Finding graduate jobs

Most students go into employment after graduation, generally in jobs where a degree is required or gives them an advantage. Find out how to start your job hunt, the types of graduate jobs available and how to find jobs.

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Decide what you're looking for

Lots of people start job hunting by looking at vacancy websites without knowing exactly what they're 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.

It's better to have an idea of the types of work you're looking for first. If you're not sure about this, use Need a starting point? page, 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. Then you can develop an effective job-hunting strategy.

Graduate schemes or direct-entry jobs

Graduate schemes

Graduate schemes:

  • are usually with large employers
  • include many different types of work
  • start to recruit a year in advance, opening up for applications from the summer onwards, and closing by Christmas or even earlier

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, there are only a limited amount of opportunities and types of work available on graduate schemes.

Direct-entry jobs

Most graduates go into direct-entry jobs.

Direct-entry jobs:

  • are with large, medium and small organisations
  • appear across all sectors
  • tend to be advertised in the second half of the academic year or when a vacancy comes up, although some employers may advertise before this

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

Where to look for jobs

The Careers Service's Career Connect lists hundreds of vacancies, so that's 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
  • job sites that specialise in particular careers or specific countries, cities or regions
  • recruitment agencies
  • social media, including LinkedIn and Twitter

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.

Key tasks for finding jobs

Work out the best ways to find jobs in your chosen career

Employers in different sectors recruit in different ways and at different times.

Read the relevant Prospects and TARGETcareers job profiles in our What can I do after my degree? section to understand what employers typically look for in your chosen field, and find links to specialist job sites and recruitment agencies.

Create accounts on graduate careers websites

These include:

  • Career Connect – update your profile to receive email job alerts for your chosen career, plus get access to details of over 7,000 organisations with links to the Careers Service
  • Prospects
  • TARGETjobs
  • Milkround

If you're looking for work in a particular place, filter your searches by location

For jobs in:

Also, see our advice on Networking and speculative applications to find even more opportunities. When you find a vacancy and are ready to write an application, make sure to look at our advice across the website.