Graduate son down about job search

[anotherglass]

Hello, my son graduated five months ago and after a couple of months travelling has commenced the job search. While he was enthusiastic at first, he has recently become quite demotivated and down. The process is quite brutal in sending off application after application but not hearing back or going through quite soulless online assessments, designed to weed out neurodivergent candidates. He has hobbies but is starting to become withdrawn and flat. I am worried about him. How can I best support him without being overbearing?

@AlienAnt ds's new job is a couple of hundred miles from us. He hasn't been given a start date yet but he's busy saving up to see him through his first month. I think he has the deposit he got back from his uni accommodation in the wings. Unfortunately we can't help much as we're on UC. He does have dd1 and her family who live about 40 minutes away and her dh works near his new job. They wouldn't probably want him there too long (small house with dc) though!

Oh I know, it's a nightmare. You hear people say all the time "go where the work is!" without factoring in you need a couple of thousand pounds to do that.

I've told my child the same - they need to save all they can between now and moving but as luck would have it, they've had an accident and aren't able to do any shifts until their injuries heal 😟

Thanks for the fantastic tips. I really hope you aren't a career advisor.

It just that. Degrees are no longer about skills and learning but about who is prepared to pay for them. They’ve become a commodity, and a new graduate needs so much upskilling in how to do a job and work with others that many employers can’t be bothered with the hassle. That’s why it’s a good idea to have and highlight work experience in applications.

I didn’t go to uni, despite having a professor in the close family. Neither did my sibling. We both progressed quickly up the ladder and were earning significantly more than our peers that did go to uni by 22. I had a mortgage at 19 rather than student debt. I’ve done lots of studying part time alongside work so have ended up in a good place.

I’m actively discouraging DD (15) from going to uni unless there is a specific need to for a clear and secure career. She’s not sure what she wants to do but degree apprenticeships are a good option to get the work experience along with relevant quals. A degree doesn’t have the same clout that it used to on its own anymore, and it’s a bloody expensive piece of paper if it doesn’t.

That may be true but the op’s dc did engineering.

That requires a degree and it’s really sad to see so many struggling to get their first career job.

Has he considered working abroad?

His degree is in politics and he has a Master's in Policy research. He did apply to various relevant grad schemes to no avail. Where he has had interviews they do tend to be in local government.

To those who say 'just get a job in retail' as it is good for the CV- sadly, that ahs not been DS's experience. He has had jobs in 3 shops and three jobs in schools. No one seems very impressed. He has also made sure he drives and owns a car for mobility.

And to those who say 'just tick the disability/ equalities box ' including for those who aren't disabled, I have no words. Other than maybe fraud? (not you, OP, you were clear about diagnosed ND).

Great way to get trapped in a dead end job that.

It's tough out there, I was made redundant in February, I'm taking a career break as I was pregnant so haven't looked a great deal but the number of my colleagues who have found work in that time are in the minority, we all have science PhDs and over 10 years relevant work experience but it's still difficult. My company made more people redundant in August. I was working in a biotech industry and I have seen other similar companies having significant redundancies too.
I have declared disabilities on applications, I haven't been asked what they are but I get a phone call from HR asking if I need any adjustments for the application process.

May not appeal to him, but several of my friends who couldn’t get jobs after uni went on to do teaching qualifications and became school teachers. That’s one career option where you will always be able to find a job.

True, with engineering he could work as a maths teacher. Teaching is an awful lot better off -for all concerned, not least the teacher- with people who actively want to be a teacher, mind.

In case, others are thinking this way, there aren't currently shortages in primary, PE, history , music or art (although the latter two are being squeezed out at many schools).

Ds did a 3 week STEM teaching internship at the end of his first year of university. He really enjoyed it. It would be a loss to engineering though if he didn't use his MEng as he is very talented.

The graduate job market is really tough at the moment- down about 40% for some top unis at the moment.

Plenty of others in the same boat but of course that’s not very reassuring for the OP’s DS.

OP, can you son apply for some unpaid internships at engineering companies to get more experience? He could also look for research assistant roles at universities - those are graduate entry jobs.

The interview should happen, but it doesn't always.

I applied for a part time teacher of the deaf roll with my local council. I met all the minimum criteria, I have a teaching qualification, they wanted someone with level 2 BSL or 'willing to learn' I'm fluent (well I was then), I took level 2 back in the 1990s.

My degree is 50% Deaf Studies.

After hearing nothing for ages I contacted my councillor.

Apparently I didn't get an interview because I had not led and INSET days.

Reading between the lines I think they made the job spec to fit a person they knew.

I think that he is probably now realising that 'a degree from a top university' does not guarantee a job and the job market is hard - for everyone. Did you support him with funds for his two months travelling? I am asking because do you have the money to pay for a job coach - to look over his applications/CV? Do you have the money to pay for a couple of months accommodation/deposit etc so he can widen his search? My son is a similar age and has gone into teaching (always the plan) - often recommend on here when you can't get a job. He's not in a shortage subject. Schools (like everyone else) are cutting back - managing rather than recruiting. He got a job in the end and in all honesty he was lucky - his degree and interests just happened to fit that particular school. I think it was 60 applications to shortlist 4. Which I know is a much better average that many graduate jobs but people arnt walking into teaching jobs at the moment.
As for ticking the disability box to get an interview (when you don't have a disability) - lost for words on that one.

I’m having the opposite problem! We took on a trainee accountant in our small practice in the summer. We advertise only on the ICEAW website as other sites you get inundated with automatic applications. Had 20 applicants, interviewed 5, offered the job. He rejected it as got another offer, so offered to second choice who started at the end of August. They say their first exam after being at college for 2 weeks and got 20% on a multiple choice exam. Turns out they’d skipped college thinking they can just pass and obviously got exactly what you would get if you guess on a multiple choice exam. Had to let them go and now back to square 1. We aren’t taking a graduate again, it’s too much hassle. We’re going to look for either an experienced person, or someone wanting a career change who’s a bit older.
We’ve had 5 trainees in the past 4 years and only 2 have stuck at it. One went off to be a midwife, one called me an f idiot before storming out and the recent one lied about studying and failing.
We’re also recruiting for a bookkeeper, we’ve had over 100 applicants through indeed, got that down to 6, 3 didn’t turn up to the interview, one was hopeless, one wanted to work significantly different hours to those advertised and the final one wanted to be an accountant and not a bookkeeper.
AI is a major problem, for small businesses it just makes it too easy to apply for jobs. Over 70% of staff come from word of mouth for us or people just sending a CV in. Does he know what industry he wants? If it was me, I’d email my cv round a few asking if they have a position/work experience or can just keep my details on file in case something pops up. Our best grad we found this way, didn’t bother advertising as her CV came in whilst we were thinking and so just interviewed her and took her on.

@hungryKat ds graduated this year and was originally planning on doing a PhD. Then his tutor met up with an old student who said there was a job going where he worked. The tutor realised it was just down ds's street and ds applied for it (through the official channels) and is just waiting for a start date. He is currently doing an internship which he is enjoying but he is really looking forward to starting his permanent job. Word of mouth is often the best way!

Not sure the 'it's not what you know, it's who you know ' mantra is the most reassuring.

I would second the teaching suggestion! he can always apply to jobs and switch at the end of an academic year. there is such a teacher shortage, esp in STEM, he would be pretty much guaranteed a job as one

We’ve had 5 trainees in the past 4 years and only 2 have stuck at it. One went off to be a midwife, one called me an f idiot before storming out and the recent one lied about studying and failing.

Did you check both professional and personal references prior to taking them on?