New to this site. Life is becoming hopeless. Graduated Last year no luck on a job

Firstly, I am new to this site.

I graduated last year with a 2:2 (yes i know i should of put more effort) in BA (HONS) Marketing. My attendance however was second to none but I have never been great with exams, I pretty much ****ed up my dissertation and I was so drained as it took me just over an hour to travel to and from uni. I did unpaid work as i know most grad schemes to build up my skills and for the reason that most employers want 2:1s. I finished that in last November. I went with my mother on to visit my sick gran who lives in Jamaica. I came back in January and from there on it has been utter hell.

I have been applying for jobs after jobs after jobs and i have had no luck at all. I have come to the point i am now applying for basic positions such as supermarket roles, retail roles, even a job being a painter and i have had no luck what so ever . My savings are running out, I can barely sleep during nights, I have shared a tear because this job hunting is becoming emotionally draining. I feel like the only person in my course who is yet to find something. I feel so depressed and anxious, even sending an application, i get doubts that that I won't get a phone call.

I am lost in what to do. It is like I am going through a cycle where i am starting again with this job hunting. I am currently volunteering in my field, which has commenced since May, but i need a part time or temporary role just so i can have a little income coming in.

This year has been the worse year of my life. The only pain that come top this is either a close family member has died then after that my savings have completely finished. I feel so frustrated, depressed, emotionally tired from this. There are times when i just want to give up for good!

I have been to the Doctors a couple of weeks back due to my health and they told me I have Anxiety but all they did was print out some sheets to give to me.

Anyone else currently going through this or been through this situation. It be good to hear from you and maybe give me some advice.

Life is so hard man!

I really feel for you, OP. I know how hard it is, I was there myself. The constant rejections really chip away at your confidence and breaks you down.

You're doing all the right things is all I can say, and the volunteering will at least fill any gap in your CV and show some relevance to your career.

Have you tried having your cv looked over? Are you getting interviews? How broad in terms of location is your search?

It's really hard to stay upbeat and positive but you really do need to try and tap into that, as depression becomes an infection. I would try and arrange therapist sessions if possible, just to keep yourself in check.


Posted from TSR Mobile

Firstly, I am new to this site.

I graduated last year with a 2:2 (yes i know i should of put more effort) in BA (HONS) Marketing. My attendance however was second to none but I have never been great with exams, I pretty much ****ed up my dissertation and I was so drained as it took me just over an hour to travel to and from uni. I did unpaid work as i know most grad schemes to build up my skills and for the reason that most employers want 2:1s. I finished that in last November. I went with my mother on to visit my sick gran who lives in Jamaica. I came back in January and from there on it has been utter hell.

I have been applying for jobs after jobs after jobs and i have had no luck at all. I have come to the point i am now applying for basic positions such as supermarket roles, retail roles, even a job being a painter and i have had no luck what so ever . My savings are running out, I can barely sleep during nights, I have shared a tear because this job hunting is becoming emotionally draining. I feel like the only person in my course who is yet to find something. I feel so depressed and anxious, even sending an application, i get doubts that that I won't get a phone call.

I am lost in what to do. It is like I am going through a cycle where i am starting again with this job hunting. I am currently volunteering in my field, which has commenced since May, but i need a part time or temporary role just so i can have a little income coming in.

This year has been the worse year of my life. The only pain that come top this is either a close family member has died then after that my savings have completely finished. I feel so frustrated, depressed, emotionally tired from this. There are times when i just want to give up for good!

I have been to the Doctors a couple of weeks back due to my health and they told me I have Anxiety but all they did was print out some sheets to give to me.

Anyone else currently going through this or been through this situation. It be good to hear from you and maybe give me some advice.

Life is so hard man!

You are doing the right thing in volunteering..

I need more information to give proper help... namely what jobs are you applying for?

After my 2nd year of university I did not want to go back, so I applied for many many many full-time jobs to try and give me some work that I could do instead of university.. I got no where. Eventually I decided to go back to university, but with the specific aim to get a job, not to focus on doing the best I could do in my degree.. (very jelous of people where these are the same thing).

Job hunting was pretty simple by the time I finished university - I was ticking off every single box these jobs wanted, with a set of skills dirrectly relating to what they required.

My other advice would be to be incredibly pro-active.. a few of my friends are currently working in companies that they just went up and approached.. my best friend knew the area he wanted to work in, and he just phoned up, offered to work for a week or so for free for experiance.. the first one who agreed.. he went along, worked hard, at the end of the week - walked in to his boss, and said give me a job.. and they did.
So dont underestimate the market for jobs that are not advertised.. companies may be willing to take on a good young individual, even if they do not have such a need for it that they would be seeking/advertising. A lot of jobs come about without any advertisment..

I have applied for Marketing, Admin, Retail, Sales, Supermarket jobs I.E working in Tesco and jobs such as being a painter.


So they literally just went into the building and actually got seen to the Hiring Manager of these particular companies? When I went to a recruiting consultant, I asked him about the hidden job market, for some reason he didn't believe all that stuff that most jobs are not advertised etc...

for the first part:

Thats a wide selection of jobs.. when you look at the job adverts, and they have their 'person specification' do you match/exceed all they are looking for, with evidenced exsamples?

For your final bit, it depends on the company, the companies my friends now work for are not huge, and they could with little hassle talk dirrectly to managers/their potential bosses.. I guess for them it was a case of picking the companies they felt could give them sucess.. choosing ones that were personal, smaller, easily aproachable etc. - and avoiding large coperations that they would hit a dead-end with

I've been there man, it's tough. It only worked out for me 3 weeks ago when I was offered my first job since I finished University in September. Get on JSA, set up email job alerts and you are doing the right thing in volunteering, it got me to the interview stage for a number of companies.

Congrats on the job offer bro..

Yes it is tough. Hard time for me at the moment.

I know a friend doing marketing, he's focused on coding for websites and another friend who does graphic design (creates logos and website template designs). If you have any skills like coding/proficiency in any software. Make sure you look at the specific job and tailor your application for that. I work in HR, so I have access in to what makes an application good for the panel who interview and shortlist.

Hey pal, I hope you're feeling better.

I know this thread is a little old but I'll try to give my two cents.

You've got a 2.2 - which doesn't mean the end of the world. It just means you need to be a little different in your approach.


1) Focus on smaller companies. Graduate schemes and a many of the larger companies out there only ask for 2.1's - they are also insanely competitive. Even having a 2.1. doesn't guarantee you'll be successful with them. Instead i would focus on smaller companies i.e. SME's (Small and Medium Enterprises). SME's make up 98% of all companies in the UK and they employ 60% of the British workforce. They are also more likely to overlook grades, as smaller companies tend to focus on transferable skills.

2) Go Direct: from what I gather, you are applying for jobs online and via recruiters. This is the most crowded channel as everyone and their grandma applies this way. Instead apply directly to the companies you're interested in. Going direct has a success rate of 60% as opposed to applying via job sites (14%).

3) Call them: When i say direct - I mean call them. Do some research, draw up a list of around 50 companies that you are interested in and call them directly. Speak to a relevant manager and ask them if they are hiring graduates/entry level trainees. Although this sounds daunting, i promise you they won't bite - most employers are impressed by anyone who has the guts to call them directly.

Calling them directly also has the desired effect of drawing attention away from your 2.2. - because you have already differentiated yourself from the crowd by having the guts to call directly. It shows initiative and that you can think outside the box - which is something most employers look for.


Let me know how it goes, but best of luck with everything.

Hey mate,

Thanks for the advice. Probably the best way forward. I know it is extremely crowded but at times i feel it like the only way. I don't know 50 SME companies from the top of my head. The companies I would like to work for, i have already did this technique and they stated that they is no Work experience/Internships or graduate schemes/training happening at the moment.

Thanks for your help