For eight months, Theresa Blair sent off hundreds of job applications and rarely heard back. The 24-year-old from Birmingham had graduated from Aston University in 2025 with a pharmacy masters, then completed a project management placement that convinced her to change career direction. But the silence from recruiters was relentless.
“I realised I was sending very generic CVs to recruiters and that was making it harder to stand out from other applicants,” she says. So she stopped firing off blanket applications. Instead, she began tailoring her CV to every single job, reading into each company’s values and weaving them into her applications. “I’ve learnt that you should state the skills you’ve gained because of doing certain roles and explain how that makes you a suitable candidate,” she says. She applied for fewer jobs but spent more time on each one. “The less generic the better,” she says.
“Theresa Blair and Callum Stevens secured jobs by tailoring CVs or networking after months of rejection.”
The shift worked. Theresa got a job in a bank customer service call centre and now works as a project manager, commuting three days a week to London. “It’s two to three hour commute which can be difficult but I’m gaining valuable experience at a reputable company, so I’m incredibly happy,” she says. Her advice to others still stuck in the cycle: “As hard as it is, keep applying. The job market isn’t easy right now but believe the work you’ve put in will be seen by employers.”
Callum Stevens, 24, from Curry Rivel in Somerset, took a different route. He studied computer science at the University of the West of England (UWE) where he also developed an interest in transport. Rather than sending more CVs, he reached out on LinkedIn to someone doing a transport planning internship at Bristol City Council. When the same internship came up again, he applied and got it – despite having no previous experience in transport planning. He believes he succeeded because he demonstrated he “was interested and passionate to learn”.
The internship is full-time, pays minimum wage, and is due to end in August. There may be a chance to extend, but for now Callum is starting to search for a full-time job. “While it’s not permanent, the experience has been invaluable,” he says. “It’s as powerful as my university degree.” His advice for others: don’t “underestimate how useful it is to do an internship just because it’s temporary.”