What can unemployed graduates do to find employment?

Nearly two years ago, two unemployed graduates, struggling to find employment, decided the best way to gain experience, was to create their own jobs. Ironically, this lead to the creation of Jobsbody, a jobs platform that has embraced video technology to give job seekers the chance to not only write down on a CV what they can do, but also say it in person on camera as well. We asked Philip Davis, Co Founder of the site, to tell us a little bit about their post graduation story and to pass on a few tips they have learnt over the last two years, that may help unemployed graduates struggling to keep motivated.

Jobsbody – Fighting for ‘The Lost Generation’ by Philip Davis 

Many unemployed graduates will be the first to admit that securing a job after leaving university is difficult. The market is saturated with thousands of graduates from this year and previous years. As graduates tirelessly apply for their ideal role, they often receive this common response: ‘Thank you for your interest but you do not have enough experience’. Graduates can only reflect and ask themselves in frustration: ‘How can I gain experience without experience?’

Nearly two years ago, a fellow school friend (now business partner) and I found ourselves in this exact position. Unemployed, living at home in an area with limited job prospects and in the midst of a persistent recession we decided to create our own entrepreneurial solution. Our respective backgrounds were law and social sciences, so neither of us was familiar with where to start. But with time on our hands and a little money in our pockets we researched our options and developed Jobsbody. Primarily we identified a variety of alienating factors faced by most graduates:

• Employers often know what they are looking for, but cannot efficiently differentiate between what they are looking at?
• Many applications are frustratingly time consuming, often to little avail.
• Support regarding career advice after leaving university is somewhat scarce.

As our idea grew we were fortunate to source a local, knowledgeable and helpful web developer who embraced our vision. Other support came from our families but mostly from our own determination and ambition.

Jobsbody has since evolved into a dynamic forum where businesses can view and connect with graduates. We aim to position ourselves as the place to start for candidates and clients alike. By searching for their ideal candidate the employer can obtain an immediate impression of each individual and, if interested, can contact them on their own terms for free after paying their membership fee.  The candidate profile allows the graduate to express their ambition in a specific career via a multitude of means. It only needs to be completed once and can be updated when necessary.

To date our hardest task has been testing the website to ensure the registration process was streamlined and easy to navigate. Website development is always an on-going task, alongside the constant mission of sourcing new candidates and clients for our database. In summary we would like to offer three top tips when looking for work after university:

1. SMEs – ‘Tip of the iceberg’ large companies are not the only places to apply. SMEs are often able to offer unique roles with high responsibility and opportunity to grow within the organisation. Furthermore, SMEs form the majority of our growing client base.
2. Embrace technology – Video CVs are becoming very popular with employers during the application process and many are now using Skype to undertake first round interviews.
3. Be creative with your spare time and your job search. For example, write a blog about your passion, learn additional skills while you have the opportunity and where applicable become more commercially aware.

Overall, we hope all graduates remain true to their talents in this tough climate. Your time will come!

We thank Philip for his time and wish Jobsbody all the best going forward. We also hope this post has been of help to unemployed graduates struggling to keep motivated.

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