what to do with a BSc - Business management and economics 3rd class !

[2512BC]

That's it really what can my son do - he is only just sitting on a 2:2 - he is waiting for 2 more results which in total he needs 98 - to keep the 2:2 - realistically and going by his past grades it is very possible he will drop to a 3rd - he wanted to go into recruitment but they all want a 2:1 - he has worked in shops all through his studies but doesn't want to continue this -He has had lots of interviews for recruitment in the past couple of weeks - but no success. As they feel his work experience and responses to tasks / questions don't make up for the grades as obviously it's quite competitive. Even agencies want experience. Uni careers office is not much help to be honest - he shows them his cv before showing me and they approved it and sent it off for jobs although he had used incorrect terminology in some areas. How do you get an entry level job in an office these days without previous experience.

[purplefox]

Recruitment is quite sales focused. If I were him I'd be looking to do some sales training courses from the Institute of Sales and Marketing Management to compensate for the 3rd.

There's also lots of trainee recruitment positions out there that don't specify a specific degree classification, www.indeed.co.uk/jobs?q=trainee+recruitment&l= its worth applying to as many as possible.

[Just5minswithDacre]

The degree will still earn its keep from the second or third job onwards, though.

At that point he'll be able to show experience and mention his degree leaving all mention of classification off of his CV. It will be far less important by then.

I hope he's googled for examples of successful people who took thirds

[jeanne16]

I would say that getting a 2.2 or 3rd in his uni degree is probably the right grade for someone with CCC at A level. So he should be pleased with his achievement. Unfortunately that does not mean he will be rewarded with degree level jobs. He should apply for anything available to get a foot in the door and try to work up from there.

[RB68]

Thirds seem like a disaster at the time but you are right get him a job and he will go from there - any sort of admin or office work will do for now and apply for the roles he wants from there - tell him to check out Personnel and HR type qualifications and see if he can't start doing some of those in the mean time to show willing. If I am honest I am not sure recruitment isn't a shorter term career whilst younger (its sort of sales & HR together) and longer term he might want to look at HR. He still has plenty of time and the key thing is to get out and get working asap

[bojorojo]

I think this is very difficult because very many of the roles suggested do want people with a 2:1 and people with lower barely get a look in. I think he may have struggled with his degree as he has no Maths A level. This is often required for Economics so a CCC is really low for this type of degree.

Internships will be very, very difficult if he has not acquired the skills and educational attainments required. Again, people with AAA and likely to get a 2:1 or above will get the gig. He will have to demonstrate he is super good to get above them. That will also go for HR. That is in no way an easy ride for people with 2:2 or a 3rd. My friend's DD had to wait a year to get into HR and she has a 1st.

A University careers office is no substitute for self motivation and accuracy. He should be able to write an accurate CV. Make sure you check everything he sends off.

However, if he can, volunteer or do a lower level job and accept a graduate entry job is possibly beyond reach at the moment. I agree that reinventing himself is a good idea. Look at the CAB - he will get good people skills with them and will feel he is useful. That may be a good platform for work.

Further qualifications will cost money if there is no employer to pay the fees. This may not be a good solution. He will probably have to accept his choices are limited at the moment, but taking time to see what he can do by volunteering could really help.

[purplefox]

Has he been doing any internships/work experience during his degree?

[AppleMagic]

Dh left uni after one year (failed and was told not to bother trying again). He found a temp job (data entry/some analysis), ended up staying (sales) and never looked back. Now he is very high-flying, works in management for a prestigious company and regularly gets head-hunted. I know things have changed in the last 10 years and the job market is more competitive now, but if he can get a foot in the door and work hard/be ambitious, there will come a time when his degree classification won't matter anymore.

I wonder if retail management into buying roles might work too? Worth him investigating which companies have good internal recruitment from supervisor level.

[newname99]

He's also needing to work on interviews as so far his CV is getting him to that stage.

Unis are usually good at this so he needs to access all resources

[newname99]

Does he know what recruitment is about? It's mostly sales, if that's the path then there are lots of entry sales jobs.Internships are advertised in Uni or via websites, it's not just contacts.

I also really agree with additional courses, maybe AAT, for finance as he could study evenings and get a basic level quickly.

[senua]

Get him into temping. There must be a fair amount of holiday-cover needed at the moment.

I can see a path that goes: temp, permanent office work, move to HR department, make lots of contacts and then - bingo - move to recruitment.

[Shirkingfromhome]

Most universities have a careers advisory service, I appreciate they may differ in terms of quality though. Can he book an appointment to discuss his options?

[mumeeee]

If he is getting at least 40% it won't be any good him retaking modules as retakes are capped at 40% unless the student has been granted mitigating circumstances.

[Just5minswithDacre]

Otherwise, CCC at A level and a relevant degree are a good basis for an office career, just not necessarily for the 'schemes'. Volunteering and then smaller firms is a perfectly viable route.

He could also look at professional exams such as CIPD (human resource management), AAT (accounting), ILM (management) if something like that appeals; they are available by distance learning as well as evening classes.

[Just5minswithDacre]

Tell him to check his course handbook for compensation and condonement procedures. It could be that the lowest module grade is ignored when degree classification is calculated, or even that failing a module entirely would be advantageous at this point.

[2512BC]

Thank you - his A/levels were CCC

Economics. Sociology. Business

• I don't think he can retake any modules as apparently you can only re/take if you get below 40 - he seems to get between 40 and 56 but mostly 40's -

My calculation is that he has totalled 442 over 9 modules - which averages 49 % so he needs 58 in the final exam to reach 500 / 10 - to get 50% 2:2 Does that sound right? -
I think if he can get a foot in to his first office job he will be fine - we just need to find a way in / so volunteering might be the way to go. We don't have the connections for internships. He has read your posts and you have all been really helpful.

[Dozer]

If recruitment appeals what about other types of sales roles?

[Dozer]

He has a lot of retail experience and a relevant degree (albeit with a poor result - he'll need to explain why he didn't do well). retailers might well like that. He might consider remaining in retail but applying for different types of retail or types of role.

Or perhaps a role in a small business.

What are his talents? Any that could help him identify a field?

[Just5minswithDacre]

With the right combination of volunteering, working his way up and maybe another course (not necessarily postgrad) he could be really well set within a couple of years.

The important thing is not to panic and pick the next step wildly. He still has a wealth of choices.

What made him pick his degree subject?

[Just5minswithDacre]

He needs to get a 2:2 minimum. Coming out with a third, sorry to say this but ,he'd have been better off not going to uni.


Helpful

It's not all doom. Not at all.

Park the issue of the degree classification for now.

What were his A levels or equivalent? What grades did he get in those?

What does he enjoy? (Hobbies, enthusiasms, spare time activities)

[DumbDailyMail]

What were his A'levels like? and what type of Uni was it. If it's a very high tariff uni then might employers might be more forgiving.

[thesandwich]

Sounds like he will need to reinvent himself. What work experience/ skills does he have? Did he do any placements? Does he have any connections who could offer internships/ work shadowing? Volunteering for charities is good- but he is going to have to put some real hard work into this himself. Check out the do it website for volunteer options.

[Forestglade]

My ds scraped a 2:2 but managed to get a job fairly quickly although not at graduate level. He didn't have much previous work experience. Not earning that much but happy. They think he's great and I'm sure he will work his way up. All is not lost but your ds will need to be flexible.

[Unescorted]

My brother got a 3rd in economics & anthropology. He now heads up the IT department for a large multinational. All is not lost - he will need to get his head down and prove to prospective employers that his high jinks days at uni are over. My Bro went back to retrain as a MS engineer - took him 2 years while he held down another low paid job.

I suggest that he works out what he wants to do first - if he struggles with analysis, maybe look at vocational careers.

[RedHelenB]

Being based in London should surely give him more opportunities volunteer wise. Could he try to get work experiemce in recruitment? If they can see he's up tp the job his degree might not be so important.