’t just stick to say a private tutoring job as your work experience. Find something which requires a different skill set so that you have evidence of development in a variety of skills.
If this is hard to do, then make sure you at least take on work that has transferable skills relevant to the type of graduate position you could be looking for. For example, if you are going for a graduate position which involves client relationships then past work experiences in say a retail role are more relevant than say a book keeping role.
Make sure you have a good relationship with your employer(s) from the work experience because it is more than likely you will be asking them to be your referees when you start doing graduate applications.
5. General attitude
You can have the best academic results, extra-curricular activities and work experience but a poor attitude will get you nowhere in the world of graduate jobs. Employers look for certain traits in applicants in their written applications and in interviews. They do this to assess the fit of the applicant in accordance to the culture of the organisation. There will be differences between organisations but in general almost every organisation looks for some of the following traits (this list isn’t exhaustive) in their applicants:
• Willingness to learn – keen to learn, take on new things and work outside of your comfort zone
• Good at solving problems – whether they be issues with people, tasks or projects you should be committing to a solutions to problems in order to progress rather than dwell on the problem
• Ability to learn from mistakes and take on feedback – admitting to mistakes and learning how to not repeat them
• Reliable – deliver on time what has been given to you and actually follow up on what you say you will do
• Work with minimum supervision – being able to figure out what to do yourself without being spoon fed by others
• Well organised – having plans in place to track what you do in order to deliver results in a timely manner
• Taking initiative – being able to step up and take ownership of a situation or task rather than waiting for others to act
• Communicate effectively with others – probably the most important trait of being able work with others (whether they be colleagues or clients) because you encounter them on a daily basis
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
To stand a chance in the competitive world of graduate applications it is important to make sure you have built up the following, well before your final year of university (the earlier the better):
• Strong academic results
• A variety of extra-curricular activities
• Relevant work experience
• Good evidence of transferable skills
• A good attitude
The next step is to then put that altogether and sell it to the employer in your application.
Good luck!
What is a graduate job?
A graduate job is a position aimed directly at those who have graduated from university with limited work experience. Generally, graduate positions offer much more development and training opportunities than a normal entry level job. However, the sad fact is that not everyone will get such a job once they graduate because there are far more university graduates than positions.
This brief guide is based on learning experiences of past applicants of graduate positions which we hope will educate you a bit about the world of graduate applications. A lot of people don’t actually know about the reality of this until later in their degree. Hopefully after reading this guide you would at least gain some awareness of how to increase your chances of landing a graduate position in the future whilst you still can at university.
First of all, time to bust some myths.
COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS
1. I will graduate with a university degree so I’m set in terms of graduate jobs and employers will come to me
These days, having a university degree is just a minimum eligibility requirement for a graduate job. Having a degree alone does not guarantee you a graduate job and it is not uncommon to see people who have graduated unemployed. Applying for a graduate job is a competitive process where you have to stand out against every other applicant. Having a degree alone does not distinguish you from the crowd because obviously every other applicant also has a degree.
Employers do come to campus and appear to make you feel special at careers fairs but don’t think that this means employers are fighting over you. The reason they do that is just a marketing strategy to get as many candidates to apply as possible so that they are more likely to get top quality candidates to choose from.
2. Good academic results will guarantee my graduate employability
Employers do not want candidates who spent their entire university life studying to get high distinctions and nothing else. They want more all-rounded people who have good academic results, extracurricular activities and work experience. The reason for this is that university work provides limited development when it comes to soft skills like teamwork, leadership and interpersonal skills. These skills are much better developed in extracurricular activities and work experience. However, don’t interpret this as meaning that academic results don’t mean anything. They do hold significance to an employer as part of this expectation of all roundedness.
3. My first job will pay well and I will love it.
First of all, not many people actually land the graduate position they want in the first place (if they are successful in getting any graduate position at all) and settle for what they can get for the sake of employment. The graduate position you desire is most likely going to be desired by hundreds of other applicants so many will be left disappointed.
For large organisations, it is not uncommon to have 2000 applicants for less than 10 positions. Don’t just put your eggs in one basket and expect to be successful. You need to apply to as many companies as you can and be prepared to settle for less. It is not uncommon to have a graduate job that you don’t like but keep in mind that it is the experience that counts and you can move on to a more desirable role later on. A foot in the door is better than having a closed door.
Salary is the last thing you should be thinking about when it comes to applying for graduate jobs. Don’t be surprised if your graduate salary is lower than you had hoped for. Compared to full-time workers, graduates have little in the way of work experience so the ‘bargaining power’ lies with the employers because graduates are replaceable. Once you acquire more work experience down the track then you would have more scope to negotiate salary or move to a better role.
MAXIMISING THE CHANCES OF GETTING A GRADUATE JOB
The following is a description of important aspects that you need to consider getting into shape during your university years. Note that this list is not exhaustive.
1. General experience
Recruiters (at least human resources staff anyway) look for evidence of transferable skills when they sift through applications. For graduate roles, there is great focus on soft skills which may include but are not limited to:
• Communication skills (verbal and written)
• Analytical skills
• Teamwork and leadership skills
• Interpersonal skills
• Innovation skills
• Research skills
In interviews and often written applications themselves, these skills are assessed through behavioural questions. Examples of common ones are:
• Tell me about a time you resolved a conflict between members of a team
• Tell me about a time you developed an innovative solution to a problem
• Tell me about a time you exceeded a customer’s expectations
• Tell me about a time where you had to persevere to achieve a desirable outcome
We won’t go through the details on how to answer the questions (which is another skill altogether), but ask yourself this – have you been in those challenging situations in a professional environment? If not, then you should try to get yourself in these situations (and be able to handle them properly with a good outcome) often through university, extra-curricular activities or work experience. Otherwise, you haven’t got much to say if such a question pops up in an interview which is perhaps indicative of underdeveloped skills in relation to the expectations of the organisation. It is somewhat expected that a graduate with well developed skills would have been in these situations before and have acted on them with a good result.
2. Academics
As a benchmark, you should be aiming for at least a credit average (preferably distinction average or better) because it demonstrates to a recruiter that you are at least competent enough to learn things quickly. Any fails on your academic transcript will greatly reduce your chances of graduate employment unless there is a very good reason behind it that is outside of your control.
Why is this important? In the workplace you will be overwhelmed with new concepts which you have never seen before and in order to thrive, you must be able to pick up things very quickly. The ability to successfully absorb large amounts of information in a short space of time at university is therefore seen as a transferable skill.
3. Extra-curricular activities
Get involved clubs and societies at university or engage in activities outside of university. This includes any volunteering, sports, hobbies and competitions. Make sure that you are actively involved in these activities. For example, being the treasurer of a society counts for much more than just turning up to a free BBQ organised by the society. The former demonstrates that you have developed good teamwork, leadership and analytical skills.
Make sure you get involved in activities that you actually want to do rather than get involved just for the sake of your resume. A recruiter can form a view about your passions and personality through these extra-curricular activities and assess these with the culture of the organisation. If you’re doing something just for your resume which you’re not really interested in then recruiters could potentially have a false impression of who you are as a person and it won’t look good if it comes across in the interview that you weren’t really passionate about those activities.
4. Work experience
Whilst graduate recruiters don’t expect a lot of work experience from applicants, don’t get yourself in a situation where the only work experience you can put on your resume is one you were forced to do in high school. Throughout your degree, try to acquire a variety of jobs if you have the time for it. In other words, don’t just stick to say a private tutoring job as your work experience. Find something which requires a different skill set so that you have evidence of development in a variety of skills.
If this is hard to do, then make sure you at least take on work that has transferable skills relevant to the type of graduate position you could be looking for. For example, if you are going for a graduate position which involves client relationships then past work experiences in say a retail role are more relevant than say a book keeping role.
Make sure you have a good relationship with your employer(s) from the work experience because it is more than likely you will be asking them to be your referees when you start doing graduate applications.
5. General attitude
You can have the best academic results, extra-curricular activities and work experience but a poor attitude will get you nowhere in the world of graduate jobs. Employers look for certain traits in applicants in their written applications and in interviews. They do this to assess the fit of the applicant in accordance to the culture of the organisation. There will be differences between organisations but in general almost every organisation looks for some of the following traits (this list isn’t exhaustive) in their applicants:
• Willingness to learn – keen to learn, take on new things and work outside of your comfort zone
• Good at solving problems – whether they be issues with people, tasks or projects you should be committing to a solutions to problems in order to progress rather than dwell on the problem
• Ability to learn from mistakes and take on feedback – admitting to mistakes and learning how to not repeat them
• Reliable – deliver on time what has been given to you and actually follow up on what you say you will do
• Work with minimum supervision – being able to figure out what to do yourself without being spoon fed by others
• Well organised – having plans in place to track what you do in order to deliver results in a timely manner
• Taking initiative – being able to step up and take ownership of a situation or task rather than waiting for others to act
• Communicate effectively with others – probably the most important trait of being able work with others (whether they be colleagues or clients) because you encounter them on a daily basis
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
To stand a chance in the competitive world of graduate applications it is important to make sure you have built up the following, well before your final year of university (the earlier the better):
• Strong academic results
• A variety of extra-curricular activities
• Relevant work experience
• Good evidence of transferable skills
• A good attitude
The next step is to then put that altogether and sell it to the employer in your application.
Good luck!
