Graduate salary
- Thread starter borich_planner
- Start date
Sorry, it's a very tetchy subject for me if you recall.
Soldato
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To be honest many top graduates with a 2:1 from top 10 university's are struggling to get a graduate job, so I wouldn't get to depressed.
My mate graduated from Bristol University with a high 2:1 in Law trained at a top firm, qualified as a commercial property lawyer but obviously due to the times got laid off last year and can't even find work para-legaling.
My mate graduated from Bristol University with a high 2:1 in Law trained at a top firm, qualified as a commercial property lawyer but obviously due to the times got laid off last year and can't even find work para-legaling.
I keep hearing such 'horror stories'. I have a high 2:1 from the University of Bristol (and a generally solid CV) yet I have been rejected left right and centre from law firms for work experience, let alone an actual job. Of the three interviews I attended, most people there were from Oxford or Cambridge. It was a bit of a wakeup call - getting a job in law is going to be incredibly competitive. I have only one firm to hear back from out of about the 20 I applied to for work experience. Damn.
Realistically, what is there I can do though? Am I literally looking at sitting here and continuing to wait until someone bites? It's been nearly a year already. My social life has fallen to pieces and I'm now struggling to see any light at the end of this damn tunnel. 
I'm sorry if I came across as rude Hatter.
I'm sorry if I came across as rude Hatter.
Soldato
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- 18 Oct 2002
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when I left Uni (economics degree exeter) my first job could have been undertaken with nothing more than A-levels.
I did it(16k starting salary), 6 months later got a step up to the parent company with a better role (18 months in that job), from there got to part qual on my professional qualifications and from there moved to what I am doing now which is interesting, engaging and pays pretty well
if I had to offer advice I would say dont necessary look for something that is classed as a 'Grqaduate Job' but look for entry level in a job with career prospects and work your nuts off, talent will usually rise upwards and your degree should give support that you have the necessary mental competence to face the challenges
I did it(16k starting salary), 6 months later got a step up to the parent company with a better role (18 months in that job), from there got to part qual on my professional qualifications and from there moved to what I am doing now which is interesting, engaging and pays pretty well
if I had to offer advice I would say dont necessary look for something that is classed as a 'Grqaduate Job' but look for entry level in a job with career prospects and work your nuts off, talent will usually rise upwards and your degree should give support that you have the necessary mental competence to face the challenges
That's the problem CM, with the current state of things even 'lesser' jobs won't give me a look in as there are thousands of people falling over themselves who have much more experience for the role.
Jobs which are offering around 13-14k at the moment are demanding professional qualifications and 3+ years experience within their respective industries. Even for jobs right at the bottom of the ladder, I'm struggling to get a look in.
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Soldato
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- 9 Jun 2006
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Hi Nix,
I'm not sure what jobs you can do with a Geography degree (not trying to sound here btw!), but there are many people who get jobs in industries that aren't related to their degree.
Have you had a look here for graduate roles?
Have you tried setting up a profile on an industry specific job site? I got mine through an IT job specialist site, and I had people contacting me through there.
Did your university have a careers centre, and did you take your cv and covering letter there? Perhaps you aren't quite selling yourself enough.
I'm not sure what jobs you can do with a Geography degree (not trying to sound here btw!), but there are many people who get jobs in industries that aren't related to their degree.
Have you had a look here for graduate roles?
Have you tried setting up a profile on an industry specific job site? I got mine through an IT job specialist site, and I had people contacting me through there.
Did your university have a careers centre, and did you take your cv and covering letter there? Perhaps you aren't quite selling yourself enough.
Yep, I check on a weekly basis and have continually bookmark and chase up certain roles.
What sites? I have signed up to many e-mail lists from graduate-jobs.co.uk, milkround.com, reed.co.uk, etc. I've sent my C.V.s off for speculative positions and have sent it off to many agents who specialise in certain areas of work.
It does, yes. I've even spoke to them on the phone a while back regarding what I could do. They didn't seem to be much help unfortunately.
I always ask someone for a no-bs opinion of my cover-letters before I send them off. The only cover-letter I use which is generic happens to be one saved on reed.co.uk, which I alter depending on the specific job being applied to. For graduate roles, I write a completely tailoured response.
Getting a high end training contract in a commercial firm is going to be damn nigh impossible; even in regional firms the competition is so fierce that you need something really special on your CV not just a great education.
I take it you're doing your LPC, I am too and after last year applying to the top end firms with only 2 interviews out of about 16 applications (not enough) this year I've really been brought down a level and am sending out applications to a lot smaller firms. Nevertheless, I’d much rather work in a larger firm, not only for the benefits but just for the sheer challenging and high pressure stuff you get to do. Oh well I’d probably take anything at the moment …well apart from crime.
Like you Nix I’m **** scared of June as I probably won’t have a training contract and really do not want to be doing a job I’m not going to be happy in just to make ends meet.
Actually I'm doing a two year GDL-equivilent and I'm doing my first year (MA Law - Uni of Bris). It's effectively the LLB in two-years (so we are told).
So I'm not in an 'emergency' situation, but obviously I want funding for my second year. I will be doing the LPC in a year and a halfs time, but only if I get funding. I still have another year to secure it.
Since I have a background in biological sciences I'm going for patent law and natural sciences
Soldato
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when I started i was temping for an agency, then got taken on by one of the companies I was temping at, its a possible entry for you nix,
they'll send you to some **** jobs first as they dont want to waste their good roles on unproven candidates but after a few positive feedbacks you start getting some better roles, one of those took me on.
admittedly times were better then it was 3-4 years ago, and so jobs were more plentiful.
I'd recommend temping as an entry point if you cant get interviews outright because of your lack of experience, once your bum is in a seat at the firm then its a lot easier to impress and maybe get taken on.
worked for me
they'll send you to some **** jobs first as they dont want to waste their good roles on unproven candidates but after a few positive feedbacks you start getting some better roles, one of those took me on.
admittedly times were better then it was 3-4 years ago, and so jobs were more plentiful.
I'd recommend temping as an entry point if you cant get interviews outright because of your lack of experience, once your bum is in a seat at the firm then its a lot easier to impress and maybe get taken on.
worked for me
Actually I'm doing a two year GDL-equivilent and I'm doing my first year (MA Law - Uni of Bris). It's effectively the LLB in two-years (so we are told).
So I'm not in an 'emergency' situation, but obviously I want funding for my second year. I will be doing the LPC in a year and a halfs time, but only if I get funding. I still have another year to secure it.
Since I have a background in biological sciences I'm going for patent law and natural sciences
It's definitely good to have an area of law specificially suited to your study, you can I guess at interview show a genuine passion for it. I'd definitely advise you to hold back on the LPC until you secure funding (enless you've got a lot of spare capital then it's fine.)
It would be financial suicide for me to do the LPC without funding
Sadly, I havn't even had the chance to have an interview with a natural sciences specialist firm. Here's hoping the final application goes well
It would be financial suicide for me to do the LPC without funding
Sadly, I havn't even had the chance to have an interview with a natural sciences specialist firm. Here's hoping the final application goes well
Ha, well good luck. Last year I thought once I got an interview I'd nail it....alas got an interview at a top20 firm and then got rejected, gutting. I much prefer the standard email rejection.
I'm a sales recruiter (and I appreciate the love for sales in this thread
) so take my comments with a pinch of salt or disdain if you like. You have a 2nd class degree in colouring-in from a massively second rate uni. However my parents met, graduated and married after going to Plymouth so they must be doing something right.
You need to find an excellent recruiter from the industry you are interested in getting into. You need to impress and motivate them into working for you (and this means they must view you as someone they can make some money from placing - its that simple!!), not be limp wristed about the "r" word. You need to go to all the interviews you get FULLY prepped which doesn't mean an hour on the company's website on the morning of the interview
. You have to WANT what you say you do and demonstrate this to those you meet from potential companies. If your CV is as good as you claim above then you are doing something wrong at interview, because all a CV does is open the door to get an interview - from there on its up to you. Fix this. Yes its a harsh climate. The cream always rises to the top however, and many companies have used the climate as an excuse to get rid of weak people. Prove you are better.
Harsh but fair I'm afraid.