August 1, 2014, by Beth Dawson
Graduate Job Hunt Procrastination: What’s the Cure?
Job hunt procrastination: a condition prevalent among recent graduates, characterised by a loss of motivation for finding and applying for a job. Those experiencing procrastination may go to extreme lengths to avoid job hunting, such as prolonged Googling of unrelated subjects and intensive periods of cat video viewing.
We’ve dissected some of the common symptoms of job hunt aversion that you may be experiencing, to help you re-energise your graduate job search.
It feels like there’s no jobs in the area you that want to go into
When putting in a Google search or browsing large vacancy databases, it may seem like there’s nothing out there in the sector you’re interested in. However, you can find opportunities if you move away from the well-beaten track. Visit our types of jobs webpages to discover niche jobs boards for a host of careers, or search our My Career job database by sector area.
In some industries, such as the charity sector, opportunities may not be widely advertised. It will be worth thoroughly researching an organisation and crafting a well-tailored speculative application to send to them. If you’re not sure how to create an impressive speculative application, read our previous blog which contains lots of top tips or book an appointment with a member of our team who can offer advice and introduce you this application type.
You’re really indecisive about whether you want to apply for a position of not
The reason that you might be feeling ambivalent towards so many positions could be that you’re not sure what job you would like. Take some time to reflect about what you want in a position, what interests you and your strengths. You can also discuss your options with a member of our team, who may suggest a career area that you’ve never considered before.
You can also find tools to help you with this, like Prospects Planner, on our website. Watch our choosing your career video and read our graduate careers clinic blog post to discover what our team have to say about exploring what you want to do after university.
There’s always something you’d rather do than fill in a job application
Job applications, especially online application forms can be quite long, however many employers use online systems that allow you to save your progress. So don’t let idea that you have to rule out a whole day put you off getting stuck in.
If you’re avoiding filling in applications because you’re not sure what employers want to see and how you can best sell yourself, see our A-Z of online applications and our website for advice to help you get started. Don’t risk missing the deadline because you’re nervous about submitting your application, get a friend or family member to look through your application, so they can spot any errors you might be concerned about not noticing.
You go online for the job hunt, but end up on Facebook and Twitter
If distraction is a barrier for you, make sure you structure your job hunt. Use those skills you’ve honed through managing independent study: schedule time to look and apply for positions into your day and create a ‘to-do’ list of small, manageable tasks to help keep you focused.
If that doesn’t keep you from venturing onto social media, why not turn your news feed into a career researching and job seeking tool? Follow companies on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date with their latest news, developments and opportunities. Also, make LinkedIn your new place to head for a social media fix. Unlike Facebook and Twitter, LinkedIn is designed for professional networking, through it you can research companies, connect with professionals and be the first to find out about vacancies. To really stand out on LinkedIn, follow our top tips.
You’re just planning on ‘getting away from it all’
Heading abroad is a great way to unwind after probably your most stressful time in education to date. If you’re planning on travelling for a long time or taking a gap year, you can develop skills that employers are eager to see such as forward planning, organisation and communication skills – if you choose to learn a bit of the local language.
However, make sure that you’re not travelling to avoid making a decision about your career and have useful experiences to draw upon when you do decide to enter the job market. When you get back from travelling we can help you to explain your experiences to an employer.
If this blog has motivated you to revive your graduate job hunt, you can also sign up for Jobs by Email. We send our top picks of the best jobs each week to you inbox – ideal if you’re about to graduate in 2018.
Really useful advice – sometimes it can be so easy to get stuck in a rut when you’re job searching and don’t really know what to do. Good luck, grads!