Why getting things in the right order could save you hours of wasted effort and make your graduate job search far more effective.
You’ve graduated, you’ve got your degree, and now you need a job.
So, you do what most graduates do. You update your CV, set up job alerts, tidy up your LinkedIn profile and start scrolling through vacancies. You find something that looks vaguely suitable, send off an application and move on to the next one.
A few weeks later, you’ve spent hours searching, rewriting cover letters and completing applications. Perhaps you’ve had a couple of interviews. Perhaps you’ve heard absolutely nothing. And you’re beginning to wonder what you’re doing wrong.
I’ve been having quite a few conversations with graduates recently, and something keeps coming up. They’re putting enormous effort into finding work, but when I ask what they’re actually looking for, the answer isn’t always clear.
Sometimes it’s simply, “Anything really. I just need a job.”
And I completely understand that. Bills need paying. You want to earn your own money, have some independence and get on with your life. Perhaps you’ve moved back home after university, and you’re desperate to feel like you’re moving forward.
But I also wonder how many graduates have reached that point because they’ve started to lose confidence in what they originally wanted.
You’ve worked hard for your degree. You’ve probably spent years imagining where it might take you. Then come the applications nobody acknowledges, the interviews that don’t lead anywhere and that dreaded question from friends and family: “Have you got a job yet?”
It’s exhausting, and sometimes, without even realising it, you stop looking for what you really want and start applying for absolutely anything.
The problem isn’t necessarily how much effort you’re putting into your job search. It might be where you’re putting that effort.
A good CV is only useful if you know what you're aiming for
When someone comes to me for career support, one of the first things they often want to do is work on their CV. And I understand why. It’s something tangible. You can sit down, make changes and feel like you’ve achieved something.
But my question is always: what are we writing this CV for?
Because there’s a big difference between asking, “Is this a good CV?” and asking, “Does this CV give an employer evidence that I could do this particular job?”
You can have a beautifully presented CV, full of qualifications, experience, and skills, but if you don’t understand what an employer wants, how do you know what matters most?
It’s a bit like throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping something sticks. I’d much rather you spent some time working out where you’re aiming before you start throwing anything.
You don't need to know the job title to start exploring
One exercise I use with clients, whether they’re graduates, experienced professionals, or people considering a complete career change, is my Career Dartboard exercise.
It’s a way of exploring career possibilities without expecting someone to have their entire future worked out.
There are three parts to it:
- The bullseye: Specific job titles or roles you might want to explore.
- The inner ring: Sectors or industries that interest you.
- The outer ring: Organisations you’d genuinely like to know more about or potentially work for.
And here’s what often surprises people. We don’t always start with the bullseye. Sometimes that’s the very last thing we identify, because how can you know which job you want when you don’t even know what jobs exist?
Let’s say you’ve graduated with a degree in Business Management or Finance. You might immediately start searching for finance graduate schemes, particularly with the big names you’ve heard of.
But what if you’re interested in sport, sustainability, healthcare or the beauty industry?
Those sectors all have businesses that need people working in finance, commercial operations, procurement, business analysis, project management and countless other functions.
And don’t just focus on the big graduate recruiters. Think about smaller businesses, specialist companies, charities, public sector organisations and growing businesses you might never have heard of.
You might discover an organisation that really interests you and then start exploring the different roles within it. Or you might find a particular type of work that appeals to you and discover it exists across several industries.
That’s the point of the dartboard. It’s not about deciding what you’re going to do for the next 40 years. It’s about giving yourself some direction and opening your eyes to opportunities you might never have considered.
Research the organisations, not just the vacancies
Once you’ve identified a few possible directions, it’s time to investigate.
Visit the careers and early careers pages of the organisations on your dartboard. Find out what opportunities they offer, when they recruit and whether they run internships, insight days or graduate programmes. Sign up for vacancy alerts and make a note of important recruitment dates.
Then use LinkedIn to get to know those organisations.
Follow their company pages because that’s often where they’ll share recruitment updates, opportunities, events and news about what they’re doing. But don’t just follow them and forget about them.
Start engaging with their content. Ask questions when something interests you, contribute to conversations and show a genuine interest in what they’re doing. Over time, the people behind those organisations can become more familiar with your name.
Look at the people who work there too, particularly graduates a few years ahead of you. What roles do they have? What did they do before joining? How did they get started?
And don’t be afraid to start conversations. Showing an interest in someone’s work, asking thoughtful questions and learning from their experience can help you understand an organisation far better than a job advert alone.
Now you can build a CV that actually stands out
By this point, you have something you didn’t have when you first opened that CV document. You understand more about the roles you’re targeting, the organisations you’re interested in, and the skills employers are looking for.
Now you can look at your experience through their eyes.
Perhaps you worked in retail throughout university. You weren’t just serving customers. You might have been resolving problems, managing priorities, working towards targets or supporting new colleagues.
Perhaps a university project involved analysing information, presenting recommendations or working with others to meet a deadline.
All of that is evidence.
Your CV isn’t simply a record of what you’ve done. It’s your opportunity to show an employer the problems you could help them solve, with evidence to back it up.
Think about what the employer needs, what you can bring and which examples from your experience demonstrate that. Make sure your LinkedIn profile supports the same message, so if an employer looks you up, what they find is consistent with your application.
Fewer applications. Better applications.
Once you’ve done the groundwork, you can approach applications with much more focus. Before you press submit, ask yourself whether you understand what the employer needs, whether you can demonstrate those skills and whether your application makes that evidence obvious.
Pay attention to closing dates too. Some graduate programmes close once they’ve received enough applications, so don’t assume an advertised deadline means you have until that date. When you find a suitable opportunity, prioritise getting a strong application submitted promptly.
Keep a record of the opportunities you’ve applied for, the responses you’ve received and what you’re learning from the process. If you’re getting interviews but no offers, that’s a different challenge from sending dozens of applications and never getting past the first stage.
Understanding where things aren’t working helps you identify what needs to change, rather than simply sending more applications and hoping for a different result.
There's nothing wrong with taking a ‘stepping stone’ role
I often talk to clients about stepping stone roles. A job that might not be where you ultimately want to end up, but gives you something valuable while you work towards your longer-term goals.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with taking a job to pay your bills, gain experience and give yourself some independence. Your first job after university doesn’t have to be your dream job, and it certainly doesn’t determine the rest of your career.
But don’t abandon the bigger picture altogether.
You can be earning money in one role while researching another. You can develop useful skills in a job that isn’t directly related to your degree. You can continue building relationships and exploring opportunities.
Those things can happen alongside each other.
The difference is having a strategy
If your graduate job search feels like an endless cycle of scrolling, applying and waiting to hear back, I’d encourage you to look at the strategy behind what you’re doing.
Get clear on the directions you want to explore. Understand the organisations and opportunities available. Find out what employers are looking for and identify the evidence you have to offer. Then use that understanding to strengthen your CV, develop your LinkedIn presence and make more targeted applications.
You don’t need to know exactly where you want to be in ten years, and you certainly don’t need to have every step worked out.
But having a clear strategy gives you something to work towards, helps you make better decisions about where to spend your time and gives you a way to recognise when you’re making progress.
Because a successful graduate job search isn’t about how many applications you send. It’s about knowing what you’re aiming for and giving yourself the best possible chance of getting there.
Need some help working out your next steps?
If you’re a final-year student or recent graduate feeling unsure about where to start, my Graduate Hub brings together practical advice, resources and information about the support I offer.
I work with graduates to explore career directions, identify opportunities, strengthen their applications, and develop a more targeted approach to finding work.
Because sometimes the most useful thing isn’t another job advert. It’s having someone help you work out what you’re actually looking for, and how to get there.
Hi, I’m Leanne
‘m a Career Strategist with over 30 years of global corporate experience. During my career, I’ve recruited and mentored graduates and degree apprentices, reviewed countless CVs and seen firsthand what employers are looking for when assessing applications.
Today, I help people at different stages of their careers get clear on what they want, explore opportunities and develop practical strategies to move forward with confidence.
I believe everyone deserves the opportunity to build a career that’s right for them, whatever stage they’re at.
