The graduate jobs market is in a bad way...or is it?
If you’re looking to get into field such as PR and journalism, you may find that while your friends are moaning about the lack of replies from employers, you are struggling to even find vacancies you can apply for.
This is because a number of jobs aren't actually advertised at all.
In a time where graduate jobs are at a low, this isn’t terribly helpful, but employers do have their reasons: particularly in fields like journalism, managers expect candidates to be proactive and find the jobs they want.
As well as certain industries, smaller businesses may not publicise their jobs as widely as larger companies – and so a dose of creativity is needed in order to hunt out these hidden jobs.
Get talking
Simple, yet effective.
Networking is extremely important when it comes to landing a job. If you have well-connected parents, friends or neighbours, get talking to them about their work. Most people are only too happy to have a natter about their job and to provide you with further contacts if you show enough interest.
Once you’ve selected an appropriate contact, get in touch with a brief, polite email and your CV, making sure you drop in name of your original contact. If they like what they see, they may well call you up or arrange a meeting to discuss your options.
Apply for an invisible vacancy
There’s nothing to say you can’t send applications ‘on spec’ – sending a CV and cover letter to companies on a whim, hoping there may be something available. This is actually a recognised way to seek out relevant positions, but the problem is popular organisations can receive hundreds of speculative letters, so you really need to make yourself stand out.
Check your application through thoroughly for errors, make sure it clearly states the role you are interested in, address it to a specific person within the organisation rather than an entire department, and follow up your letter with a phone call one or two weeks afterwards to prove your continued interest.
Are you currently treading water in the graduate talent pool? Do you plan to start seeking out hidden jobs?