What employers look for...
Academic transcript...?
Previous work place experience...?
Technical skills...?
Interpersonal skills...?
Recently Graduate Careers Australia (GCA) undertook the annual Graduate Outlook Survey (GOS), a detailed investigation into graduate recruitment practices and trends in Australia and New Zealand. Employers were asked to provide what they think makes an outstanding graduate candidate. Here are some of their responses:
"Team work. Commitment. Initiative. Ability to assist others. Communication skills."
"We love hearing from graduates that are passionate about learning. They are not too preoccupied with how quickly they can be promoted or receive a salary increase, instead they relish the opportunity to be mentored and trained to build a solid foundation for what is likely to be a very successful and rewarding career. At our organisation, we value attitude over academic achievement and will happily invest in those who demonstrate the ability and desire to embrace our values and become future leaders of our business."
"An outstanding candidate is someone who has done their research on the organisation, who is able to clearly present their ideas, is always willing to have a go and try their best, embraces change and challenges, demonstrates initiative and is a supportive and valued team member."
"First the candidate has to hold the right university qualification and be available for the job. Then it comes down to personal qualities. An outstanding candidate is one who already knows about the organisation they want to work for, and where the organisation is heading. The candidate can demonstrate what they will bring to the organisation to help achieve its short and long-term goals. This will typically include a range of factors such as organisational and time management skills, interpersonal and communication skills, interest in the area of work, initiative and their personal values."
"Passion, intelligence, personality, drive."
"A well-rounded individual who has good academic results but is also socially adept and has interests outside of studying. We want our Grads to become a part of the business, not just turn up to work every day! They should also be eager to learn, and have the ability to drive their own development by taking advantage of every opportunity they're given."
"I employ for attitude, skills can be taught. The ideal graduate is confident without arrogance, disciplined and flexible, always willing to learn and to teach. Know their limitations but be willing to push their boundaries. The ideal graduate has passion, empathy, pride and integrity."
"Enthusiasm, passion for our work and experience outside of the lecture theater."
"Motivated, fast-learner, responsible, team-player."
"An outstanding graduate sees patients/residents/clients as people and provides nursing care based on that persons individual needs. They have an empathetic attitude and support the people they are nursing to live their life with dignity and respect and to remain independent for as long as possible."
"An outstanding graduate is someone that can excite the recruiter after they have done 300 phone interviews. They can demonstrate excellent communication skills, both written through their application and verbally in their interview, and they are also committed and passionate about working for our company. They are articulate in their answers and provide strong examples of how they have demonstrated the desired skills. They can demonstrate their initiative and commitment to the industry through their work experience and involvement in students and industry associations."
"Organisational fit is of paramount importance to us in conjunction with our other selection criteria such as, solid academic results and strong communication skills. Our point of difference is our people and it's extremely important for both the graduate candidate and for our firm to find that right fit."
"You need to stand out as a thought provoker, team member, potential leader and be resilient, thoughtful, switched on, happy and energetic as well as demonstrate your capability and where you see yourself going. Also be critical of yourself; know your strengths and weaknesses and don't think you're perfect. We all have room to grow."
"The key thing I look for in candidates is drive, professionalism and a sense of loyalty and respect. Those qualities are far more important than qualifications or certifications. Unlike a degree, these skills cannot be taught, you either possess them or you don't."
"An outstanding graduate is someone who is prepared to learn on the run, take advice or feedback and who is prepared to become a part of a company and its ethos. Loyalty, being a member of the team, a committed work ethic and the ability to show initiative are all desirable qualities. There needs to be an understanding that there are high and low elements to a job and all have to be undertaken and completed."
"Attitude and commercial skills coupled with some professional work history ideally in a larger organisation where they’ve been exposed to internal work practices."
"Great communicator, enthusiastic, willingness to learn, desire to succeed and an innovative thinker. These are some of the elements we look for when recruiting our graduates."
"A well rounded candidate is essential; as brave as a lion and as strong as Hercules. In all seriousness we look for people who have potential, not only to be leaders or managers but to be inspirations to others around them."
"One who has researched our company, can talk with knowledge about our industry, is articulate, shows willingness to learn, is more interested in contributing than benefiting, is willing to have a go wherever they are placed, and can demonstrate their value and their learning in a reasonable time frame."
"An outstanding graduate candidate is one who has done their research on your organisation and has made contact with the Graduate Recruiter at same stage, i.e. Career Fair to introduce themselves and include their contact method in the cover letter (as a reminder to the recruiter). Also copying and pasting into different application forms - there are large numbers of applicants who include another company's name in their application which could mean an exclusion from the short-listing process (lacking attention to detail). The best candidate is one who develops the relationship with their preferred company’s graduate recruiter."
"Outstanding graduates have excellent communication skills, build strong relationships and want to learn and develop. They accept menial tasks and significant challenges with the same enthusiasm. They apply the content of their studies in the workplace and learn from mistakes and the feedback that follows. They accept criticism that's fair and question what's not. They identify personal mentors who will support them and add value to their experience."
This article was sourced from Graduate Careers Australia. You can find this article and more at: http://www.graduatecareers.com.au/mediacentre/