If you’re one of this year’s lucky grads to have your pick of graduate job offers you may be struggling to decide which one to take. Salary is obviously a big factor in which role you will choose but it is important to choose a company you will enjoy working for and not get blinded by that paycheque alone! So Which graduate job role should you choose? We round up a few of the deciding factors to help you make the right choice!
Company Vision
Remember the interview is a 2-way process so you need to take the time to listen and find out where the company sits in the industry and what their vision going forward is. If you are forward-thinking with a passion for emerging technologies for example you want to align yourself with a company that is driving their business forward.
Training
While you may think after 3+ years of University you never want to study ever again but the fact is a graduate role is a learning process too! Nobody likes feeling out of their depth at work so it is important that your new employer invests time in training throughout your time with them. Some companies will even pay for you to further your qualifications whilst working for them – that sure beats getting in more student debt!
Benefits
As well as salary most companies offer some form of benefits package whether it is a free gym membership or flexi-time to avoid that dreaded rush hour traffic! Some companies even go as far as offering massages, Ping-Pong tables and office dogs to keep their staff motivated! Think about what is important to you and make sure you select the company with the best perks for you!
Teamwork
Depending on your job role you will probably have to work within some sort of team. 9-5, Monday to Friday (or often even more) is a lot of your time so you need to get on with your colleagues and managers in order to keep your sanity. Try and suss out the dynamic and personality mix in your interview and factor this in to your decision making!
Work-life balance
Now there are some job roles (recruitment for example) which require you to work beyond the standard 9-5 but you need to ensure your new job will allow you enough spare time to enjoy yourself. Find out what the holidays are as well as the typical working hours and make sure you will have enough time to live as well as work!
Location
Commuting is never fun. Having done both an hour + commute to work on crowded London tubes and a 3 minute stroll from my house to my work I can honestly say I would never go back to those dreaded tubes! Well it would take a pretty exciting job role to change my mind anyway! Be realistic about your commute in terms of time and cost and try and factor this in to your decision. An e bike makes the daily commute to work effortless.
Sophie Heaton (Digital Campaign Manager)