Graduates - post here if your work and jobs so far are not as you expected or hoped

oh wow, I've been trying so hard to get into an entry level NHS job, any tips/advice you could give me? well done btw and lol I had a temp job at debenhams over xmas!

I graduated with a first in Genetics from UCL, dossed around for half a year afterwards, worked for 6 months in a sweet shop then started a masters at Liverpool. Passed that and then did a teacher training degree but was utterly useless at teaching so I'm now working as a research assistant at Liverpool University whilst also pretending to be a policeman in the special constabulary.

I am simultaneously content and concerned about my job, where I am, where I expect to be and where I think I should be at now. My wage is OK but it's in a role with little to no progression attached in a field that doesn't interest me. I want to change direction and do an analytical role outside of science research but I'm not entirely sure how to. 5/10?

I see all kinds of figures thrown around in newspapers and such, for example that after 6mo the average graduate salary is 25k or so. I find that hard to believe and it must surely be taken from a sample of top graduates. Maybe it's just my friends but after six months most people I knew from uni (left in 2008) were unemployed or working in a supermarket. I took a first in a bioscience from a well-regarded university, but had no work experience or connections in industry and so on. I also didn't realise (poor guidance at school, imo) how there's really no work in biosciences at all, and it offers little or no access to other disciplines.

It took me over 3 years to land a job, and now I earn 15k (gross), working as a lab technician in an unrelated science. That's several thousand £ less than a typical PhD student earns, taking tax into account. I've applied for other jobs but now that I'm several years past graduating I've been told in interviews that they worry I have lapsed a bit, drifted away, mentally - and it's true, I have. My current job doesn't let me use my brain very much and I've forgotten everything I did at uni, so I'm really back at square one, but rapidly ageing and becoming less valuable to an employer with each passing year.

I have no idea what to do - this job is pretty boring but has some positive aspects. It's a complete dead end and my pay scale tops out at 17.5k I think, which I would reach over a number of years if I perform well. I'm closer to 30 than 20 and am still living in a shared student house, no chance at all that I could afford anything better.

I'd be interested to hear from others who were perhaps a bit naiive about their choice of subject, or didn't realise what one has to do to get a decent job, or can't find anything worth doing for reasonable money, etc.

I'm a bit confused by it all, and disillusioned. In my case, university made it harder for me, by letting me live like a child for even longer and shielding me from the real world. People who left school at 16 and started work can do much better for themselves than someone like me.

Let's discuss this situation, increasingly common with jobs as scarce as they are today. I don't like being in this awkward middle-ground. I either want a decent, engaging job earning a wage appropriate for someone my age, or I should just drop out entirely and go and live in a cave somewhere. I could maintain my current lifestyle on benefits alone so I'm not sure why I bother.

I graduated in biosciences but I didn't stay in the field. There are other careers which pay more. And you can go back to biosciences when you are older.

Graduated last year with a degree in Computer Science from Newcastle. Applied for many many jobs in my field, graduate schemes and entry level jobs. No luck there, so broadened my search to just 'any full time job'. Couldn't even get that.

I'm now working 20hrs a week in a call centre. This is the sad reality for today's graduates.

Wow this is all a bit off putting for starting uni in September

What a load of nonsense.

Has everyone here who is complaining about their lack of employment (or poor standard of employment) taken a long hard look at themselves from the perspective of an employer?

A degree is simply a filter employers use to cut down on applicants. If you think a degree alone gets you a job then you are very much mistaken. Put some effort in to getting some experience (relevant if possible) and get yourself involved in societies and/or projects. This gets you to the interview / assessment stage. Once there it comes down to you as a candidate... Can you work well with others in group exercises? ... Can you handle unexpected questions in interview and think on your feet? ... Can you achieve suitable scores in aptitude tests? ... Do you come across as someone worth employing? ... etcetera. If you can you will land yourself a position, if you can't then you won't. Don't think that having a degree simply entitles you!

As for those who mentioned specific subject areas, plenty of the large employers consider degrees from any background as long as you can demonstrate to them that you are genuinely passionate about their industry. If there are no jobs in your subject area, look elsewhere. I've landed several graduate scheme offers from top companies across several industries and my academic background is nothing special. If your degree is holding you back then you are misusing it.

That is my opinion anyway

EDIT: Oh and this 'it's who you know' business is more rubbish. Of course knowing the right people helps, but it is not a requirement to get a graduate position. Most big companies have a well established application procedure which gives everybody (without exception) a fair shot at getting a position.

I graduated with a first in Genetics from UCL, dossed around for half a year afterwards, worked for 6 months in a sweet shop then started a masters at Liverpool. Passed that and then did a teacher training degree but was utterly useless at teaching so I'm now working as a research assistant at Liverpool University whilst also pretending to be a policeman in the special constabulary.

I am simultaneously content and concerned about my job, where I am, where I expect to be and where I think I should be at now. My wage is OK but it's in a role with little to no progression attached in a field that doesn't interest me. I want to change direction and do an analytical role outside of science research but I'm not entirely sure how to. 5/10?

Slut yourself out working for free if you can, and apply to as many positions as possible. IMO it's basically just a numbers game, or sheer luck, in most cases. People who happen to land a good jobs retrospectively identify "reasons" why they did, and people who happen not to retrospectively identify "reasons" why they couldn't. Maybe it's usually just a case of being in the right place at the right time. I have no idea why I got my current job - I'm **** at it. Must have just been my day.

I see all kinds of figures thrown around in newspapers and such, for example that after 6mo the average graduate salary is 25k or so. I find that hard to believe and it must surely be taken from a sample of top graduates. Maybe it's just my friends but after six months most people I knew from uni (left in 2008) were unemployed or working in a supermarket. I took a first in a bioscience from a well-regarded university, but had no work experience or connections in industry and so on. I also didn't realise (poor guidance at school, imo) how there's really no work in biosciences at all, and it offers little or no access to other disciplines.

It took me over 3 years to land a job, and now I earn 15k (gross), working as a lab technician in an unrelated science. That's several thousand £ less than a typical PhD student earns, taking tax into account. I've applied for other jobs but now that I'm several years past graduating I've been told in interviews that they worry I have lapsed a bit, drifted away, mentally - and it's true, I have. My current job doesn't let me use my brain very much and I've forgotten everything I did at uni, so I'm really back at square one, but rapidly ageing and becoming less valuable to an employer with each passing year.

I have no idea what to do - this job is pretty boring but has some positive aspects. It's a complete dead end and my pay scale tops out at 17.5k I think, which I would reach over a number of years if I perform well. I'm closer to 30 than 20 and am still living in a shared student house, no chance at all that I could afford anything better.

I'd be interested to hear from others who were perhaps a bit naiive about their choice of subject, or didn't realise what one has to do to get a decent job, or can't find anything worth doing for reasonable money, etc.

I'm a bit confused by it all, and disillusioned. In my case, university made it harder for me, by letting me live like a child for even longer and shielding me from the real world. People who left school at 16 and started work can do much better for themselves than someone like me.

Let's discuss this situation, increasingly common with jobs as scarce as they are today. I don't like being in this awkward middle-ground. I either want a decent, engaging job earning a wage appropriate for someone my age, or I should just drop out entirely and go and live in a cave somewhere. I could maintain my current lifestyle on benefits alone so I'm not sure why I bother.

Slut yourself out working for free if you can, and apply to as many positions as possible. IMO it's basically just a numbers game, or sheer luck, in most cases. People who happen to land a good jobs retrospectively identify "reasons" why they did, and people who happen not to retrospectively identify "reasons" why they couldn't. Maybe it's usually just a case of being in the right place at the right time. I have no idea why I got my current job - I'm **** at it. Must have just been my day.

I admit I'm about as far as you can get from an expert in graduate recruitment, but I would have to disagree with this. Surely a select few really well thought out, competitive applications to positions that correspond best to your studies/previous professional experience would be better than a load of impersonal applications with the same CV and a non-personalised, rushed application letter?

I mean, with (paid) internships (not the same thing I know, but still) I only applied to 4, got interviews at 2 and an offer at 1. Whereas I know people that have applied to hundreds (only a mild exaggeration ) with no success.

I'm 17 and I'm earning 15K a year + commission. If you wasn't a sheep then you wouldn't be in that situation, altohugh I do feel sorry for you some what.

I'm nearly 18 and have a years experience in sales and marketing, I hope to branch off into recruitment, or become a sales executive in about 6 months. However if I do stay at this job they're giving me a pay rise in 3 months.

No I'm not telling you this to make you feel ****, EXPERIENCE IS KEY.

EXPERIENCE, that's all.