Recession

There’s no escaping it – this year’s job market really is tougher than previous years, and may well be for several years to come.

I could give you all the usual platitudes (“make sure you have a great CV”, “check the job ads every day” – as if you hadn’t thought of those) but I reckon it’s more useful if I just tell it straight about what’s happening in the job market, what’s different about job hunting in a recession,  and what you can actually do to help yourself

In these pages on the Postgrad Blog, you’ll find videos, inside information on the job market and job hunting, and some practical things you can do to help you tackle job-hunting in the recession. This includes hints on how to use contacts effectively, how to convince employers that you’re “work ready”, how to fill the gaps in your CV strategically, and lots more.

How will the recession affect postgraduates?

I know there’s no such thing as a “typical postgrad” so it will affect you all differently. However, here are my thoughts on:

• What’s different about this year compared to other years?
• Are all postgrads affected equally?
• What about those who want to go into academia?
• How to deal with the fact that there are fewer jobs advertised.

And for once, I thought I’d commit them to video, rather than type them, so here goes :

Recession pages

In the rest of this special set of pages devoted to the recession, I’ve covered five different topics, plus FAQs. Each topic has its own page, linked below and again at the bottom of each individual page, so you can navigate your way around them, whichever page you’re on.

What difference is this recession making?
Check out our assessment of the situation plus, crucially, what you can do about it.

• All doom and gloom – or exaggeration?
  - find out what’s really happening in the job market
• There are fewer jobs to apply to this year
  - how to seek out the jobs which are still out there
• There are more people looking for work
  - how to make sure you’re the one who gets the job
• Researching the job market has never been easier
  - use contacts and technology to save time and find jobs
• You’re more likely to have financial constraints than previous graduates
  - where to find help and support to keep you afloat
• FAQs and Comments
  - tell us what else you want to know or give us feedback