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Graduates with solid work experience are more employable than those who have taken gap years or done voluntary work, a survey of the country's leading blue-chip recruiters has revealed.
Work experience, as part of a degree course, came top in a list of 10 activities employers look for from graduate candidates. Part-time or temporary work, and training in key IT skills, also scored highly. Gap years and voluntary work are the least valued.
The survey, which was carried out by the Financial Times and the Association of Graduate Recruiters, asked 90 recruiters in leading blue-chip companies to rate which activities enhance graduate employability. Respondents were asked to scale activities from one to four, where one indicates a great deal of importance is attached to the activity.
A structured work experience placement as part of a degree scored 1.74 on average, and any form of work experience scored 1.93 on average. Voluntary work scored only 2.77 on the scale.
Carl Gilleard, chief executive of the Association of Graduate Recruiters, called for better bridges to be built between employers and universities.
He said, "The survey shows employers need to provide high quality work experience, but it must be structured to allow graduates to reflect on their experience properly. At the end of the day, employers will benefit."
