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Graduate Jobs

16:37 Mon 24th May 2010 |

Graduate Jobs

As the job market becomes increasingly competitive those who have studied at university and earned a degree are gaining a distinct advantage over their job-seeking counterparts. With more employers looking for degree standard employees to fill their limited job vacancies, graduates are moving in to fill some of the most demanding and well-paid jobs in the country.

Of course, getting a degree is not something that everyone can achieve and isn’t essential, but it does open many new and exciting doors for career development.

With such a huge number of people opting to go into higher education, however, the job market is getting to a stage of ‘over-saturation’ where a lot of degree students can apply for one single job. In some cases there are over 300 applicants for a highly competitive degree position.

A good piece of advice is to think long and hard about the degree that you want to study. It is important to do a subject you enjoy and have an interest in, not just because you’ll spend three years or more learning about it, but because it will also have a great bearing on your future career choice. As the market is so competitive, a relevant degree that has some relation to a potential career path is a good idea. It might seem like a good idea to study Russian and Film Studies, but when applying for a degree job that doesn’t involve these areas you may struggle to get to interview.

Each university will offer its careers department services to students who are about to graduate. This service is invaluable as the careers advisors are the best in the business and will put you on the right path for career progression. They will help you write a CV and sell your abilities, as well as instruct you on other further learning courses that will enhance your employability.

Most graduate jobs require someone who is hard working, dedicated and flexible – all of the things that are required to achieve a degree in the first place. The salary for these kinds of jobs can vary greatly depending on the location, company and type of work, but most degree students can expect to move into a role on at least £15,000 per year, with that quickly rising as you learn more within your job.

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