To ask where ds can find a first grad job...

[wannabedatamum]

(NC for anonymity)

Ds, 22, doing a Masters in Physics that finishes this summer. Has never had a part time job (yeah, I know ).

Not a high flyer academically, will scrape a pass probably. Strength in Python programming though, demonstrated through uni projects. Also knows PANDAS, Matplotlub, Linux - whatever they are....

Wants job in data analytics, not fussy about sector. Has applied to quite a few graduate schemes, but he's shy, with no work experience to talk about and they're so competitive he probably won't get anything, though useful to go through the process.

Any thoughts for plan B? I was hoping there might be some agencies that he could sign up with (we're in London) once he's finished and get at least some experience that way, maybe with a view to getting a grad job next year.

Or Plan C? Frankly anything...

Help a worried mum vipers!!!

Maybe he could search for summer internships in areas he is vaguely interested in. This would give him some experience.

This is not true. The Fast Stream still exists. BJ suspended it for a year as part of the job reductions, but it was fully reinstated by Rishi Sunak. It’s closed for this year though.

Siemens have some internships in the UK, might be worth looking at even if its not exactly what he wants just to get some work experience and try some things out.

Having his work on a public Github repository is really really important. Ideally the code should show some pet project, demonstrate his level of ability, and have some supporting documentation (that looks ok visually).

Good luck!

Thanks again! I agree a summer internship would be great, but as a Masters student he'll still be doing his project - submits beginning September.

FDM and Sparta I've bookmarked, and CS data link so thanks for those. I'll suggest he asks his supervisor if he can add his project coding to GitHub.

@Sexnotgender are there any agencies he could register for entry level data jobs?

No need for graduate fast track... Just apply for civil service jobs, NHS, public health Scotland etc - great employers, great job prospects, structure and pay progression. Just get in there! The promotions will come xx

I imagine there will be recruitment agencies.
I got my first role with a recruiter, I’m less than 10 years in and have tripled my salary.

(I worked in a Uni Careers Service, for about a decade, until about a year ago.)

Data analytics is a fairly healthy sector. But my advice would be to stop looking at the big graduate schemes. Students tend to obsess over grad schemes in blue chip companies companies like PWC, IBM etc. However fewer than 20% of ALL grad jobs in the U.K. fall into the 'large company grad scheme' bracket. And companies like PWC get tens of thousands of grad applicants.

80% of grad jobs are one-off jobs in mid-sized companies with less than 250 employees. These companies don't use large grad recruitment sites like Milkround, Targetjobs etc because they cost a lot to advertise and often they are only looking to recruit one or two people, so your DS needs to look elsewhere. The good thing about looking in the mid-sized company bracket is that the recruitment process process is often swifter - in the big firms it can be 5 stages sometimes. Whereas in a small-medium sized firm it's generally 2-3 stages.

My advice would be to use Indeed.com for online job searching as it aggregates vacancy content from lots of different places across the internet. Also (very important) get him to forge a relationship with his Uni careers team. They will likely have an Uni jobs board purely for their students/grads with companies actively targetting your DS's university. They will also have working relationships with employers who hire their grads and may be aware of good firms to keep on the radar.

He needs to put in the leg work. It’s not too late now to get a part-time job or apply for summer internships.

He should check out the resources at his university careers service. They often do interview training for shy or socially unconfident students.

He needs to put in the leg work. It’s not too late now to get a part-time job or apply for summer internships.

Can you tell me more about the Glasgow one @Lyricallie