Graduate jobs offers and progress

[LossOfMarbles]

Wondered how everyone’s DC are getting on. DD was lucky and has 2 offers, one from her internship and another from a Big 4, so has an interesting dilemma. It’s been a slog with multiple applications (the process for internships and grad job applications are so arduous compared with ‘my day’) and a lot of work on top of study and part time jobs.

DD1 graduated 6 years, so a bit out of date. But .... She tried all if the traditional graduate recruiters and even then found the impersonal recruitment process horrendous. She failed to secure any interviews other than MI5, and she got to the final round there, but she can't talk about that!

She secured a job in the October of her post grad year, so good, with a small independent consultancy aligned with STEM, and is still there. Fantastic company, promoted several times, good salary and t&C's. Golden handcuffs now.

Oh, and they interviewed in person from the get go. Sooooo much nicer and interactive. Suggests a more interpersonal environment, and it is.

How do undergrads find out about internships and grad schemes?

Just curious!

https://www.brightnetwork.co.uk/application-deadlines/jobs/graduate-schemes/

My DD found uni careers service info useful and her department ran career seminars. Careers fair useful too as found a couple of opportunities that she thought wouldn't be open to her but were.

https://www.gradcracker.com

This is the big stem site. All the big companies post on there for grad schemes. If a role has a long deadline, apply early as sometimes roles close once they consider they have enough applicants.

@HarrietVain Depends what they want! As I said earlier, many small and medium sized companies will recruit but won’t be advertising with nationally known companies. Students can look at professional journals, ranking schemes, local employers etc.

DS had Actuarial and a strategy consultancy offer. He’s still deciding what to choose

Gradcracker and also normal job websites such as indeed. Ds got his graduate job from there.

Also most companies advertise on their own websites too.

Gradcracker, Indeed and dare I say it, AI?

DS asked AI to tell him about internships for next Summer in his field in our area.

It did throw up a couple we hadn’t seen listed before but then it did also suggest some that didn’t exist.

Mine is doing well. Has spent 4 months working in PR with a political focus and from January will be working in Parliament with an MP. TBH when she chose to do politics for her degree I did worry she would struggle but she has been fortunate to have a few offers and has chosen the path she feels with give her the most exposure to various careers.

DD has found the W4MP jobs website the most useful place to look.

That's really useful @TangoWhiskeyAlphaTango123 as I have a first year Politics student. I remember you from the 2022 GCSE thread (still going!); great to hear that your dd is managing to get the sort of experience she wants. What is her long-term goal?

Hey @crazycroftershe doesn’t know yet. She thought the PR job would be right up her street (writing press releases, dealing with media, lobbying MPs) but it wasn’t she’s found it too target and corporate driven. This new job is policy & research intern for a labour MP. Whats she’s found is now she has the first internship on her CV it’s been much easier to get opportunities. She’s had a really shit year where her best friend was killed a week into this job and her heads been all over the place, then moving to a new city, new job etc. I’ve said to her to try different things. She also got an offer to do the Impact scheme but didn’t want to go to the area they’d placed her so turned it down. My biggest advice would be for for your DC would be to apply for anything remotely relevant and get any experience they can.

I'm so sorry to hear about her friend @TangoWhiskeyAlphaTango123 , that's really tough. 😢All the best to her for the new job and future plans.

This is a great place to look - thanks !

Hi,
we are new to this but most internships seem to be for penultimate year ? not for the summer after graduation ? kindly let me know how/where to look for those
thank you

Internships tend to be between uni years , I don’t know anyone who has done an internship straight after graduating, most people either get a grad job or they take a gap year and travel.

A couple of my DDs friends have done internships immediately post graduating (one before starting a masters and the other really just a short term job but it did lead to another slightly longer short term job).

I think they just looked in the usual places (indeed, bright network, uni careers) and if it didn’t say penultimate year undergrad only they applied.

My DD graduated last summer, with a humanities degree. She hadn’t managed to bag any of the usual grad schemes - the civil service actually said she failed their culture alignment test!
(I feel that says more about civil servants than DD tbh 😁)
However as @OhDear111 pointed out there are many small and medium size companies that do recruit more traditionally.
Also lots of companies are looking for graduates but not necessarily running traditional grad schemes.
DD saw a role on Indeed with an international publishing company, and then as @Friendlygingercat recommends, she utilised LinkedIn to find a recent graduate from her university also working for that company. Reached out, had a long chat and through her found out about a different role.
After 5 rounds of interviews she was offered the post.

@2chocolateorangesYou aren’t familiar with the fashion industry then! Internships certainly are done after graduating.

@FrancisBlundy ok thank you, that's what DC is doing (need to check on indeed though). I have strongly encouraged to look at his alumni network as well DC is applying to penultimate as may do a masters and everything else !

@TreesOfGreen99One of mine failed the CS behaviours at the end of her placement year but passed for the two CS graduate schemes she applied to the year after. Behaviours can be learned so tell your DC to give it another go if she thinks it suits.

Just to clarify:

Graduate scheme= Large companies who take on lots of grads. The graduates rotate round different departments for 1-2 years gaining experience. No guaranteed job at the end.

Graduate job= smaller company that takes on a graduate for a particular role. Permanent position.

Guessing that's just your own definition of a graduate scheme - it certainly doesnt match the grad schemes of the last 3 large multinationals I've worked for

My DS was lucky, he asked for leads for an internship on LinkedIn and found one within 2 days. I think this is where the connections came in. I also shared his post and because I have a lot of people who know people who know people a few doors opened

He spent a year as an intern and in his final year at uni he continued to do some freelance work for them

He was offered a full time role straight after his internship and they even held it open while he went travelling.

Degree is politics and IR