Life after Uni - DD about to Graduate, big move to London how about others?

[TangoWhiskyAlphaTango]

Can't see another thread about graduates so thought I would start one. DD has been at Bath for 3 years doing Politics and IR and absolutely loved it there - has met a lovely Boyfriend, lots of good friends, enjoyed her course and the City itself. She was supposed to do the placement year for various reasons didn't and whilst I respected her decision thought she was making a big mistake with regard to future jobs. As predicted trying to get a graduate job has been tough, so so many rejections and only one that progressed to the final stages which she was convinced she wouldn't get as she felt the interview was crap. It was also fiercely competitive 8k applicants for 180 places and amazingly she got in! So now it looks like she is off to London - alone and I am really nervous for her, her BF is going back home to take a year out.

How are other graduate parents feeling? What are yours up to now and are they moving to a new City too? London is so expensive I fear she will have to carry on living on pot noodles for a few years but she is so happy to have a job. Please give me some positive stories, I am sure she will be fine just can't believe the 3 years have flown in the blink of an eye! Our babies are now going into the world of work, I am sure I only dropped her off in Bath last week.......😳

Ds graduated last summer, and has an offer with a city firm having done an 8 week internship in the 2nd year summer holidays.
He was expecting to start in September, but they deferred everyone to end January so he was home for 8 months and went mid January.
His dad took him and his stuff down as I was very unwell, so I haven't seen where he is renting, and haven't seen him since he went, but seems quite happy and settled from his messages, and just said yesterday that he'd come back for a few days at Easter so I'll maybe find out a bit more.

@ChasingsquirrelsWell done to your DS! Is he in London too? I don't know it well but luckily have a Brother on hand to help. We are just waiting to find out which area she will be placed in and then will look at housing. I am just so relieved she got a job and one she really wanted too so that's a major stress sorted!

Yes, in the City.
He found himself a room via spare room.com, lined up a few to see (based on his analysis of tube routes) over a couple of days and chose one - I didn't have, nor expect to have, any input other than him telling me about it.

He was so pleased when he got the internship, it was the first and only time he actually range wmme when he was at uni! I missed the call and rang back really worried, to be answered by DS almost unable to speak with the excitement. I was so worried until he managed to get it out.

DD graduating from Bath (STEM course) . Not many jobs to apply for in her field but she's waiting on a few and is down to the last 8 for another. She's made peace with the fact it might take awhile to get a job. She's decided against doing a masters straight away and will wait and see if she needs to and do it next year. She's burnt out from studying. They work them hard at Bath.

She'll spend sometime getting more work experience if needed, although she did a year in industry and was held in high esteem but sadly with- a company which have no grad scheme or graduate entry level jobs.

Congratulations to your dd OP.. London isn't my dd's first choice but she is applying as wide geographically as she can and could end up in London. I'm sure your dd will be fine. Might she be able to live with some of the other graduate trainees if there are 180 of them? What's the industry?

@fortyfiftyTotally agree she is knackered. Many of her peers and her BF haven't applied at all, they just haven't had the head space for it. Some taking a year out, some travelling. There weren't that many grad jobs specifically for her degree but this one is with Government so she got very very lucky, it's tough out there.

@Chasingsquirrels Yes I think spare rooms is the route she will go down heck though London is pricey and graduate pay good but not amazing good but she's survived being poor the last few years she'll be fine!

If it's the CS Fast Stream, don't commit to rent until all the security checks have been completed and she has a firm start date. A friend has been waiting almost 12 months to start and she still hasn't had her final vetting interview. Fortunately she's been able to live at home.

Thanks but no it's not that scheme - will keep it in mind though!

London, to avoid pot noodles for years. Shop at larger supermarket places, the price in Tesco Express convenience stores are higher. Check out Asian supermarkets, they have lots of Vegs, meats etc at cheaper price. A 1kg bag of rice in Asian supermarket is the same as Sainsbury rice 250g because it is jasmine rice and not all uniform look. Waitrose and MS have offers for the day at discount due to end of date.

Spareroom for flat share plus TFL journey planner. Best for places cover by Tube and buses options. Check travel costs zone 2 or Zone 3 to work destination. Also you can check crime rate by wards in that borough.

DD finishing up too. Diss handed in and just 2 essays to go and she's done. Been lucky in the job market. Her number one choice has delayed opening recruitment until autumn at the earliest. Chance of a job with them so low so she won't take a chance and wait. Currently favouring CS FS but not thru all the employment/security checks yet (and won't know her 1st posting until end of July at the latest). She has London as 3rd choice area but prefers Scotland/Yorkshire. She''a kept one other offer just in case the CS FS gets pulled. BFs family have said she's welcome to stay with them whilst she looks if she ends up in London.

Hello! Long time no chat OP!

DS has a place on News Associates trainee programme but I think he found the costs prohibitive and London overwhelming.

He has a place at Sheffield or Salford for journalism Masters instead and is keener on Sheffield. So it's back to hunting accommodation and applying for student loan.

@Piggywaspushed Heyyyyy....Can you believe it has been 3 whole years since we were chatting here about them all going? Gosh how times flies! Hope your DS has had a brilliant time at Brum. Sounds like he has good plans for now fingers crossed it works out for Sheffield.

@PearlStork DD applied for loads and it was rejection after rejection not even a whisper of an interview, some she got through to second round and was then rejected. To be fair she took it all well and has been pragmatic about it. Good luck to your DD hope she hears soon.

@HawaiiWake Thanks so much for the advice I will get her to check it all out as soon as she knows which area she will be placed.

DD graduated nealy three years ago and got a job related to her degree, but with a view to having a gap between undergrad and masters.

Her job helped her walk her interview for her masters, and she is thoroughly enjoying herself in Liverpool studying something that almost guarantees her a job at the end of it.

In the nicest possible way, I think you need to let go of seeing her as your "baby". She's a grown young woman and has been at university, successfully navigated getting a good job and more. She's 21. Trust that she'll be fine.

I did this kind of move at that age as did plenty of people I met when here, and it was a brilliant adventure. It was tougher in theory then without internet sites to find activities, our way around (A to Z era!), look at the pros and cons of areas to live in, find flatmates. We all managed and I'm sure your dd will too.

Interesting to hear what others DC are planning. Even if they are adults not sure my DD would have known to look at crime stats when flat share hunting. I find these threads useful.

DC1 graduated last summer in London and started a job in September in a very small town in SE England. I thought they would be happy in the job but I was worried about them building a life - friendships and hobbies - in the new location. I'm glad to report that everything has gone fine - they have made friends with other young people at their workplace and do stuff with them at weekend an and on the evenings. They have also joined a local sports club. They make regular trips back to London to see uni friends and the uni friends visit DC1 too.

Another who recognises @Tango from A levels era. Great news that your DD secured the job against so many other applicants.

DS is coming to the end of his three years at Durham. He's had a great time; enjoyed the course, made good friends and played lots of sport. After plenty of rejections, he has been fortunate and landed a grad scheme place in the food sector. It's close enough to commute so he is coming home to save for a couple of years.

Ah she will always be my baby. Of course I recognise she is a fully grown woman and am totally thrilled for her on the job front it was down to this one then zero else in the pipe line. Great idea to go and have a look round at the areas. Luckily I have a Brother who lives in Hackney and has done for years so is a good guide for her.

@EwwSprouts Glad he had wonderful time in Durham I just cannot believe where the 3 years went it seems like 5 minutes ago we were waiting for A-level results. Good luck with the Grad job too the job market seems quite brutal for them.

@dizzydizzydizzy Lovely to hear that she is happy and settled. DD does have a few other mates heading to London too so at least she will have a couple of buddies. Exciting times ahead for them all!

The downside in living in outer London (or upside depending on your point of view) is children in first jobs tend to be at home. My youngest two who qualified as solicitors last year still live at home and work from home 2 days a week, sometimes three. They both are in in-house solicitor jobs in London (so not in a law firm now they have qualified but in a company in different sectors from each other).

So I have been following them and their friends job applications over the last few years and know how difficult and competitive it is for so many of them.

Well done to your daughter in getting her London job. Lots of my sons' university friends are renting in London.

Good to see some familiar faces back on here from the 2022 A levels cohort, congratulations to your DD @TangoWhiskyAlphaTango for securing her position in London, she sounds like she's had an amazing time in Bath!

4 years programme here for mine (you may not remember us, she ended up in Ireland) and s hoping that the 6 weeks internship this summer will result in a full grad scheme offer for 2026 start, but no guarantees in the current market. Whilst being a Londoner, the stream for what she applied for in professional services is based in Belfast, she had already completed Spring Week last year with them. Whilst she was disappointed at first that she wouldn't be able to live at home to save, the organisation has now pulled the London applicants for same stream mid process due to current market conditions.

So agree it's tough out there, and they may have to continue the pot noodle life for longer than they hoped, but keeping as many options as they can open (if they are able) and not just focusing on London would be my two pennies worth to our YP.

But all very exciting too!

Hello @TangoWhiskyAlphaTango - I also remember you from the A Levels thread! Great news that your dd has secured a job, well done to her! I don't have any London-related insights to add I'm afraid, but I hope she settles well and can afford to live without resorting to pot noodles! My dd is on an integrated masters so she's got another year to go... She's interested in clinical psychology ultimately, which will mean accumulating as much relevant experience as she can in the 2 or 3 years after she graduates.

Waves to all those from the old class of 2022 threads!

Ds is doing a placement year so has to return for one more year in September. He'd love to get a graduate job with his current company but they are having a restructure & so it's not clear yet if they will be recruiting graduates for when he is finished. If it doesn't work out he'll more than likely be trying to get a job in London.

He's commuting into London from home this year. But would be very keen to live in London once he starts working properly.

@TangoWhiskyAlphaTango

If you are used to Bath rental prices London is not such a big jump!

Ds1 also went to Bath and has stayed in the part of the country - Bristol rent is about the same as London (though you possibly get a nicer place for the money).

DS wants to stay in Uni town - I think this is good for him, he's been the happiest I have ever seen him at uni. Three or 4 friends staying around as well. Unfortunately it's not a major hub so job market is tricky and he has been so busy working on his graduate piece (creative field, think needs to produce a collection for graduation) that he hasn't really started a job search. His current thinking is to get evening/weekend work so as to be available to pick up freelance work allied to his field to build a reputation, while doing the really creative stuff probably largely unpaid.

I think he might be home for a while after graduation while he starts a proper job search so I will "drink him in" for those months before he leaves permanently.

Hi to all the in the class of 22....how time flies eh?! It is sooooo lovely to hear what they are all up to.

DD should be going into final year too as she signed up for the 4 year course inc placement year. My Dad died though mid way through - terrible death, really traumatic and it hit us all hard especially DD as he was like her Dad too, for a while her MH wasn't good which was really hard to watch. She wasn't up for the extra year and decided to plough ahead into final year, I had been secretly worried she had really put herself at a disadvantage on the grad job platform but fortunately it has worked out ok. She finished her dissertation yesterday and is so relieved just a couple more essays to do and thats it goodbye Bath - very bittersweet I think.

@Decorhate Not really as a single income household DD loan covered her rent so I have never had to contribute large sums like most. I also have a DS at Bristol with him and DD only a year apart I could never have afforded it. I chip in what I can and both my DC have worked throughout Uni. She will be fine in London I am sure.

Love hearing what they are all up to 😊

Very sad update @TangoWhiskyAlphaTango , I hope you and your DD have much better times ahead. She’ll love London 🤞