Money is a key issue for all graduates,
especially with the introduction of top-up fees
leading to increased debt levels for many. You
might feel stressed about getting a job straight
away to start clearing the amount you owe, but
there is every reason to be confident of securing
a career that suits you whatever your first step
on the job ladder.
This year the annual Association of Graduate
Recruiters survey revealed the graduate job
market is offering even more well-paid
opportunities. It claims there will be 13 percent
more vacancies for you to choose from
compared with last year, including increased
salaries in almost all regions. Although the
AGR predicts a fall in starting wages in East
Anglia and the highly popular graduate
destination of London, 14 and five percent
respectively, this is no major cause for concern:
your wage will still be highly competitive in
comparison to non-graduate starters. So with all
that choice, you might find yourself with a
headache trying to decide how best to choose
your career. Well, you should not feel that there
is any right or wrong decision when it comes to
beginning your working journey. The skills
learnt and experience gained in any job will be
key motivators for personal change and
development for the rest of your life.
Careers aren't as simple and predefined as they
were even 10 years ago: just look at the way the
media industry has changed and developed with
broadband and digital television opening up
more and more opportunities for talented
individuals like you. New technology and
changes to the way we work, such as flexitime
and the rise of 24-hour services, are indicators
of an ever-developing job market. The
increasingly wide range of working environments
means there is a wealth of experience to
be gained, and this means there are ample
opportunities to develop your skills while
understanding the challenges of fulfilling your
career goals. I have had an eclectic career,
proving you don't need to have a clear idea of
your future fresh out of university.
After I graduated, my first job was with London
Underground as a civil engineer. It seemed like
a role that would enable me to have a positive
input into society, away from the big businessminded
City or another popular graduate
industry such as management consulting. Fresh
out of university, who was I to go telling others
the best approaches for running their companies?
However, a few months later I realised
engineering was not for me and found myself
consulting after all. I joined a small and
promising firm where I discovered a consultant
needed both mental stamina and clarity of
vision. It also became apparent that the ability
to put in a hard day's work, regardless of how
exciting or how menial the tasks might be, was
one of the key things I could bring to the role.
It was this working ethic that helped kick-start
my vision for a graduate recruitment service
which would go on to become Milkround Online.
Although the potential of the Internet was far
from being realised in 1996, I was sure it would
have a continuingly influential effect on the
world. As my confidence grew in the project,
I quit my job to focus on it full time: today's
Milkround Online Network is the fruit of many
years' hard graft. The journey to this point has
not been clear cut by any means, but it does
show you how the industry you start in is not
necessarily the one you will stay in for your
entire career.
When I look around the Milkround Online
office, I see other members of staff who have
changed their career direction, even within the
company. Polly Littlewood joined us as a
temporary administrative assistant while at
university and has become the Second Post
Product Manager, looking after our service for
graduates with experience in the workplace.
Charlotte Carney began her time at Milkround
in 2004 as a junior sales support executive, but
just three years later heads up her own team of
six within the account management department.
Elsewhere, we have recruited based on skills
already acquired. Richard Freeborn had a
history campaigning for equality while at
Durham University so was a natural fit as
Diversity Milkround Product Manager, our
website aimed at breaking down barriers in the
graduate job market. Mike Barnard's previous
roles as a journalist and freelance writer made
him ideal for a role in content and
communications for the whole of Milkround
Online. These examples just go to show how
everyone's career is so very different and open
to change, yet we have all started somewhere.
The Milkround Online Network enables you to
take that first step into the graduate job market
with Milkround.com. On the site you'll find all
the traditional graduate jobs and schemes in
industries such as accountancy, banking,
engineering, law and manufacturing with the
biggest employers. You'll also find many
medium and small firms recruiting one or two
graduates in a wide variety of roles. To stay up
to date with all the vacancies matching your
career preferences, you can sign up for
personalised job alert emails.
Whichever direction you take as you start on
your career path, remember, the employers need
you and there are always options available in a job
market geared towards what you have to offer.
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