4 Reasons Why Graduates Miss Out on Job Opportunities
Being without a job after graduation – it’s the nightmare of all graduates and university students. Whilst your degree should be a massive advantage when job hunting, it’s not uncommon for candidates to be left searching for graduate jobs for a few weeks or months after graduating. Often it’s for reasons beyond their control, however in some cases there are small things that you may not realise are preventing your application from being successful.
So what are the most common reasons for difficulty finding graduate jobs?
1. Your CV and cover letter do not present you in your best light
This is one of the most common mistakes that we see among candidates. When you’re up against a high volume of competition, and your CV is the first and only thing the recruiter has to judge you by, you need to make sure it’s perfect. You should make sure your CV fully showcases your strengths, is easy to read, has perfect spelling and grammar, and has clear contact information – otherwise it’s not surprising if employers don’t contact you.
For our tips on writing the perfect graduate CV check out our blog post or get in touch.
2. You’re not prepared for the interview
If you’re invited in for an interview, it’s the perfect time to show them why you’d be the ideal fit for their company – but, unfortunately, many enter the interview without being fully prepared. It’s important that you present yourself well, this means not only being well dressed and looking smart, but also being confident about the company (the internet is your friend, make sure you’ve done your research), and your own skills. Find a friend or family member and ask them to practice asking you questions that are likely to come up so you’re ready for any question.
You should also prepare a list of questions beforehand to ask the interviewer. The interview isn’t just to find out if you’re the right fit for the company, it’s also to make sure the company is the right fit for you. Taking a few questions into the interview about the job role and the company will definitely impress the interviewer.
3. You only apply for a select amount of jobs
Unfortunately job hunting is often a numbers game, being too selective and only applying for jobs that seem perfect isn’t the best strategy. A job that may seem like it’s not for you from a description posted online could turn out to be your dream job and company to work for when you go in for an interview.
If you’re too selective you could miss out on great opportunities. You should apply to as many graduate jobs as possible – unfortunately rejections or not hearing back happens and most job hunters experience this a lot, so the more jobs you apply for the better.
4. You’re unsure of yourself
In order to be successful in your job hunt as a graduate, you need to be ambitious and confident that your knowledge, skills, and dedication will be an asset to any company. If you don’t believe in yourself then why would a recruiter? Set goals, remind yourself why you want this career, and why you’ll make a great employee. Follow other successful people that you look up to online and remind yourself regularly that that’s where you want to be, and you’re willing to work hard to get there. This will motivate you to sell yourself with confidence and enthusiasm.
You may feel uncomfortable bragging about yourself, but this is crucial in an interview and on CVs – get used to talking about yourself positively, and learn to take any worries or negativity that you have about yourself and your career and make it constructive – setting goals for how you can improve yourself. Transforming your mindset in this way will completely flip how you come across in an interview and will make it much easier to write cover letters and your CV.
Hopefully making these few changes will make it much easier for you to avoid unemployment when you graduate, if you would like any further graduate recruitment help or advice feel free to get in touch with us by calling us on 0300 303 2069 or visiting our contact page.
