Job-hunting has recently been more challenging as businesses have made decisions to reduce their graduate intake. Signs show that opportunities are now becoming much more available but finding the one that you want is still a struggle.
Traditionally graduates focus their job-hunts on the larger blue-chip companies that they have heard of, but an estimated 99% of businesses in the UK are SMEs, which are often far less well-known and only 14% of graduates join graduate training schemes with these big blue-chip companies with household names.
In this climate especially, it is important to cast your net as wide as possible. Opportunities within smaller businesses can be equally as appealing to graduates when you delve beneath the surface of the advertising.
For a graduate the benefits of working for an SME can be huge. In a smaller business you are able to be a big fish in a small pond, rather than being one of hundreds of graduates on a management scheme, so if you perform well it will be noted. Variety, early responsibility and the opportunity to work on your own initiative can be offered when working for a smaller organisation. It is likely that you will work more closely with a wider range of employees, which gives you more exposure to other job roles and having better access to senior management provides increased knowledge about how the business is run overall and allows you to take a better view of the organisation as a whole.
This exposure to different areas of the business means that personal development can occur far earlier in your career. In a larger organisation it is usual that you are assigned to one department and progression is often slower and more restricted.
It is important that you do your research about any company that you apply to as it is just as likely that SMEs have valid opportunities, which may be exactly what you are looking for!
Discovery Graduates is one of the leading consultancies in Graduate Recruitment, recruiting on behalf of SMEs as well as larger organisations. We understand the needs and desires of graduates aspiring to be the UK's top employees. All of our positions will provide you with a good salary, the training and support required to enable you to successfully make the first steps on your career path and in many cases bonuses, company cars and additional benefits including private healthcare.