10/06/2014

Will you graduate into underemployment?

Underemployment may be a term that graduates are more familiar with than students. It is a phenomenon that has been increasingly creeping up on each generation of graduates since the 2008 recession, and refers to graduates who are working in a low-skilled job, or unable to secure full-time hours.

Data released by the Office for National Statistics last year showed 47% of recent graduates are working in jobs which do not require a higher education qualification.

Stephanie Raybould, 22, who graduated from the University of Gloucestershire with a degree in events management, began her career positively, working for the events company she interned at during her placement year in London.

However, the role was only temporary and Raybould now works for a hospitality agency while she job hunts. She says the main challenge in finding full-time work is the time required for it. “Due to the competition, it’s necessary to create bespoke applications ensuring that you can apply specific skills to the role because of the high amount of top graduates.


“I’m still sorting out my portfolio before I start applying as there seems to be only one chance to get an interview,” she adds.

Chris Wharfe, 21, who graduated with a degree in journalism from City University London, is currently doing an internship at The News Hub. He is hoping he will be able to progress to a paid job with the company in the future.

Speaking of the challenges he’s faced finding full-time work in his career, Wharfe says he found that the old adage “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” seems to apply. “I was already in touch with the founder of the company through my uni. I still had to go for an interview but I wouldn’t have even known about it otherwise.”

The causes of underemployment among graduates are complex but can generally be attributed to the shortage of graduate vacancies following the recession. With an influx of graduates entering the jobs market each year, not everyone is able to land a career-related role straight away, or even six months after graduation.

President of the NUS, Toni Pearce, says recent graduates are more likely to work in a lower skilled job than ten years ago. “With pent up demand for employment, graduates must either take what they can get or gain experience in unpaid positions in an effort to enter the labour market.”

To stand out in such a competitive jobs market, graduates must show evidence of skills gained beyond their degree. Dan Hawes, co-founder of the Graduate Recruitment Bureau, says: “Some employers may be picky and say a degree is good but, guess what, we need you to have demonstrated skills through an internship or other work experience.”

The realisation that employers might not be so interested in what you learned during your degree can be difficult for graduates to stomach when applying for jobs; especially when they have invested a lot of time and money into their degrees. Raybould says: “When returning with my placement company, they didn’t even ask how well my degree had gone, and if there was anything new that I had gained in my final year.”

However it’s not all bad news. A review of the graduate market carried out this year shows an encouraging 12% increase in the number of vacancies available at the country’s top employers – the highest level since 2007. Taking on the most graduates are the accounting, investment banking, engineering and public sectors, according to research by graduate research specialists High Fliers.

Managing director of the independent research company, Martin Birchall, questions how the ONS are categorising the jobs market. “How do we define a graduate job? The jobs market is moving so quickly that new graduate occupations are being created all the time. What the ONS did was unnecessarily scary. I’m not sure if they have updated their definition of a graduate job since it was drawn up in 2002.”

However, Birchall acknowledges that “serious underemployment still exists” among graduates from vocational courses, where the number of students on the course outweighs the career opportunities available. “It seems almost dishonest because the graduate expectation is that you should be rewarded with a career after doing a degree.

“There’s no way the government would ever allow twice as many doctors as was needed, but that level of control isn’t placed on other courses,” he adds.

Hawes offers this advice to current students looking to avoid underemployment: “Don’t just look at the obvious recruiters, as there’s thousands of hidden jobs out there. You should get smart, use social media, a recruitment agency, or go to a careers fair. Don’t give up. If you have a good job strategy, you will get there.”

(Source: TheGuardian)

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