School Gate: tips on getting that elusive job after graduation

Only one in five final-year university students expects to have secured a job by time they graduate this summer.

The recession, high debts and increasing numbers of students have combined to create the toughest graduate jobs market for a decade.

Figures based on face-to-face interviews with 16,357 final-year students show that only 15 per cent had a definite job offer in March this year, compared with 20 per cent last year. This is worrying because most large corporate graduate programmes have made job offers by the new year. Nonetheless, 36 per cent of final-year students expect to find a job this year - with 21 per cent expecting to have secured one by the time they graduate.

Martin Birchall, managing director of High Fliers Research, who conducted the survey, said: “Students have reacted very quickly to the recession and there is a whole new mood of realism in terms of the type of careers many students are choosing. They haven't applied to banking or consulting or City positions and instead they have been focusing on areas like teaching, the public sector, the Armed Forces - areas that are perceived to have better job security and have a more plentiful supply of vacancies.”

Applications for jobs at investment banks have fallen by 31 per cent this year compared with last, accountancy by 11 per cent, general finance by 9 per cent and consulting by 9 per cent.

The drop in applications to investment banks coincides with a 38 per cent fall in vacancies, but competition remains stiff: in the boom years investment banks received 100 to 150 applications for each vacancy; now it is likely to be nearer to 30 to 50.

The most popular sectors among student job-hunters are teaching, the media and marketing - despite a dearth of jobs in the latter two. If the survey results are extrapolated to all universities, there will be some 4,200 applicants for every media, pr and advertising graduate job this year.

Graduates have curbed earning hopes, expecting on average to start on £22,300 - £500 less than last year.

Chris Pateman, 21, an English Literature student at Exeter University, has applied for a number of advertising and marketing jobs but “not even got an interview”. He plans to apply for unpaid work experience at an advertising agency before working a ski season abroad. He will apply next year for advertising roles but is also willing to consider other roles, including sales.

Despite the students' gloom, David Lammy, the Higher Education Minister, said: “If you want a good job and a rewarding career, getting a degree remains one of the best ways to achieve it.”

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