September 26, 2016, by Liz Cass

The importance of global opportunities for graduates in the wake of Brexit

Stuart Marriott, Associate Director, Careers and Employability Service at The University of Nottingham, shares his thoughts on how graduates can market themselves in a post Brexit Britain…

Brexit, Flags of the United Kingdom and the European Union on cracked background

On the morning of Friday 24^th June I was at the annual conference of the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR) in Manchester and the topic on everyone’s lips was ‘Brexit’. From breakfast in the morning, to the plenary session to open the Friday discussion, to the morning workshops, lunch and then the afternoon key note speakers ‘Brexit’ was the game-changer that very few people expected and none knew what it could lead to. Soon after the ‘Brexit’ vote employers expressed caution on hiring new staff and the AGR reported an 8% shrink in the UK graduate jobs market compared with 2015.

For an institution like The University of Nottingham with its global reach and reputation it is crucial that our students and graduates continue to have access to international experiences and opportunities as part of their development. We’re adamant that exposure to global activities and knowledge of commerce that reaches beyond the UK is a crucial element in making our students and graduates so attractive to employers. We have partnerships across the world, but we need to ensure that we’re in tune with the needs of employers and that we continue to be recognised as a global institution with outstanding students and graduates.

So, as the country navigates our way to ‘Brexit’, we need to explore the challenges and opportunities the evolving global marketplace offers the UK’s top graduates and employers. To do this, we’re holding an event as part of Nottingham in Parliament Day which will include senior guests from leading regional and global businesses involved in a debate on how best to ensure new graduates have the skills and opportunity to succeed, and business make the most of the best of British talent.

We’ve invited high profile speakers to give their thoughts on the challenges facing graduates of ‘Brexit’ Britain as well as senior guests from business to help shape how The University of Nottingham can address and overcome these issues.

Hosted by a prominent Member of Parliament and chaired by a figure from industry we’re aiming to capture a number of action points for the University and for recruiters to take forward to ensure that in the wake of ‘Brexit’ our students and graduate continue to be known as future global leaders in their fields. 
The University of Nottingham has been named as the best university in the UK for graduate employment, according to the 2017 The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide.

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