Graduate blogs and advice
Alternative career options for graduates, and how employers can benefit
The pandemic has restricted opportunities to progress with some career types, meaning that some graduates who have studied aligned degrees have had to adjust their career plans, resulting in other industries gaining the benefit of their skills. You may hear...
Your learning shouldn’t finish once you have graduated
You may not be finding it easy to find a graduate opportunity, and if you can't get a job related to your degree then it’s important to try and get some kind of work to keep yourself going and develop skills that will be valuable in any career. But there is something...
SME Graduate Employment’s partnership with the Women’s Engineering Society
I am pleased to announce that SME Graduate Employment is now a partner of the Women's Engineering Society. At around 12%, there are not enough Women in engineering, and I'm happy to be able to do my bit to address this. From a business perspective the average...
Preparing for an interview
Fail to prepare = prepare to fail Yes, it may be a cliche- but it's true. If you are selected for an interview it’s vital that you spend time preparing. You may be surprised how many don’t do this- and very rarely will they get an offer. A lot will be expanding on...
Know someone else who may be interested? Gift vouchers could be available…
If I speak with you about an opportunity, and it's not right for you, please let me know if you think of anyone else who may be suitable and interested. Or if you know of another student or recent graduate who is looking for work and would be an asset to employers. If...
Applications
There is no getting away from it. applying for jobs is not easy- particularly since the Covid-related blow to the graduate employment market. I have often spoken with graduates who have applied for dozens or even hundreds of jobs and not been successful, or in some...
Social media
There are a wide range of different social media types, and these vary in importance in relation to job searching and raising your profile. The one thing I would say that all have in common, is that you need to consider what you put on them. Consider how happy you...
Offers
When applying for jobs, and getting interviews, it can sometimes be difficult to balance them. For example, you may get an offer for a job, but have another interview for another opportunity booked in. Or you may be lucky enough to get two offers to consider. This is...
Class of 2020
Well, I think it’s fair to say that the class of 2020 have had it tough, perhaps more than any other university cohort. The graduate employment market has taken a big hit, but there are some employers who are still recruiting, there are signs of further improvement,...
CV layout
As someone who sees dozens of CVs a day, these are a few tips based on my experience and preferences that I hope will be helpful, though it's not a comprehensive list. CVs come in many different styles, and there is a wide range of quality. The key thing to remember,...