GCCA | Graduate Careers Council of Australia

Graduate Careers Australia

ergo - Number 89 December 2002

What Do Employers Think Of Graduate Employability?

The employability of university graduates is a matter of great importance not only for graduates and the universities which have trained them, but also for their potential future employers. Recent research conducted in the United Kingdom into what employers expect and what they find in new graduate recruits reveals an interesting diversity of opinion.

One of the most important attributes required by employers is seemingly obvious but too often overlooked – work-readiness. The ability to tune in quickly to the culture and the day-to-day requirements of a workplace is something which not every graduate is immediately possessed of, and this stipulation is mirrored in the need for employers to be realistic about the competencies required for a particular task.

Some UK employers, particularly in more creatively-based fields, are finding that graduates are now more competitive, and that as a result their output is of a measurably higher standard than that of graduates from five years ago. This has been attributed to a greater familiarity with necessary technology and a heightened sense of competition for desirable jobs, amongst other possible factors.

Generic Skills Important

Generic skills developed during study are also rated very highly by increasing numbers of both employers and students. Capabilities such as critical thinking, drive and the ability to make judgements are recognised by many human resource departments as essential in successful recruits, and students are encouraged to develop their ability to handle and process new information and to react positively to new situations. These skills are often developed at university in teamwork exercises held as part of coursework.

One area where progress has not been so marked in the UK however, is the “streetwise” understanding of company culture, that is the ability to interact with clients and peers on the job. While this quality is under-represented in students, it is nonetheless highly-prized by many employers. As a result, many hiring employers will use group tests and monitor interaction with other recent recruits, to go beyond polished personal and written presentation skills and determine the most suitable candidates.

Encouragingly, the research also suggests that university careers services have been active in ensuring that students realise that academic qualifications on their own are not usually enough to secure employment. Career planning is something which should begin during, not after, a course of study, and the recommendation is for careers services to also target those students who do not start to consider career choices until after they finish, through broader initiatives and the increased use of technology. While many university graduates are better prepared now than their predecessors for the transition to full-time work, there is still more that can be achieved in ensuring lifelong employability skills.