Ambitious new graduates happy to spread their wings for dream jobs

A NEW generation of graduates are entering the workplace and if you think the last lot were a threat, watch out.

Graduates today really know what they want and how to get it.

Eight in 10 even considered the job market before selecting their area of study at university — with STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and maths) the most popular. And a similar number are happy to up sticks and relocate to land that dream job, according to the annual Accenture Strategy UK Graduate Employment Study published today. It seems that growing up in an age of austerity, surrounded by job fears and rising tuition fees, is having an impact.

But after putting in all that effort to secure the best A-level grades and get into a good university, leaving with a decent degree, they are not happy with how they are treated.

Graduates complain that many employers are not harnessing the talent of their graduate employees and seven in 10 feel they are underemployed in their current role.

However, they are not going to hang around long if they do not get what they want, with a high percentage of these graduates saying they plan to leave their first employer within five years. Payal Vasudeva, managing director at Accenture Strategy, says: “Going to university has become a huge financial decision. Graduates want to feel that the time and money spent on a degree is being recouped through the use of their skills, but the number of recent graduates who end up in a job that doesn’t require their degree is growing.”