{"id":2211,"date":"2021-05-26T12:00:45","date_gmt":"2021-05-26T11:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/?p=2211"},"modified":"2025-10-22T15:15:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T14:15:07","slug":"may-update-what-is-happening-to-the-graduate-labour-market-as-we-leave-lockdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/careers\/2021\/05\/26\/may-update-what-is-happening-to-the-graduate-labour-market-as-we-leave-lockdown\/","title":{"rendered":"May update: What is happening to the graduate labour market as restrictions ease?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In\u00a0April\u00a0we gave you\u00a0<\/span>an update on how the labour market was looking<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We recently attended an excellent\u00a0<\/span>webinar<\/span>\u00a0hosted by Charlie Ball from\u202f<\/span>Prospects Luminate<\/span><\/a>\u202f<\/span>giving us an update on the latest trends in the job market. As we see significant easing in lockdown restrictions, what are we seeing in the job market\u00a0<\/span>now<\/span>?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What is happening right\u00a0now<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h1>\n

There are some statistics that suggest th<\/span>at graduate job listings are still at a lower rate than pre-pandemic levels. However, these figures usually come from job aggregator\/job board sites. What we are seeing is a trend for graduate employers to be recruiting directly on their websites rather than using these sites, so the reduction may be less than the statistics suggest.\u00a0<\/span>Therefore,<\/span>\u00a0make sure to also bookmark company website job listings directly and follow companies on social media to ensure you have the best chance of seeing jobs being advertised.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In\u00a0<\/span>general<\/span>\u00a0though, overall job listings across the whole job market are nearing pre-pandemic levels. There are lots of vacancies in manufacturing, construction, transport\/<\/span>logistics<\/span>, IT, property,\u00a0<\/span>engineering,<\/span>\u00a0and science. These sectors have vacancy levels above February 2020 levels. Management,\u00a0<\/span>education,<\/span>\u00a0and marketing roles are at 95% of their February levels. Lots of these sectors tend to recruit graduates so worth exploring these areas for vacancies.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) predict that employment is not expected to get back to pre-pandemic levels until the end of 2023. However, this is across the whole workforce and in general those with a degree have been less impacted by the pandemic. In fact, average unemployment for recent graduates continues to decrease and is well below the youth unemployment rate<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Institute of Student Employers who represents big graduate employers has reported that many of the employers they represent are planning to recruit the same or more numbers of graduates. In retail and FMCG particularly they are increasing the number of graduate hires they are recruiting.\u00a0<\/span>So<\/span>\u00a0it looks like there will be an increasing number of\u00a0<\/span>graduate<\/span> job opportunities even if the labour market as a whole isn\u2019t quite back to normal.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Work experience<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h1>\n

Work experience opportunities were badly\u00a0<\/span>affected<\/span>\u00a0by the\u00a0<\/span>pandemic<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>w<\/span>ith<\/span>\u00a0only 17% of students in a Prospects survey reporting that they had undertaken work experience in the last 12 months.\u00a0<\/span>Indeed<\/span>\u00a0reported a reduction of 41% from 2019 levels in internship vacancies on their site.\u00a0<\/span>So,<\/span>\u00a0if you\u00a0<\/span>missed out on<\/span>\u00a0these or had your experience cancelled \u2013\u00a0<\/span>don\u2019t<\/span>\u00a0panic. Many students will be in the same boat and employers will\u00a0<\/span>understand that it has been a challenging environment to get the kind of experience\u00a0<\/span>they\u2019d<\/span>\u00a0normally expect.\u00a0<\/span>Employers will view positively on any experience you proactively sought out during this difficult year; <\/span>e.g.<\/span>\u00a0volunteering in the community or attending a\u00a0<\/span>virtual internships<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>such as through Bright Network.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Work experience opportunities were one of the first things to get cancelled last Summer and we\u2019d hope to see a return to these as things start returning to a degree of normality.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you are looking for part-time work alongside your studies which can also\u00a0<\/span>supply<\/span>\u00a0useful\u00a0<\/span>transferable<\/span>\u00a0experience and\u00a0<\/span>skills<\/span>\u00a0there is good news. Hospitality has large numbers of vacancies they need to fill and many employers in this sector are reporting difficulties in filling their roles.\u00a0<\/span>So<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0if you are looking for a part-time job you might find it easier to get one of these roles over the coming months.<\/span>\u00a0If you are in or near Bath, make sure to check\u00a0out\u00a0<\/span>SU Jobs for local part-time roles.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Check out our blogs on work experience for more information:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n