The world is changing and developing so rapidly that many of today’s school children are being educated for jobs that don’t yet exist. With that in mind, it can be difficult to predict with any certainty what jobs will be available in the future. Nevertheless there are predictable changes and developments in society that have long term implications for the UK job market, not least our ageing population, climate change, technological advances and the globalised economy.
In 2009 the (former) Government published a research report called Jobs of the Future. This report highlighted four occupational sectors that will be key to the future economic growth of the UK and have the potential to create additional and new jobs in the next few years. They are:
- Low carbon economy (‘green collar’ jobs)
- Digital economy and creative industries
- Life sciences
- Advanced manufacturing
Companies and services operating within these occupational sectors will be looking to recruit well qualified and highly skilled individuals particularly scientists (from a wide range of scientific disciplines) and engineers.
What do employers want?
To be successful in the jobs market young people need to aim to get the best qualifications they can achieve because one thing we can say for certain is that jobs requiring few or no qualifications are extremely rare nowadays.
But good qualifications are not sufficient on their own. Employers are also looking for people who have a combination of personal qualities and work related skills.
The National Apprenticeship Service (NAS) conducted a survey of companies that traditionally recruit young people to work for them. These employers told NAS that they wanted young people who possessed the following qualities:
- Determination
- Good communication skills – written and verbal
- Drive and commitment
- Motivation
- Reliability
- Eager to learn new things
- Work ready
- Trustworthy
As well as these qualities employers that place vacancies with us tell us that they want young people who:
- Are well mannered
- Turn up on time
- Don’t give up at the first hurdle
- Dress appropriately
- Can manage their time effectively
- Can work as part of a team
The emphasis and importance employers attach to each of these qualities will vary depending on their needs and the culture of their organisation.
There are steps that teenagers can take now to make to develop these employability skills whichever ‘dream job’ they might aspire to. Encourage them to make the most of interests, work experience, part-time jobs and their learning experiences to develop these ‘soft skills’.
Researching jobs and potential employers is very important. Employers are less than impressed by candidates that show little or no understanding of the jobs they are applying for and the recruiting organisation. Encourage your teenager to make the most of the school’s careers library and the many online sources of careers information including the Job Profiles on the Next Step website. You will also find a range of handouts that include lists of useful websites in the practitioners’ section of our website.
For an insight into job trends in different careers the Alliance of Sector Skills Councils is a good starting point.
What about the graduate labour market?
The annual publication 'What do Graduates do?' provides a valuable insight into the first destinations of graduates six months after graduation. The 2011 edition shows what happened to 2009/10 graduates as well as providing information about what graduate employers want from prospective employees. Here are some headline messages from this year's edition to whet your appetite!
- There are more than 400,000 graduates each year.
- There was a small rise in graduate employment in 2010.
- Public sector cuts have impacted on graduate destinations: fewer entered public sector roles.
- The graduate job market is very competitive. New graduates are competing for jobs with their peers and graduates from previous years who are still seeking graduate level employment.
- Graduate employers want people with skills that fall into four broad categories: self-reliance skills, people skills, general employment skills and specialist skills.
- Graduates who have work experience - paid or voluntary - are preferred (particularly those that have taken sandwich degree courses).
- Writing, analysis, problem-solving and presentation skills are all skills a degree helps to develop and that graduates report as being valued in the workplace.
- Some of the lowest paid graduates are the most highly qualified - for some graduates the attraction of a psychologically rewarding career is greater than a 'cash career'.
- The average starting salary ranged from £17,720 to £23,335, although the North West saw a year-on-year decrease of 2%.
- Many graduates start off in administrative and clerical roles but tend to move to a higher level occupation relatively quickly.
What do young workers wish they’d been told before starting a job?
A recent study of young workers (typically in their mid 20s), were asked about their early experiences of work, what they wish they had known beforehand and what they would advise young people to do to make themselves more employable.
- Practice giving presentations to others (they considered this crucial).
- Make the most of working in groups to solve challenges and real work problems.
- Make the most of any contact you have with the real world of work, eg, work experience, part-time jobs.
- Use IT that is realistic to the modern work place.
- Be prepared to step out of your comfort zone by working with people of all ages on projects.