Important Job Search Tips for Students and Graduates

There’s no getting away from it: the jobs market is currently tough – and it’s tougher for young people, including students and graduates, than it is for many other people. However, there are still jobs out there and so sticking to your job search is a must. Read on for some important job search tips for students and graduates that just might give you the boost you need.

Balancing work and study

This is one for the students amongst you; getting the right balance between work and study is important, so look for part time jobs with flexibility. It’s also worth, though, looking for jobs that will be able to teach you something or develop skills you might want to use in later life. Even bar work or retail work can develop crucial skills while still being flexible, so you should find quite a bit of choice.

Undertake a skills review

Whether you are a student or graduate job hunter, it’s worth undertaking a skills review. This will tell you what you’re already good at (useful for job applications and interviews) and what you need to work on (useful for if you’re looking for training or volunteer roles to enhance your future employability). It will also give you a better idea of the sort of jobs you might like to look for.

Keeping your options open

Okay, pretty much everyone is probably telling you to ‘keep your options open’, but it really is good advice. Unless you are training to work in a very specific industry, you’ll find that most degrees enable you to work in a whole range of professions, so even if you’ve had your eye on a particular job for years, if you’re finding it hard to get that job it might be an idea to look elsewhere. It doesn’t close off your preferred career route, but it just might open a few more doors for you.

Location, location, location

This one is particularly useful if you’re looking for graduate jobs, such as training schemes or other graduate-calibre roles. The temptation can be to focus your search on London as this is where many of the big firms are, but don’t forget about other locations as well. Some graduate schemes offer training in different locations, and if you’re flexible about where you work, you might have more success than if you’re too picky about where you live.

Covering letters and lengthy applications

Applications and covering letters are not the most interesting things in the world, but they’re vital if you want to land that hot interview. Think of them as a test of resilience if you must, but make sure you give them the attention they deserve. Also, make sure you can back up every statement with an example. For instance, don’t just say ‘I have good communication skills’, because everyone says that. Say where you developed your communication skills, and specifically what it is that makes them so great.

Set up a search

Finally, job hunting can be time consuming, so it’s worth setting up an online search that you can check regularly to pick up new jobs as and when they arise. There are some good online tools available these days, so you might as well make use of them to make your search just that little bit easier.