Finding graduate opportunities

Off

The majority of students go into employment after graduation, usually in jobs that either require a degree, or for which having a degree is an advantage. By reading the following article you will understand how to start your job hunt, the broad types of ‘graduate jobs’ that exist, and how to go about finding job opportunities.

Creating a job hunting strategy

Lots of people start job hunting by looking at vacancy websites without knowing what exactly they are looking for. That can mean that you waste a lot of time looking at unsuitable jobs, or that you miss really good opportunities advertised elsewhere.

Instead, it’s better to have an idea of the types of work you’re looking for first. If you’re not sure about this, you should use Need a starting point? which explains how to figure out what could be right for you.

Once you know what kind of work you want, use careers information to find out when relevant employers will be actively recruiting, and whether the jobs available include ‘graduate schemes’ or ‘direct-entry’ jobs (see below). Then you can develop an effective job hunting strategy.

Graduate schemes versus direct-entry jobs

‘Graduate schemes’ are usually with large employers and include many different types of work. Schemes often begin to recruit a year in advance, opening up for applications from the summer onwards. Closing dates can be Christmas or even earlier, so you should start looking early if you want this kind of opportunity. Some employers don’t have a closing date but will stop recruiting as soon as the positions are filled, while others recruit throughout the year.

However, graduate schemes represent only a fraction of the opportunities available and many types of work don’t exist on graduate schemes. Instead, the majority of graduates go into what are sometimes called ‘direct-entry’ jobs which occur across all sectors and with large, medium and small organisations. These tend to be advertised in the second half of the academic year or as and when a vacancy occurs, although some employers may advertise in advance of this.

Once you have an idea of the relevant types of jobs you’re interested in, you are then ready to look for opportunities.

Where to look

The Careers Service’s Career Connect lists hundreds of vacancies, so that is a good place to start. The University of Sheffield is also worth exploring especially if you are looking to stay in Sheffield.

Other sites include:

  • Higher Education careers websites
  • Companies’ own websites
  • General job sites such as Indeed
  • Job sites which specialise in particular careers or specific countries, cities or regions
  • Recruitment agencies
  • Social media including LinkedIn and Twitter

Important: not all organisations advertise their vacancies. Many people find work through networking and making speculative applications, while some employers look at jobseekers' profiles on social media to spot potential talent. This is particularly true for certain sectors so if you are interested in working for particular organisations, you can contact them and ask about their opportunities.

Virtual work experience programmes

Virtual work experience programmes are flexible programmes that have been developed by top graduate recruiters to mirror real-life work within their organisation.

A virtual work experience programme differs from a virtual internship or remote working, as you are not employed by the organisation and can complete the programmes in your own time and at your own pace.

Completing these can help you to explore your options and discover career paths you may not have previously considered as well as building your confidence to get you "work-ready". They can also help you to develop your learning and understanding to boost your career progression. 

All of these are free of charge for you to complete as a University of Sheffield graduate and you will receive a certificate of completion after completing each programme.

Available anytime

Forage
The programmes through Forage are developed by top graduate recruiters to mirror real-life work within their organisation. With simulated projects and tasks, you will get an in-depth understanding of what projects you might complete and what skills you would need if you worked at the organisation and/or in a particular sector. The programmes cover a wide range of industries and roles, so there is something for everyone. The programmes are available 24/7, 365 days of the year and there are no time restrictions so when you complete them is up to you. Each programme takes around five to six hours to complete.

Access our Forage landing page to get started. There's no need to apply, simply create an account and access the virtual experiences which interest you most. You could also potentially be recognised by recruiters at top companies on the Forage platform.

Available ad-hoc throughout the year

Bright Network

Bright Network hold a four-day online live programme called "Internship Experience UK" over the summer (typically in June). The programme is available across different sector streams and is made up of skills sessions, sector specific insights from employers, graduate panels, and tasks to work on as teams made up of students from across the UK. You can expect the programme to run 09:00 - 17:00 over a four day period. There is also the option of undertaking the programmes on-demand over a two week period following the live programme ending.

There is a short application form that will ask you why you want to take part. There is not a limit on the number of places available but if an application form is not filled in with a proper answer, then there is a chance that you will not be accepted to the programme.

We advertise this programme on Career Connect when available, but information can also be found on the Bright Network website.
Code First Girls

For access when registering please use code "UPSHE"

Being able to code is such a valuable skill to have, no matter what your field of study is. Tech touches every industry, from building websites, to understanding data, to developing technology that helps solve real-world problems like climate change and disease prevention. 

Code First Girls is open to those who are female or identify as female or non-binary. 
 

Kickstarter courses
Exclusive courses for current university students and those that have graduated in the past two years. You’ll combine content, action and community to learn the skills you need to break into the technology industry.

Classes are held in the evening one night a week (usually a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday) and run for 8-weeks.

Please select the region “Yorkshire and the Humber” or “All UK and Ireland”. Places are limited on kickstarter courses.
 

Sprints and challenges
Sprints are run over 4 weeks, with one x 1-hour session per week going into the detail of a key topic area.

With challenges there will be a kick-off event, time to develop your response, and a final presentation session – with this all happening over a period of four weeks.

Digdata
Digdata partners with clients who present problems that they want solutions to, and run virtual challenges for you to engage with. Previous clients have included Facebook, Capital One, BT and Experian. Data, or information, is something that everyone will come across in any role or sector, and being able to analyse this information and produce solutions are skills that employers are seeking. There are typically two to three challenges per semester. 

Each challenge starts with a forty five minute briefing from the client organisation where they present their problem. Following the briefing you will have ten days in which to come up with  a solution and submit this; how you approach the problem is up to you. You will be provided with data from the organisation to help solve the problem, and there is enough data to create models, but you could also use it to identify trends and create a marketing strategy for example. 

There is no application form to complete, simply register onto the challenge that interests you. We advertise each challenge on Career Connect when available, but information can also be found on the Digdata website.  

ProjectSet
ProjectSet runs three different programmes throughout the year. Two of these are “hackathons” which is where you will work in teams with other students from across the UK on creating ideas and solutions around specific focus areas. 

There is no application form to complete, simply register onto the programme that interests you. We advertise each programme on Career Connect when available, but information can also be found on the ProjectSet website. UniHack is a three week hackathon focused on socio-economic issues that typically runs in November to December. ICE or Innovation Challenge for Entrepreneurship, is a three week hackathon focused on innovation and entrepreneurship that typically runs February to March. Skills Bootcamp is a six week skill development programme with masterclasses and micro-projects that typically runs June to August.

Key tasks

1. When and how employers in different sectors recruit can vary, so it’s essential you know the best ways to find work in your chosen career.

2. Create accounts on graduate careers websites including:

3. If you’re looking for work in a particular location, filter your searches on websites by location. For jobs in the Yorkshire region see Looking for work in the Sheffield area and Yorkshire graduates.

Looking to work abroad? GoinGlobal provides links to country-specific jobs boards.

4. See our advice on Networking, social media and speculative applications to find even more opportunities.

5. When you find a vacancy and are ready to write an application, make sure to see the advice in the relevant sections of our website.

Further information

Many other employers actively promote their commitment to diversity in the workplace, e.g. those which have signed up to the UK Government’s ‘Disability confident’ scheme or have clear equal opportunities and diversity statements on their websites.

Stay connected with your University

Experience all the benefits and services that come from being a Sheffield graduate.

Join your alumni community