YEARS OF STUDY – BUT NOW GRADUATES ARE FACING PROSPECT OF NO JOBS
WILL JOHNSON is applying for every job under the sun – but then so, probably, is everyone else. There’s not much around. He sends off 15 to 20 job applications a day, but still no luck. Worse still, most of the jobs have little or nothing to do with what he spent money and time studying at university for.
The summer after graduating would normally be filled with internships, job interviews and a sense of excitement for the future, along with a healthy dose of trepidation.
However, coronavirus has led to an uncertain future and a distinct lack of job opportunities for many people, from multiple work, training and educational backgrounds, with Wales facing unemployment levels that have not been seen for “decades”.
In June, the number of people claiming out-of-work benefits in Wales doubled compared with the same time last year.
But what is it like to finish university and emerge into a pandemic with very few jobs available?
Will is a theatre design and production graduate from University of Wales Trinity Saint David in Carmarthen.
The 22-year-old, who is originally from Hertfordshire but now lives in Carmarthen, is worried there won’t be any jobs available in his industry after lockdown.
“With the theatre industry, you don’t know if it is even going to start up again after the lockdown, especially the smaller ones in Wales.
“I was hoping to be applying for scenic carpentry and drafting jobs which may not be there after lockdown,” he said. “I’m applying for every job under the sun, from supermarkets, driving jobs, labouring jobs.
“There’s not much out there. I was living in student accommodation, but moving into a house which I will have to fund myself.
“It’s very stressful knowing I’m going to have overheads. A lot of people on my course are thinking about whether they might have to go onto Universal Credit. But it’s not something you want to do.”
Will would normally spend his summer working at festivals; however, due to the pandemic, that will not be possible this year.
He added: “All live events are closed, which has had a detrimental effect on me and my classmates as many of us work summer festivals as well as in house theatres.
“We would have normally had opportunities for work experience during the Easter holidays, and if you are good you might have had an opportunity to go back on a permanent basis.
“A lot of theatre companies are not going to be opening, the Millennium Centre isn’t opening until next year. Where are we going to be as a creative industry?
“People are more forgiving with rent and deposits but it’s still difficult paying those outgoings when you have got no promise there’s going to be any money coming in anytime soon.
“The university has been very supportive, my head lecturers have been really helpful with links to work experience, but again it’s whether that work is going to be there.”
Sophie Turner has just completed her course in knitwear design at London College of Fashion.
The 22-year-old, who is from Tycoch in Swansea, is working in a clothes shop as a sales assistant in London while she looks for more long-term work in the fashion industry.
She is trying to find work as a junior knitwear designer but is struggling to find job roles in the industry.
She said: “There’s literally close to nothing at the moment. I went to university to do knitwear design, so that’s quite a niche thing anyway, so trying to find jobs for that specifically is close to impossible.
“I’m checking the job sites, Indeed and LinkedIn, every day but nothing is getting posted.
“In the autumn time I was looking to see what was up and there were constantly things being posted, so there’s definitely been a dramatic difference.
“Usually there’s loads of graduate programmes but there’s been none of that either.
“My fear is that it will be ages before something comes up, I’m trying to keep a positive attitude and not fear it.
“We were all fearful and upset about it a few weeks ago but it’s got to that point now where we have just realised it’s going to be a big long pause before we can get into the industry.
“It is what it is and there’s nothing we can really do about it apart from checking for jobs.
“With lockdown we have been indoors for so long I have been raring to go and I just want to get started in the job world.
“I am working part time at Whistles in south London so I am glad I have got that. I know a lot of people didn’t have any part-time jobs while they were in university, so I am lucky I have this to keep me going.
“It’s such an expensive city so it does make me feel a bit stressed about being able to afford things without having a full-time job.”
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recently warned that the UK economy is set to be the hardest hit among the world’s developed countries because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The fear of the unknown is something that Sophie is nervous about.
She added: “It makes me feel nervous for what I might have to deal with in the future. I try not to think about it too much as I don’t want to overthink it.
“Especially the fashion industry, it’s quite hard to get paid jobs, there’s usually internships around rather than jobs. So I don’t know if I’m going to have to do more of that, it’s a bit confusing, I don’t know what’s going to happen.
“As soon as any job is posted, people will be 10 times faster applying for it.
“As soon as one comes up everyone will try and grab it, so it will definitely be more competitive.
“What I had in mind was that I would start applying for jobs in April, in my head I envisioned that by now I would have something sorted.”
Keiren Moxon went to Swansea University and has just finished four years studying electrical engineering.
The 22-year-old, who is originally from Berkshire, described the time as “stressful” for himself and other students who hadn’t yet found employment.