IN A memorable scene from Four Weddings And A Funeral, a drunken guest says to Hugh Grant’s character: “What use are the novels of Wordsworth if I’m going to work in the money markets?”

Potentially quite a lot, might be the answer from today’s recruiters, who seem far from averse to the idea of a banker with a literature degree. A survey of 230 employers in the legal, finance, consultancy, retail and other sectors found that fewer than one in four names a specific degree course in advertisements. With the exception of more scientific sectors such as engineering, where a specialist degree is a prerequisite, employers were more interested in an applicant’s level of attainment as well as “other skills”.

“Students should strengthen their CV by doing a range of activities to support their degree,” says Carl Gilleard, CEO of the Association of Graduate Recruiters, which conducted the survey. “Five years ago there were lots of vacancies in IT but employers weren’t able to fill them . . . because all the applicants were anoraks without interpersonal skills.”

Given that two thirds of employers surveyed require a 2:1 or better, the important thing is for students to “choose subjects they enjoy and are more likely to do well in”, he says.

At this week’s National Graduate Recruitment Exhibition (NGRE), his words may fall on deaf ears. While 79 per cent of language students chose the subject because of a love for it rather than a belief that it would further their careers, that figure fell to 47 per cent for business studies students, and as low as 37 per cent for accounting students, according to a study of 2,500 graduates at the last NGRE, in June. One initiative seeking to create more well-rounded graduates is the Information Technology Management for Business BSc, a three-year degree set up by e-skills UK, the sector skills council for IT.

Traditional computing degrees equip students with the requisite technical expertise, the council found, but only 45 per cent of graduates working in IT were from computing science backgrounds.

“Recruiters were preferring English and music graduates, indicating (that) they were after a broader skills set,” says Karen Price, CEO of e-skills UK.

The Royal Navy would agree: “We take all sorts of graduates,” says Captain Chris Steel, assistant director of the Directorate of Naval Recruiting. “What matters is that they are looking for a challenge, that they can work in a team but can also lead that team when required.”

National Graduate Recruitment Exhibition, Oct 14-15, Hall 2, Wembley, London. gradjobs.co.uk

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