“We will not stand by and let young people get left behind in this recession. We are investing around £1 billion in getting young people and the long term unemployed jobs and opportunities to make the most of their talents and skills.”
Yvette Cooper, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
It may not have escaped your attention, what with the recession, banks in crisis and major companies making thousands redundant but the UK is currently experiencing one of the toughest job markets in recent memory. Some of the stats make for worrying reading – a survey from the Prince’s Trust showed that there are over 45,000 people under the age of 25 claiming jobseeker’s allowance and in the last 12 months the numbers claiming unemployment benefits has risen by 75%.
There’s really no need to panic though. On the positive side of things, another survey said that one in five companies are planning to employ school leavers in the next few months – so the jobs are out there if you can find them and with research and planning that’s precisely what you can do. If you need help getting your application together then speak to a Connexions adviser for free advice on CVs and interviews.
First step: plan your search
Before starting your search for work, think about the skills and work experience you already have and what jobs you might like to do. The DirectGov website explains how to plan your job hunting. It outlines which questions you need to ask yourself about the skills you already have, including those built up in jobs you have had before, as well as your life outside work to establish your priorities, strengths and interests.
Make sure you explore all options to find work. Keep track of your progress and remember which companies or recruitment agencies you have approached, what responses you’ve received and where you’ve had success. Also don’t forget to use your own network of contacts to let them know you’re looking for work. Friends and families can be really useful in keeping you up-to-date with vacancies they see, or even just giving you some support.
Next step: where to look?
Because there are so many different places to look or work, one of the most complex tasks in finding the right position for you can be working out where you should start looking. These are just some of the places you’ll find vacancies.
1) Jobcentre Plus
The government have a few different ways of helping you in your search for gainful employment. You might have the idea that Jobcentre Plus is mainly for older people who have been made redundant, but its services are designed to help school leavers just as much as more mature workers.
To access help through the Jobcentre Plus you would need to be registered to receive Jobseekers Allowance (known as JSA, which works out as around £50 per week for young people who are looking for work). To register for JSA, call the hotline on 0800 0556688. Once you’re registered you would be assigned an appointment with an adviser through your nearest Jobcentre Plus.
2) Recruitment Agencies
There are thousands of recruitment agencies across the UK who can help find you work. Always remember that agencies get paid by taking a percentage of your wage, so it’s in their interest to get you into work. In some cases though, this means they’re not always interested in finding the right job for you. To find the best agency have a look at the Recruitment and Employment Confederation website and use their consultancy finder, which should give you a number of agencies who specialise in the type of work you’d like to find.
Registering consists of going in to see a recruitment consultant and telling them what work you’re looking for. Research the sort of vacancies that the agency has before you see them to save wasting anyone’s time – and in many cases you might be able to register online. Don’t try applying to several agencies all at once as you’ll probably end up with a quantity of offers, rather than the quality ones. Once you are registered keep in regular (polite!) contact with your consultant so you become one of the first people they think of when a good job comes up.
3) Papers and websites
There are hundreds of websites and publications that carry job adverts. Although the national papers often carry positions that are for employees with more experience, you can still find entry level positions advertised. Papers advertise jobs for different industries on specific days – to get an idea of when your favoured industry is featured have a look at http://www.open.ac.uk/careers/advertised-jobs.php.
Your local paper will also be a great starting-point for jobs and it’s highly likely that the paper will have at least some of the jobs that it features on its website. Other websites such as www.fish4jobs.co.uk and www.totaljobs.com carry thousands of jobs and allow you to search by area as well position.
4) Social networks
Don’t limit yourself to traditional job search tools. Research by global recruitment consultants Harvey Nash and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) reveals that a third of employers now use social networking sites to connect with potential recruits meaning it’s not what you know but how you promote yourself on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn that counts.
Many employers have started using sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn as part of their recruitment processes and claim that jobseekers with strong online profiles who network well are more likely to be hired.
To take advantage of this, make sure you have signed up to relevant social networks and that your profile would impress business contacts or prospective employers. Use your social network profile to track vacancies and recruitment consultancies and network strategically to connect with people who can help with your job search.
School- & college-leaver training schemes
Many of the larger companies have recruitment schemes where they look for the brightest school leavers to train up on their own internal training schemes. This wouldn’t necessarily result in a qualification, but you would get a full wage and you would also be fast-tracked for promotion within the company and supported through all your training. If you’re interested in working for a particular company, then have a look at their website and see if they run a school-leaver scheme, or send a polite email to their HR department asking what options they have.
We have plenty of school & college leaver training schemes over in out apprenticeship vacancies area!
