The number of graduate jobs on the Reed recruitment website has collapsed from around 180,000 three or four years ago to just 50,000 today. As entry-level opportunities shrink, silence from employers has become as infuriating as rejection for many jobseekers.
James Reed, chair and chief executive of Reed, has spent 30 years watching how employers make decisions – and he is frustrated at how difficult the process has become. "Someone gave you your first opportunity, that's all I'm looking for," he suggests telling employers directly if you get in front of them and are feeling brave.
“Graduate vacancies on Reed website plummeted from 180,000 to 50,000; boss James Reed shares tips on getting noticed.”
The first hurdle is often an artificial intelligence system screening applications before a human sees them. Reed believes "computers shouldn't reject people", but if AI is being used, he advises jobseekers to "try and mirror the job description with your skills and experience". That does not mean lying. "It's really important you don't lie," says Reed, but if the job asks for communication, organisation or customer service, make sure your application clearly shows where you have done those things.
Employers are hiring less, so they often look for candidates who already have some know-how. Reed advises building experience wherever possible – "even if it's temporary, casual or part-time" – through work, volunteering, community projects or free online training, such as Anthropic's AI academy.
AI can be a "wonderful tool" to improve your application, Reed says, but he warns against letting it do all the work. "If you leave it as AI-only then it'll be identical to lots of other people's and the point is to stand out."
His main piece of advice: "Make sure your CV says who you are." He recommends keeping it to one page. "Get that opening top statement right and get advice from people to make sure it really sounds like you and it's a document you feel proud of." As for spelling mistakes, Reed jokes he does not mind the odd one "because it shows it was written by a human, not AI", but attention to detail is still really important.
In a market where silence is the new rejection, standing out – honestly – is the only way in.