You’ve graduated…

now what?

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So you’ve finally graduated.

All the long hours of studying, the pressure of deadlines and the stress of late night revision sessions before exams is firmly in the past… but now what?

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Your approach to finding your first job is the key to your success and there are several factors to bear in mind when starting your search.

All too often we see grads j u m p i n t o t h e f i r s t opportunity they find, only to get 6 months into the job, realise it’s not what they want and find themselves looking again.

Conversely, bright and talented grads who are too choosy, decline offers in the hope something better comes along can find themselves six months on still working in the part time job they had at uni - this can be a turn-off to potential employers.

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We have decades of experience helping Graduate Engineers find their dream jobs - from global market leaders to small innovative start-ups.

Our advice? Start early and work smart.

The first step is to write a CV that really makes you stand out from the crowd. Although this seems obvious, there’s rarely any guidance on how to do this which has lead people to come up with all sorts of imaginative ideas – some good, some definitely not so good!

Here’s a few do’s and don’ts to help you along your way.

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DO write about your professional interests

• If you have particular passion for certain technologies, talk about it! Don’t be afraid to ‘niche’ yourself. There’s a huge number of technology companies across the UK hiring at any one time – a good recruiter will have a big enough network to put you in touch with the right companies looking for people just like you!

DON’T just list the modules you’ve completed in your degree

• This doesn’t help at all – in fact it means your CV reads exactly the same as everyone else that graduated with you.

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DO write about specific skills you have and areas in which you’ve excelled

• A clear, concise list of your skill set goes a long way towards helping you stand out from the pack. Software Engineers for example – talk about your coding skills, your strongest software languages, what operating systems you’re a wizard on, what libraries and frameworks you know inside and out. It’s your opportunity to sell and market yourself – don’t hold back!

DON’T include anything you can’t back up

• Interviews are designed to explore the depth of your technical knowledge and breadth of your skill set. If there’s anything on your CV you can’t back up, a good interviewer will find it and it will get very uncomfortable, very quickly!

D O i n c l u d e e v i d e n c e o f memorable projects you’ve played a major role in;

• O r s o m e i n t e r e s t i n g development work you’ve done, maybe you’ve done some work on Open Source projects.

• This demonstrates a passion for your chosen field beyond pure academia.

• It shows you’re driven and motivated and paints a picture of someone who wants to get involved and help drive projects forward.

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DON’T worry too much about salary for your first job.

It’s tough to land yourself a good Engineering role and (as you’d expect) the best companies aren’t exactly short on applications. If your salary expectations are too high, you essentially price yourself out of the market. Ask yourself honestly – would you rather secure a great job with an industry leader which will open many doors in the future, or hold out for a little more money and risk not finding anything at all (which we’ve seen happen time and time again).

My advice? Providing circumstances permit - choose opportunity over salary - every time.

If time travel ever becomes possible, the older you will thank you for it.

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DON’T put your CV all over job sites.

Whilst it will initially be rather nice to receive daily calls from eager recruiters, I guarantee you that the very small percentage of unscrupulous recruiters will take your CV and essentially ‘market’ it out where they see fit. On the surface this might seem great, but in reality, there’s only a finite amount of jobs around. This results in your current applications being duplicated, your CV finding its way to companies you have no interest in or in some instances, your CV finding its way to companies you’re already interviewing with causing you to look desperate or worse still – clueless.

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DO engage with a good recruiter who specialises in your chosen market.

Good recruiters and top agencies spend years developing great relationships with decision makers and managers at great companies right across the country. As such they’ll have a wealth of inside knowledge, a deep pool of contacts to maximise your options.

Most importantly, a good recruiter will be able to advise you on everything from CV writing and interview processes right through to accepting offers, helping you to make sense of employment contracts and negotiating start dates and salaries.

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Finally…

DO research companies before applying. There’s nothing worse than interviewing with a company you know nothing about. It almost always results in a very short conversation, an irritated interviewer, a frustrated or embarrassed candidate and an ultimately unsuccessful application.

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I’d love to hear from any graduates who’ve experienced any of the above, or perhaps you’ve encountered different problems in your job search. Maybe you’re not sure how to go about your search or simply want a chat to throw some ideas about or gain a sense of direction.

Please email me, I’d be happy to help david.slark@ic-resources.com

For more information on CVs, interviews and general career advice, please check out our website .

www.ic-resources.com

0118 988 1150

Semiconductors Electronics Software Creative Commercial Executive Search

UK & Ireland Mainland Europe Asia Pacific USA