Graduate job hunting

Q&A guide on where to look.

If you’re starting to think about life after graduation, this Q&A brings together practical advice on when to start applying, the difference between graduate schemes and graduate jobs, and where to find vacancies.

If your question isn’t answered here, you can book a 1:1 appointment with a careers consultant on Handshake or use our recruitability tool Shortlist.me.

If you’re applying to bigger companies or ‘graduate schemes’, it’s a good idea to start looking at the beginning of your final year. Small and medium sized companies might recruit graduates from the autumn too, and recruitment can go on through the spring and summer. 

For general graduate jobs rather than schemes (see the next question), as a general rule, aim to start looking 3 - 4 months before you want to start work. Some sectors might have specific timings for jobs to be advertised e.g. teaching, where the peak recruitment window is January to May.

As applications can now be done much faster with AI, employers are receiving many more. As a result, many recruiters are now significantly reducing the time they keep their vacancies open, so plan ahead. Find out when jobs are likely to be advertised and get in early when they are.

Bigger organisations might take on several graduates at the same time and give them the opportunity to try a few different roles over a period of 2-3 years before they commit to a particular team or department. 

In many ways these are just regular jobs, but they might come with funded professional qualifications and other benefits like mentoring. At the end of the scheme graduates can leave or they may stay in the organisation if they have done well. 

Graduate schemes like these can be a brilliant start to your career, but they are highly competitive. There are around 20,000 places on graduate schemes annually, and around a million graduates! So, while it’s a good idea to apply, it’s important to look at other types of role too. The vast majority of graduates don’t join graduate schemes. 

Not necessarily. While a big organisation can look prestigious on your CV, a smaller organisation can give you more access to senior people, more early responsibility, more interaction with other departments and more varied work. A smaller organisation or start-up can be a brilliant place to start your career. 

Employers choose to advertise their vacancies in lots of different ways, so there are different approaches to take when applying.

Things to remember: 

Job hunting is competitive and has become harder since more job seekers began perfecting their applications with AI. Always think about how you could minimise the competition by looking for vacancies outside of the main websites. 

Although EasyApply options (e.g. on LinkedIn and Reed.co.uk) might seem inviting, remember that this probably also means maximum competition and a lower chance of hearing back from the recruiter.

You can reduce the competition by finding more niche job websites, applying direct to companies, creating your own opportunities, using recruitment agenices and using social media.

Think laterally about your job hunt and consider stepping stone jobs:

  • Could an NHS admin job teach you the skills of confidential record keeping and attention to detail needed for your next-step job in HR?
  • Could a supervisor role in high end hospitality teach you about professional communication and problem-solving skills for a next-step job in commercial property?
  • Could a role as a market research interviewer teach you about complex data sets and potential data issues for a next-step job as a data analyst?
  • Could a few freelance gigs from sites like Upwork or Fiverr alongside a non-career job help you launch your software engineering career?

Think about what makes you different and unique and seek out opportunities where you have something extra to offer:

  • Could your experience working in a pharmacy make you a great candidate for a marketing role in the pharmaceuticals industry?
  • Could your fluent Spanish be an asset in a finance role in an organisation with Spanish clients or colleagues (like Santander or Iberia Air).
  • Could your part-time retail job help you land a job in retail promotions or consumer research?

With application volumes up, many recruiters are now significantly reducing the time they keep their vacancies open, so plan ahead. Try to find out when jobs are likely to be advertised and get in early when they are.

Not sure you have all the skills needed? Explain your motivation for the role and the relevant skills you do have. If you have more than 60-70% of the job requirements go for it!

Organisations like SEO London, Zero Gravity, The Brokerage and Upreach are focused on social mobility and offer mentoring, training, contacts and exclusive vacancies for students trying to access professional work experience.

For those with a disability or health condition try EmployAbility for 1-on-1 advice on adjustments and advocacy during the recruitment process, Change 100 (Leonard Cheshire) for paid summer internships and professional development, Evenbreak for job postings for disabled students and MyPlus Students’ Club for specific advice on how to "open up" (disclose) your disability to an employer and request the right support.

For specialist support for neurodiverse students you could try Enna, a specialist recruitment agency for neurodivergent talent, and Auticon for STEM or data-focused students – they hire autistic consultants for high-level tech projects.

Larger jobs portals

Smaller/niche jobs portals

For an employer, there are benefits to using a smaller more niche website to advertise a job, so it’s a good option for job seekers to consider: 

  • Applicants are more likely to have a specific interest and/or experience in their sector, so the quality of applications is likely to be better
  • The number of applications will likely be lower and therefore more manageable
  • It might cost them less to advertise on a smaller site

Where will you find these sites?

The easiest way is to type a prompt into an AI search engine like Google Gemini:

"Create a list of the best websites for a new graduate looking for a career in fund management. The list should only include specialist job websites and only cover jobs in London. Please also give me the top 20 companies that might be likely to hire new graduate fund managers in London and 20 smaller companies".

You’ll also find a list of the best job websites for almost every graduate job on Prospects.ac.uk Job Profiles.

Organisations find it hard to manage the number of applications they get from jobs portals. So, it's not unusual for a company to just post the job vacancy on their own website and hope people find it. This makes finding the vacancies harder for you as you'll need to visit more websites to find the jobs. 

To find these vacancies, start by understanding what companies are out there. Then sign up for job alerts on their careers web pages if possible. You could type a prompt into an AI search engine like Google Gemini:

 “Create a list of mental health-related organisations operating within 30 minutes of Vauxhall by public transport. Include public sector and private organisations and specialist NHS departments. Try and focus on the ones most likely to hire a new graduate.”

Many job offers don’t come from job portals and websites, but through networking and making direct contact. You might not feel like you have a professional network, but think about the people you know: 

  • School / College / University friends, teachers and academics
  • Family and family friends
  • Former colleagues (e.g. from part time work)
  • People you’ve met through social and community groups and people you’re connected to on social media

Even if people in your network don't have any opportunities themselves, they may know someone who does. That's why it's important to tell people that you are actively looking for a graduate job, so they can be looking out for you. 

LinkedIn is a brilliant way to find former Roehampton students doing interesting jobs. It’s fine to connect and ask their advice. 

Use the Alumni tab on the Roehampton LinkedIn page, find people doing work that interests you using the filters and then send a connection message. 

  • Hi Ali. I am also studying Business at Roehampton and I’m interested in a career in marketing. Would you be open to answering a couple of questions? Thanks.

If the people you approach connect back, you can then follow up with useful questions that might progress your job hunt. You could say something like: 

  • Hi Ali - thanks very much for connecting.

Be clear at the start about what you’re asking for:

  • I am in my final year at Roehampton and I was wondering if I could ask a couple of questions about your job. I’m looking to start applying for marketing roles very soon. 

Think about information or resources that might help you – perhaps just one or two questions:

  • Would you mind sharing which websites or recruitment agencies you might have used or would recommend for marketing jobs?
  • Is there anything that would look particularly good on my CV as a new graduate looking to get into marketing? 
  • Is there any extra training I could do or people I could follow online?
  • When your company recruits do you know where they post the vacancies? Do they use an agency and are you able to tell me which?

Asking questions shows interest, proactivity and shows that you’re a clear and confident communicator. It’s also OK to ask for a meeting:

  • If it’s easier, I would really appreciate a 10-15 minute Teams or Zoom call about how you got started and any advice you might have.

Sign off politely:

  • Many thanks again for connecting and hope to hear from you soon.

As AI makes recruitment harder for employers, more and more are using agencies to do the first filter of candidates and create a shortlist for interview. 

Agency Recruitment Consultants might advertise roles on their websites or they might just browse LinkedIn for potential candidates, so make sure your profile is up to date! You don’t need to use the “Open to work” flash on your profile photo but do make sure your preferences reflect the fact you’re looking (go to the LinkedIn Jobs tab and click on “Preferences”). 

You can use recruitment agencies to find short term contracts or permanent jobs. You might be offered a “temp to perm” contract, which can be a good way to find out if you like a job before going permanent. The website agencycentral.co.uk will help you find recruitment agencies local to you in pretty much any sector.

  • You can register with as many as you like
  • Re-upload your CV to your profile every 2-3 weeks to show that you’re still available
  • Be ready to tell the agency about your skills if they call – reliability, professional attitude, attention to detail and great time keeping are always valuable skills but think about the kinds of jobs that interest you and mention relevant skills for your sector
  • In general, treat recruitment consultants like you would treat an employer. However, it’s OK to ask for advice on your CV and for tips before an interview. They want you to be a great candidate that impresses their clients (the employer)!
  • Never pay a recruitment consultant – their fee comes from the agency fee they charge the employer and this doesn’t affect your salary

You'll find 12 brilliant tips on using social media in your job hunt here, and a few more ideas below. 

  • Facebook groups are still popular for recruitment in some industries like TV, where groups like “TV Watercooler”, "UK TV & Film Production Jobs", "London Media Jobs” and "People in TV: Runners" will help you access hidden vacancies and create a network  
  • Instagram and TikTok are becoming more relevant in recruitment and it's always good to follow people and organisations that interest you.  
  • Use a Linktree or Carrd that hosts your CV, Portfolio, and LinkedIn profile. 
  • Consider pinning an intro video or any evidence of successes to the top of your profile. 
  • Follow the "People Lead", “Head of Recruitment” or "Talent Acquisition" - many recruiters post "We're Hiring" on their Instagram Stories before the job even hits LinkedIn. 
  • Direct Message (DM) Strategy: It is now acceptable to DM small business owners or department heads if you have a professional-looking profile. Keep it short: "Hi [Name], I'm a local Roehampton grad following your work in [Sector]. I’d love to send over my CV if you have any junior vacancies coming up!" 

Try asking Google Gemini to make a list of the top influencers to follow in the charity sector, or the best Facebook groups to follow to find a runner job in the UK media industry, for example.  

Social media is a great way to keep up to date on an organisation's news and products, and spot opportunities to contact them. If they are expanding or have won some funding or a new contract, maybe they will need more staff? 

Do you know what a recruiter would find if they Googled your name? If not, it's worth checking which social profiles are publicly visible and what's on them!  

The profile you want them to find will vary depending on the industry: for the creative sector you may want them to find your portfolio of writing or video content for example, and within the tech sector you might want to link them to code you've written on GitHub.  

In all cases, LinkedIn is a fantastic home for your professional profile, and you can upload content, media, files and links to show examples of your work. 

To create an online "brand" you could try using similar header images, usernames and profile pictures across your accounts. You can also link between your accounts or other platforms you'd like a recruiter to see. 

You don't necessarily need to lock your private social accounts - they can show a more rounded view of who you are, your personality, ideas, opinions and interests outside of academia and work. But it's worth hiding anything that could be embarrassing or professionally questionable and do an audit of who you're following and connected to. Examples of things that don't look so good include:

  • Poor grammar and spelling (think of your public social media profiles as an extension of your CV) 
  • Inappropriate photos
  • Information about drinking / drug use
  • Unprofessional screen names (e.g. @fluffyunicorn)
  • Anything that could be seen as racist, sexist or offensive 

 

Of course, you can always book an appointment on Handshake to get support from a Roehampton Careers Consultant.