A level playing field? Is graduate recruitment really open to all?
University of Glasgow Careers, Employability & Opportunity
By Katrina Gardner
Have you ever read about an amazing job role and thought, ‘Wow, that’s my ideal job’ but then quickly followed this with, ‘but they would never ever be interested in employing me’?
This is a common scenario that many of us have experienced at one point or another, possibly due to a lack of confidence in our abilities.
A lack of self-confidence can have such a negative impact on our career choices, so it is important to consider if this is stopping you from applying for certain roles.
Also, it is worth considering what you can do to raise your confidence and self-belief? Are there activities on campus that could help you for example tools or workshops run by the services such as counselling or are there interesting activities you could get involved with that would be good for your wellbeing and help you to maintain a positive outlook?
Of course, we really must recognise that lack of confidence when choosing careers can be compounded by aspects of ourselves which we perceive may be off-putting to employers, like age, gender, disability, ethnicity, sexual orientation, social background, etc.
Making recruitment inclusive and fair
We all know discrimination and stereotyping happens, but the good news is that employers are putting a lot of time and effort to ensure that everyone who meets the criteria should be fairly assessed in the recruitment process. And where you need reasonable adjustments made to ensure you can compete effectively, do not be afraid to ask in advance.
At this time of year, I and other Careers Managers attend many meetings with graduate recruiters in varied employment sectors. And the message is very clear that they are keen to ensure that students at different life stages and from all backgrounds feel that they are welcome to apply.
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Attracting new talent from underrepresented groups
Employers are aware that they may not always attract certain demographics so have lots of initiatives going on to attract new talent from underrepresented groups. In our recent meeting with KPMG, we learnt about their proactive activities to increase applications from underrepresented groups including black heritage, those from low socio-economic backgrounds and females. This included activities such as mentoring competitions, working with student societies and employability awards.
Providing support to all new recruits
In addition, employers are keen to ensure that all recruits settle into their roles comfortably and have opportunities to make connections with others with similar needs or backgrounds—and sometimes this may include helping people find inspiring mentors. For example, we recently learnt that DLA Piper has various internal networks including a gender balance network, a network for parents and carers, a disability network and a network celebrating race, ethnicity and cultural heritage. DLA Piper are not unusual in setting these up, so it is something to look out for when you research different employers.
Getting support from external organisations
It can also be useful to seek out organisations with people who can support you further. For example, we partner with EmployAbility, an organisation comprised of experts in understanding the challenges you may face in recruitment if you have disabilities and providing support to overcome these. You may contact them directly or attend one of their online sessions this semester for advice:
We also suggest coming to meet employers and their new recruits at our online talks and in person careers fairs. Meeting other people who have made this move can make all the difference in helping you picture yourself in that ideal career.
At fairs, there are usually only a couple of new recruits, so if you do not connect with them, remember that there are other ways to find and connect with other people—a quick search on LinkedIn might lead to useful connections with people who can make your ideal career come alive and inspire you to go for it.
Taking the next step
No matter where you are in your career journey, our website contains useful resources, advice and tools to help you build your future. To browse vacancies, register for careers events and more, log in to Glasgow Careers. Good luck!