Once you’ve left university, the world is your oyster. Suddenly, a world of opportunities opens up, and you’re left with a few choices to make as to which direction you’d like your career to go in.
Graduate schemes are incredibly competitive because they offer a fantastic opportunity for graduates to immerse themselves in the industry they’ve worked so hard to get into, with a genuine chance to cement themselves as a valued team member at a top organisation.
What to Expect During the Graduate Scheme Application Process
The assessment process for graduate schemes can vary, and in some cases will include certain activities as well as a standard application form and interview. Here we take a look at some of these possibilities, including assessment centres and psychometric tests.
Assessment centres
An assessment centre, sometimes called an assessment day, is when you’ll be called in to complete activities that assess various hard and soft skills crucial to the scheme you’re applying to.
The assessment might include some form of roleplay, where you’ll be given a simulated workload to judge how you prioritise and execute workloads. It may also involve group discussions or presentations, giving you the time to showcase your public speaking skills and your ability to work well within a team.
Psychometric tests
Psychometric tests are tests used to assess your suitability for the role, utilising disciplines such as verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning, and personality questions before you’re interviewed.
These tests are fairly straightforward and there are plenty of resources online that will allow you to get familiar with the types of questions that might be asked. You might even find that there are online examples of the specific scheme you’re applying to through sites like LinkedIn, Glassdoor, or employment forums.
These tests are also likely to be timed, so you should learn to answer these questions in adequate time while still making sure that you’ve read, understood, and answered the question to the best of your ability.
8 Graduate Scheme Graduate Application Tips
As a company that has been proud to offer graduate schemes for a number of years, we wanted to share our top tips to complete a successful application.
Carry out extensive research
Before you apply for a graduate scheme, carry out as much research as possible into the business, the roles that they offer, and where you’d like to fit in. There are many businesses offering graduate schemes, which makes narrowing the options down crucial. You can use the next tip to identify the top choices that you’d like to apply for.
Set out priorities
Once your shortlist is complete, put the schemes into an order of preference. This is completely subjective, but it could include things such as location, salary, relevance to your qualifications, reputation of the company, etc.
You may have to relocate for a graduate role, which should also be factored into your decision-making process. If this is something you’d be willing to do, ensure that you can afford to do so and alter your salary expectations accordingly.
Remember that you do not have to apply to every scheme that you come across; if you’re not willing to relocate or work with a particular business, then it’s best to put your time into a different application.
Dig deeper into the business and role
Once you’ve narrowed it down to a handful of potential schemes and put them in order of preference, you can now dedicate more time to the finer details of a company and the role you’d like to apply for. Use websites such as LinkedIn or Glassdoor to see what former participants had to say about the graduate scheme to inform your opinion and to see how the reviews match up to the company’s promotional material.
Give yourself plenty of time
Graduate schemes are only open for a set period of the year, usually in September or October, ready for the following September. With this in mind, you should give yourself plenty of time to prep for the applications, even if this is dedicating a few hours a week for 6 months so that your application is ready to go in September. Graduate scheme applications have been known to close early, so being ready to submit your application early is important.
Pay attention to finer detail
When trying to set yourself apart on a graduate scheme application, it’s all about the finer details. Show off your research skills by demonstrating your knowledge of the company, the role, and why you’d be a perfect fit for it.
Details such as the software that the company uses, clients that they work with, and opportunities that are in the pipeline for the company can all be used to your advantage during the application and interview process.
Show you want the position
This might sound obvious, but when applying for something as competitive as a graduate scheme, showing enthusiasm and desire to secure the position goes a long way. Although your potential employer isn’t expecting War & Peace, they’re also not expecting a couple of sentences. Be sure to put the time and effort into your application so that you stand out.
Put in work to prepare for each interview
General interview prep is important and provides a great foundation for more specialised to be added on top. General interview prep might cover things such as speaking clearly, and concisely, making sure you answer the questions to the best of your ability. Specialised preparation will involve more specific research into the company, the role, and even questions they are likely to ask.
Interview prep for graduate schemes is so important that we dedicated a whole blog to it – take a look.
Stay confident
Graduate scheme applications are highly competitive processes, but it’s important to remain confident. Find reassurance in your strong work ethic, professional attitude, experience, and qualifications to set you apart.
It’s more important to focus on yourself and what you can control as opposed to the qualities of other applicants.
Don’t be disheartened if you encounter some stumbling blocks on your way to securing your graduate role. Determination and perseverance are admirable and desirable qualities to have in any profession, and every setback is an opportunity to learn and grow.
The views, opinions and positions expressed within this article are those of our third-party content providers alone and do not represent those of SEFE. The accuracy, completeness and validity of any statements made within this article are not guaranteed. SEFE accepts no liability for any errors, omissions or representations.
