Lara is graduating with a degree in Aeronautical Engineering. Aware of the recession, she understands that securing a suitable job will be a challenge for most graduates this year. She is currently gaining as many work experience opportunities as she can.
I’d really like to work in the Air Transport or Aviation Industry. I don’t have a job lined up yet but I’ve secured a work experience placement at London City Airport.
I’d go on to complete a postgraduate course and hopefully, that way I’d be able to get a better job when the economic downturn recovers.
Mentoring scheme
At the moment, I’m not too worried about job hunting, but I have attended different careers workshops for CV checks by careers advisors, fairs and have also taken part in the Mentoring Scheme, which was organised by City University’s London Centre for Careers & Skills Development.
On this scheme, alumni of the University are paired up with students in their respective fields so that they benefit from their experiences and expertise. The idea behind it is to create opportunities for students to meet and discuss with experts from industries and gain an insight of what working in a particular field entails. My mentor helped me with planning projects, presentation skills and gave me pointers on how to apply for and get careers in the aviation business.
On completion of my exams and work experience, I will be working part time for the University as a student ambassador.
Mixed feelings
Although I have mixed feelings about graduating in a recession, I feel confident that I will be able to find a much desired job, whether this year or the next. The competition is fierce, so to set better standards I’ll be building up on my work experience.
I would advise other graduates to do the same. Work experience is vital and it’s all about standing out from the crowd. Go to as many workshops and graduate fairs as you can and ensure that you take any advice from the careers specialists on board.
Rohit is graduating with a degree in Business Computing Systems. He has secured a graduate job with Goldman Sachs, but says he is still a little bit anxious about the job market.
I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do when I started university, so in my second year I applied for a work placement. I applied to about 50 companies and was successful with Goldman Sachs. My year here led to me being offered a graduate job.
Trying out a new profession
Doing this placement also gave me the opportunity to find out if application development was a career I wanted to follow. I don’t think I would have a job lined up now had I not done the placement.
Work experience is really important, even if it’s not a graduate placement. Time spent at a company allows you to identify whether or not this particular area of work is really for you. I think it would be quite tough to get a job now without any experience.
A lot of graduate schemes have gone now, but there are summer schemes and internships available, so I would advise graduates to try and get one. If I was graduating now without a job, I would have considered more experience or further study.
Job nerves
I start my job in July with eight weeks training. Luckily for me I don’t have to relocate, as that could have been expensive. Although I have a job lined up, I am still a little anxious. I have heard about graduate jobs being offered and then withdrawn, because of the way things are with the market.
If my job offer was to be withdrawn, I would have to wait another year. At that point I would look into another internship, maybe in a slightly different role, in an industry that wasn’t as badly affected by the downturn.
Related articles:
- Down but not out - It's going to be tough to find a job this summer, but don't rule out your options completely.
- Work Experience - Adding some experience to your CV can make all the difference.
Graduating this summer? Get some careers advice from Graduate Prospects.