Graduate Stories: How to find your first job out of University?

Real stories from graduates who are a few years down the line and how they went about finding their first jobs out of University.

During the long and winding bridge of education to get to University makes most educationally ready to take the step. Post-University, it’s like someone has pushed you straight off the side of that metaphorical bridge. 

I have been out of University for three years now, I travelled, I started a job, I hated a job, I swapped jobs, turned down grad schemes, swapped roles and industries and never stopped learning. In just 3 years. Did I know what the hell I was doing out of Uni? Absolutely Not. 

I have brought together a number of friends, friends of friends, colleagues and peers to touch base on a range of topics about post University life and the young business mind. 

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It’s a strange time with the current economy and the world the way it is in the midst of a world pandemic and figures state that 28 per cent of graduates have had job offers rescinded or the start date delayed (prospects.ac.uk). Those that haven’t managed to secure a grad scheme or first job are continuing their search, hopefully not in vain. 

Searching for a first role out of University is a daunting task, the front foot off the University stepping stone ready to jump two footed into “adult life”. Is it easy? No. Is it scary? Absolutely Yes. 

So where, to start....let’s start with exactly that, where? 

For many they have their heart set on the big smoke and this is the catalyst to start their first significant job. Will Hands is now entering his 2nd year as an audit graduate at one of the Big 4 accounting firms KPMG and he started by moving location. Originally from the outskirts of Birmingham, he knew that London was where he wanted to be.

“A friend recommended me for a short-term job as a finance assistant at the advertising company he worked for. This fit me perfectly as it allowed me to move to London, start earning some money and continue to apply for graduate schemes in the meantime” 

A 2:1 Economics graduate from the University of Nottingham, Will continues “I actually was pretty unsure what I wanted to do post uni but had applied for a few different graduate schemes, unfortunately with little luck finding a job I wanted or failing to the land the ones I did!” 

A large leap to move away from home weeks after graduation, allowed Will to attend graduate assessment days and job interviews more easily. This wasn’t without hardship, sleeping on friends’ couches and floors for the best part of 6 months before landing at KPMGs front door. 

The most popular way graduates find jobs is through recruitment agencies and recruitment websites (Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE)). A high percentage of job descriptions on Linkedin, Indeed, TotalJobs etc are added by recruiters who can then get high quality CV’s on their system. This may seem disingenuous, in reality it’s a great way to gain a large scope of potential opportunities if you aren’t clear on the role or company you aim to work for. 

Graduate schemes aren’t for everyone but it’s in the name and a great place to start for many. 

Agency 1 (name retracted) is one example that Ted Nevens fell upon (me too in fact!), and he had the opportunity to apply for the Oracle graduate scheme. Following a phone interview and submission of his CV he attended the assessment centre. “I thoroughly researched the company and the role before the day to ensure I had the best chance as I knew it would be highly competitive.” 

Ted was correct in thinking competition would be rife, with over 80 graduates competing for the six places on offer. The whole process was ‘pretty ruthless’ with half of the attendees being told to leave at lunch and then after the full 10-hour day of activities, individual and group exercises, interviews and presentations “6 of us were pulled in to a separate room and told we got the jobs” 

Ted, now well into his first year as a Consultant at Oracle, landed his first job out of University by working hard for a role he never knew he wanted and by being the right fit and personality for Oracle. In fact, although highly intelligent, Ted wasn’t in the top 28% of his cohort which you may think would hinder his chances. Working hard and having drive led Ted to being the right fit and personality for Oracle with him gaining a highly prestigious job at a Fortune500 company. 

Traditional approaches are not dead; contacts and hustle! 

After considering graduate schemes and recruitment agencies, using personal contacts and employer websites are the next most common ways of finding graduate positions (DLHE). 

If you are in a position where you have your eyes set on a specific industry you are halfway to getting your first job out of University. 

Jonathan Reed studied a Geography degree but he knew that following in his father's footsteps into the Insurance industry was right for him. Completing his dissertation surrounding issues facing the London Insurance Market he had the perfect contact list to touch base with post-graduation. “I was able to canvas these upon finishing university and found opportunities that I could interview for which led me to the job I am in now” 

Simple right? Absolutely not. The end goal was clear and that was half the challenge. Jonathan gained a part time job as a customer service representative near his family home to get some money in whilst hustling down to London in his spare time to take interviews and coffee meetings with his contacts. Fortunately, the graft that he accomplished at University for his dissertation served him very well in the long run. 

“I found my internship by sending out 37 letters to different companies inquiring as to intern opportunities” states Nicholas Vasic a Lawyer in training. “Over the course of two internships with the same firm, at the end of the second of which I was offered a position...bottom line, if you’re interested in a field, do everything in your power to get experience in that field and don't stop searching - you never know, your best opportunity could be just a letter away” 

A number of graduates may have read this far (thanks) and think that it’s too late for them, they didn’t write a dissertation or have any internships on their CV and therefore they aren’t going to be able to achieve what they want... 

Harry Williams now of Sky found himself in a position to take an internship post-university to gain a job he wanted. He hunted down an internship with Tesla as a Marketing Executive. A highly educated 1st class graduate taking a sub living wage internship just to get experience? Yes. For a year, he hustled earning little to no money, just living, proved himself and came out of it with a full-time position. 

My personal story started with a girl, of course, we went travelling for six months post university, had a great time but pretty quickly we broke up back in the real world. 

I wanted to get straight into London and get working. I moved into a flat with my best friend from University and took a sales job after completing an assessment day with an agency. I hated it. No easy way of saying it. I didn’t enjoy being on the phone every day cold calling. I lasted around 6 months and the people at work and the London life kept me going that long. It got to a point where although I was faring well, I couldn’t face it any longer. 

Mostly because I wasn’t enjoying it and also because I believed I was better than it. I had achieved a First Class degree out of Uni and I had an ego. I quit my job, left my apartment and moved home, a fleeting visit to the dream life in London. Although I had no idea of what I wanted to do, except for one day aiming to work for myself, after a few months at home I followed my passion to be part of a start-up. 

I found a job as a Marketing Manager at a start-up, doing all the emails, social media posts, marketing grunt work, the foundations of any Marketing professional. Two years on, I am back in London, dream life pending. 

Finding a job after University is not easy, for some it is and that is fantastic, for the majority it is a hard process that you will be hugely underprepared for. One thing I can guarantee is, there will be someone who has been in your shoes before and they will have succeeded. So can you. 

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It would be great to hear your thoughts and comments below about your stories and/or experiences from your time out of University.