Finding the *Perfect* Graduate Job

My Graduate Job Search…

by Kaitlin

It’s no secret that finding a job is not easy. For me it took months of awful interviews (some very questionable), bad cover letters and the monotonous repetition of questions from employers - what can you bring to the table? etc. (The classic cliches).

I graduated from the University of Nottingham in July. I started looking for a job at the end of June just after I finished my exams. My parents were hassling me to start looking from January but as per usual with parents I thought it was just another one of their moans (yes I am a 21 year old). As a young independent woman of course I thought I knew what was best and didn’t listen. I don’t regret this though as it allowed me to enjoy those last few months of University without the stress of the graduate job search.

But towards the end of uni, the dreaded questions began: What are you going to do next year? What do you want to go into? Are you thinking of travelling? I know friends and mainly family say this with the best intentions but that didn’t stop me feeling like exploding or burying myself in a hole (tad dramatic but you know what I mean). So I did what most of my friends were also saying “no f***** clue” aka don’t ask me that ever again!

Leaving university was a struggle. I went from waking up at literally 12pm on a good day everyday and being with my friends and drinking most nights with everyone my own age, to being at home in the countryside with people either a lot younger than me or a lot older. I felt like an outsider in this in between unknowing stage. Nevertheless, I was pleased I had just graduated and got a grade I was happy with. But I didn’t know what was next for me and more worryingly (or so I thought at the time) had no clue what it was I wanted to go into.

In terms of looking for a job. For me I had no clue what I wanted to do, I had done business management at university so as you can imagine it didn’t really lead into anything obvious. Therefore, my mindset was, apply for everything and see what you get (or who will accept me.) All I knew was (like most if not everyone at my age) I want to have my London “Sex in the City” kind of years (not literally having sex in London but the years with all my friends in the city drinking at night and working in the day).

For my applications I applied everywhere - and I really do mean everywhere. At one point I made an application for MI5 (I can’t tell you if I got the job for confidential reasons). For 99.9% of the time I was (quite harshly) rejected. If I had had a pound for every time I got an email that began with the word ‘Unfortunately’ I wouldn’t have needed to apply for a job. There was one time I even went all the way to London just to be told I am not what they were looking for.... an email would have been nice. No disrespect to the woman in question but she literally sat across from me an the table and laughed. At least I got a free pan au choc out of it!

Enough doom and gloom, I did eventually get a job, which I’m sure you are on the edge of your seats to find out how. Literally luck. I was signing up for a recruitment agency who said they have a temp job for a ticket company in London. I thought it sounded great so they got me an interview the following day. I was having an anxious day (don’t know why but one of those days) and literally thought I bombed the interview. Luckily the women had been to Nottingham so we joked about some of the more questionable nights out in Nottingham and she seemed to like me. That same day I checked my email not thinking anything and that was when they offered me to come in within the next three days and start work.

At first I was apprehensive, more in shock that I had actually managed to get a job if I’m being honest. However once I had finished my first week I realised it wasn’t as daunting as I at first thought and am now really loving it and am hoping they will keep me on.

So If anyone is struggling to find that ‘perfect’ graduate job, this is some of my advice:

-Firstly the perfect graduate job does not exist. You will always have doubts, there will always be pros and cons. And ultimately I think this mentality puts far too much pressure on us.

• Don’t give up: I applied for over 200 jobs my emails were flooded with people rejecting me. I had around 10 face to face interviews all of whom (if you can guess) also rejected me - just keep going it’s one more job closer to yours

• Be personable: the interviewer is also a person try to relate to them and show them you are also human not just a candidate for a job find something that links you

• Fake it until you make it: that’s all anyone is doing even the top boss!

• Only do what you enjoy: it’s the only way you will not dread the job or have that horrible Sunday feeling I’m sure most people get

• Take you time: don’t accept something just because you don’t want to be unemployed do what you want to do

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