After a drop in graduate recruitment in 2020 when graduate roles were fewer and further between, many organisations are now looking at their people and hiring plans and making room for graduates to join their teams.
Graduate recruitment can play an important part in many organisations, with graduates bringing fresh perspectives and recently acquired skill sets to the workplace. This isn’t just a one-way street, however, and many graduate recruitment programmes and roles provide said graduates with opportunities to learn and develop in the workplace and put their degrees and qualifications into practice.
So, want to know how to attract the very best graduate talent to your organisation? Read our tips below to get you started!
1. Make your adverts stand out to graduates
Graduate recruitment drives start anytime from the beginning of the academic year and never truly end. With this in mind, making your adverts pop and stand out in a crowded market is vital. Focus on the job and the learning and progression opportunities at hand – many studies show that company culture and future opportunities are equally as important as compensation for graduates so showcase these points in your adverts.
2. Make your adverts graduate appropriate
The mistake many make with graduate job adverts is ignoring the fact that these are meant to be targeting graduates; if you start typing ‘5+ years’ experience required’ then make sure to check your aims in hiring graduates.
Equally as important as hiring someone with a degree, you will be looking for someone who reflects your company’s values, has a can-do attitude and is eager to learn. Soft-skill assessments play a huge part in graduate recruitment selection processes, so make sure this is reflected in your advert.
3. Graduate recruitment & social media
It might seem a bit obvious, but where better to target and attract candidates than the world of social media. Social media is now an important player in the recruitment landscape, and where better to utilise its reach than within your graduate recruitment strategy?
On many social media platforms, you can use inbuilt targeting tools to pinpoint the talent you want and get your job adverts in front of those candidates directly, making your jobs stand out as well utilising your budgets on a specific audience.
4. Easy-to-use Applicant Tracking System (ATS)
One thing to remember when hiring graduates is that the job you are advertising could be the first job that individual has ever applied for.
You want to make sure that your application process is slick, fit for purpose, non-confusing and jargon free. A well signposted, user-friendly, and accessible application process in a well-designed and intuitive ATS can make all the difference in converting those graduates you have attracted into candidates to review.
5. Assessing graduate talent
Now you have your graduate candidates to review, what next? Consistent and committed communications with any talent pool is vital, and no more so than with graduates, so ensuring graduates know what stage their application is at is important.
Furthermore, you want your assessment processes to get the best out of candidates who may never have had an interview before, so make sure they reflect what will be required of the successful graduate on a day-to-day basis as well as showcasing your work culture and values every step of the way.
