Which Graduate Career Is For me?

If you’ve been able to commit to work experience during your studies, you will benefit from having limited insight into the sector, whilst family members’ experiences in their chosen fields are also likely to provide a useful understanding.

It is tempting to take the first salaried opportunity on offer, especially if you’ve had little feedback from completing numerous online applications. However, research undertaken by the Marketers’ Forum showed that 43% of graduates admit committing to a role that didn’t really want, with 20% staying in the role to ensure leaving too soon didn’t blight their CV (The Marketers’ Forum Group, 2016). Such a situation is clearly unbeneficial for all parties, so if you’re uncertain of your first steps into the working world, consider the following questions;

• Critically review your experiences at university and generally; what do you enjoy? Are you the organiser in your group of friends? Do you dislike public speaking?
• What requirements do roles in the sector typically require?
• How is the industry affected in an economic downturn?
• What qualifications you will have to undertake across your career?
• Is it likely to be regionally-specific? Would the skills transfer well abroad?
• Does the ultimate earning potential meet your ambitions?
• Is it an industry that will enable you to branch out independently in the future

If you are unsure of whether you wish to commit to an industry, yet still want to experience it, we thoroughly recommend approaching local employers with the offer to undertake an internship.