Generic degree = No job?

[toyland]

Ds has just finished first year of a History undergraduate at a decent Uni (Top 10 ranking).
He is feeling he hasn’t helped himself by not actively pursuing gaining career skills from looking at how poor the graduate market is at the moment.
He will likely get a high 2:1 (possibly a 1st), but knows it is leveraging relevant experience that matters - of which he has none.
He has joined clubs, but not put himself forward to any positions next year. He has tried to get local summer retail/hospitality work, but hasn’t found anything. He is thinking of volunteering- either at the local museum or citizens advice whilst at Uni next year.
He has started a few Forage courses in Insurance and Finance over the summer (he does have Maths A level) and was looking at Coursera for free courses - was thinking of a Data Analysis visualisation one and Excel skills.
He said he needs interview practice for applying for Internships, but is unsure where to look. He has set up a Linked In Page but connected with 500+ other students mainly! He had a couple of careers 1:1 half an hour sessions at uni -but this was more exploring career thoughts.

I did a degree that led directly to professional exams and career, so I can’t advise him. He does have ADHD and can struggle with focus, so I do try and help if he asks.
What has helped your dc gain skills that helped them get a job -from a degree that doesn’t lead to a specific career?

https://www.ambitiousaboutautism.org.uk/what-we-do/services/i-am-an-autistic-young-person/employment-opportunities

This charity helps with finding paid intenships & placements for neurodiverse young people so worth contacting them.

Thank you @ColinCaterpillarsNo1Fan

Do the uni not offer sessions on cvs, internships, assessment centres etc. I follow my dc’s uni careers instagram and there are loads of workshops and sessions. It’s part of what they pay fees for.
As someone who recruits graduates (legal) I do look for paid pt work on cv. If he keeps eye on uni recruitment page he may get a job on campus, ambassador role etc.

Thanks @Cakeandusername. He has done a couple of workshops and said he didn’t find them that useful- maybe because he wasn’t thinking concretely of the reality of applications.
He does really need paid work I agree, but has struggled to find any. I worked all my uni holidays. There seems less employers wanting staff at the moment.
He applied for subject ambassador -didn’t get it ,but definitely needs to do something!
Thanks for the advice. I’ll tell him to keep applying if he sees anything.

@toyland
Assume he is after a career in Insurance/Finance?

What I have done with my Y12 is to get them to look at aspirational firms (say, Aviva if the above is true), then on LinkedIn for the firm look at the people and the recent graduate roles that they have gone into. Then look at profiles to see what they have achieved.
Gives a flavour of the 'requirements'.

My DC did internships; one applied for several unpaid micro internships offered internally by the university and the other completed paid for banking internships in the summer vacations. Both secured grad jobs during their final years.

I did a post-grad. That was normal among my cohort. Some took a year or two out to gain experience in a particular area that they wanted to work in. But we all had no idea what to do at 17/18.
I know it's different now but my cohort are now teachers, lecturers, business owners (consultant and niche business), civil service now all at high levels, allied health, librarian, roles in businesses.

If he can’t find a job I agree he could volunteer. That will be something to put on his cv for next time he applies for a paying role. My DS found employment by actually walking in to places and asking, then following up. Some places advertise on their FB pages. It is difficult unless living somewhere with seasonal opportunities.
My DD is at uni and has managed to get a paid internship directly related to her degree which includes working abroad next summer, but it was very competitive and involved application process (Laidlaw Scholarship). She found out about it during freshers week at the Societies Fair. She also works on the student newspaper - another quite intense application - and has just finished her second executive role at her college’s JCR, where she had to stand up in front of 30 or so other students and pitch for those jobs! She also did a months work experience abroad with the Turing Scheme before uni (she applied through uni for this summer but didn’t get it, but got the internship instead). I think there’s probably plenty your son can do outside his course at uni which will give him skills and flesh out his CV. My DD was also the Student Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator, running a couple charity events and liaising with community organisations, and is the course rep for her year - ensuring the whole faculty of her department knows her. She scours the ‘what’s on’ at her uni and takes advantage of guest lectures, and has added contacts to her LinkedIn including people who work in the Dept of Education and an award winning journalist (who she signed up for a one to one with which was very informative). She’s been to Parliament with one society. She’s very mindful of the job situation after graduating and is trying to get as much bang for her buck out of her university, as while she wants to work with her degree she’s not sure in what capacity, but she’s gained loads of experience in terms of applications (far more involved than any application I did after I graduated).

I hugely admire her drive: she’s a true introvert but that hasn’t stopped her. At her age all I worried about was how late I could get away doing an assignment and did that boy on the next floor down like me! I had worked a few jobs by then from the age of 16: a couple jobs in retail, working in a cinema, even doing dog walking at one point! But I recognise it’s a different world out there now. Good luck to him - he needs to really push himself and take advantage of anything and everything the uni has to offer.

As PP i would expect him to get more out of the uni careers service - i camped out there for a few days! They also did some interview practice. He should talk to the staff to find out what they can offer.

There has never before been more, easily accessible information on how to prepare for interview and to carve a career.

I also have adhd and I wonder if your son's struggling with the breadth of options. He could try something like "what colour is your parachute" - there's a workbook.

Also Strengthsfinder

Thank you @stubiff, @ofteninaspin, @YourOnMute, @mondaytosunday.
This is all really useful.
It is so competitive- especially as he is at a target uni for these roles, but not doing the target degree (economics/maths).
I did make him walk in all the local workplaces and ask, but all said just send a message online or apply via their company website. He really needs to show he can work in a paid role I feel. Hopefully he can find something- even if unpaid.
Thanks for the advice everyone 😊.

@MulledjuiceI think it is exactly this. He easily gets overwhelmed if given too much choice, but then thrives on pressure/deadlines- so it’s a real conundrum. He found the 1:1 career Uni sessions great. I will get him to look at ‘what colour is your parachute’.

Why the pressure? He has only just finished his first year! My DD with ADHD would have been having melt-downs if I had been pushing her about grad jobs and internships at this stage. Young people with ADHD do find uni harder as their executive function skills are under-developed and my DD certaily needed to decompress in the holidays. She was fortunate that she already had a pub job from after A'levels and was able to pick up shifts again in the holidays. She has now finished uni and her plan is to work, save and go travelling. Young people today will be working until they are at least 70. They should be able to take a breather and start looking for a proper job when they feel ready.

Is he remotely sporty? Our local leisure centres and gyms are forever trying to recruit lifeguards and most will pay for their training. There's several adverts floating around for summer camp and holiday club type staff too. These are still advertising if you've got one locally Summer Camp Sports Coaching & Childcare Jobs - Kings Camps
Charity shops often need Mon-Fri volunteers (at weekend they're inundated with DofE kids!) if he can't find anything paid.

If he has just finished Y1 of 3 History, then I don't think he's missed the boat at all. Late summer will be the get ready to apply windows, for circa Sept to Dec window for most of the summer 2026 internships. He will be in his penultimate year so most will be applicable, apart from those that stipulate applications only from specific type UG courses.

My suggestion in addition to what he is thinking of undertaking (which is all CV worthy) is to get onto the opening lists of the sectors he's interested in for when the application window starts), and start practicing the online tests, SHL etc all have lots of free access or utilise the university resources. They really do close off before deadlines if there are too many applications so this is an area you can support him on, get the spreadsheet up and running with responses etc so they don't all blur into one. Yes practice the interviews, but again more specifically, work with him giving him 2 mins prep and then film deliver his answer to you as most will be on HireView for the initial interview as part of early stage sifts.

The great news is that he has Maths A level, this is a big hurdle for humanities students to overcome as their skills tend to spike in arts type subjects.

Final suggestion, and this is very much finance and coping dependent, but if you are London/near based, consider applying for the roles regionally instead. Often the bottle-neck of I must work in London or nothing results in students being against the volume of applications. Be tactical.

Good luck to him. He's doing really well so far, just needs to come out of his comfort zone more to supplement his academic record with the extras.

The civil service is an option- lots of good grad jobs and opportunities for progression, a good employer for ND, and a recruitment strategy that lets you talk about a broad range of experiences.

if he’s interested I would suggest that he starts keeping a short log of the experience he’s gaining and what he is learning from it- not just standard work experience but everything from clubs to uni work to volunteering. He will need to be able to answer questions about behaviours ( tell me about a time when you solved a problem etc) and it really helps to have a record of activities to remind you of the things you’ve done.

I did my degree in History! Graduated with a high 2.1 from a RG uni. I never knew what I wanted to 'be', thought I would work it out whilst at uni but I didn't. I worked 'normal' jobs for a few years (retail, hospitality) then decided to become a solicitor, which is what I do now

Things I wish I had taken to heart (i have an Oxbridge History degree):

Just because you could do (almost) anything doesnt mean you have to do everything.

It's ok to try something out to really get an understanding of what you like and dont, you dont have to make big decisions all at once. They can feel really scary.

Maybe think of one thing you could do that would get you a step closer to knowing (or ruling something out).

Acquiring strategies for managing his ADHD (not everyone's are alike but there is much benefit in trying out what worked for others) will be really important. Knowing what to lean into and what needs to get kept above the "acceptable" line.

Be careful with alcohol, committed to physical (and therefore brain) health.

I wish I was coming of age with the adhd awareness he has and can build!

@ealingwestmumThat’s great advice. I agree with practice for online tests etc. I’ll ask him to look at release dates and also what’s available from regional employers.
@LornaSaysYesBecause of his lack of experience his examples do tend to centre around academic tenacity or voluntary work at school. He needs a bit of this at uni where he hasn’t really done much!
@familylawyer01392He discounted law as there seemed to be lots of online talk about how few opportunities there are. He saw planning lawyers seemed to be in demand?
@MulledjuiceHe isn’t quite there with managing his ADHD at University and the open nature of his degree and contact hours doesn’t help. He can turn in a 1st class essay with an overnighter, then scrape a 2:1 with having more time and just lacking focus. He struggles with sleep at uni and then sometimes uses distractions such as gaming. He loves walking and being outdoors and I’m trying to encourage a structure to his day that includes exercise at the start- but it all falls apart when he has poor sleep then gets up late. He tends to hide worries with distraction which compounds things. He wants to do well but is frustrated with himself sometimes - which seems to be the ADHD. I just want to make sure he keeps mentally well and feels supported.

no idea about planning law, tbh i was headhunted as a paralegal then decided to qualify from there

Law conversion is a possibility but securing entry level roles especially with funding for SQE is extremely competitive.
Planning law is part of my sphere and indeed very hard to recruit solicitors but especially in local government it’s low paid.
There was a thread on here recently with decent ideas to try for summer work.

@CakeandusernameI’ll search for the summer work thread.
I’m not sure law is for him. I’m sure it’s the same in other fields, but the Law and Banking/Finance applicants seem particularly focused.

I’ve tagged you in it. I also sent you a pm re planning.

.

Is he into the Natural world and nature? A lot of places like National Trust, RSPB, Wildlife Trusts are always wanting volunteers.