I can't find any job with a good degree from a good uni

So, my situation:
2.1 chemistry Bristol.
Plenty of work experience at uni on top of full time studies.
Award winning dissertation, Academic awards at school.

Also, after uni my first job was in financial Audit where I worked for 6 months in central London before quitting.

I also worked as a book keeper during my summer holidays.

I enrolled into Business Analytics training program this summer after leaving audit. I achieved very high marks in the training and I have additionally scored #1 in years for one of the practical tasks ... and my work is now used as an example.


I'm trying to apply to jobs in business analysis and similar fields....and my Result:
I never even get invited to the interview or even given a numerical test to do. I thought things could be linked to my bad CV or Cover letters.... as a result i showed my CV to a few HR people... including my mums best friend, who is HR at a huge bank. They did give some minor comments... my CV was very good already. It didn't help!!! I get rejected all the time on the first stage.

I'm over 1 year out of uni... unemployed, living with my parents... I don't know where to go from here . People I know are all getting jobs.... while I get left out. I'm starting to suffer from a depression... even begun vomiting due to stress. I sacrificed a relationship with a girl years ago, so I can build a perfect foundation for my career... some of my grades at uni were high 80s. I have extensive experience working with people with excellent feedback about me.

As a result I'm a loser. My Parents call me a lazy fck, my bank account is almost null... please help.

sorry to hear you are struggling. I was similar after graduation - took a job straight from Uni that was a bad fit and got sacked, really struggled for a while

There seem to be stages you have to get through (apologies if you know all this)

Stage 1 is getting shortlisted. It is often a hard filter, often done by junior HR folks or a machine. If you don't have a thing (qualification, key word etc) you don't get through

If you are changing direction (ie Chemistry to BA) then as an employer I would want to see competence in that area - Employers care about (i) competence, can you do the job? (ii) attitude, will you do a good job? (iii) fit, will you be a good part of the team / organisation?

Your Uni should be able to help even after graduation, are they helping?

Sorry but if you are not getting shortlisted then your CV / cover letter isn't good enough, whatever your friends are telling you. FWIW I have multiple CVs depending on the role I am applying to, it is tightly tailored to the application and only contains things relevant to that role

Your studies will have given you lots of transferable skills, so part of the challenge is to get a good narrative around your career choice and how you would meet the 3 needs of employers above.

I work with BAs a lot, it is quite a technical role and very competitive, you will be up against some good candidates with directly relevant qualifications - how will you stand out?

Stage 2 is getting an interview. Usually a human looks at the shortlist and reduces it to a manageable number. Sometimes there will be brief online interviews followed by second interviews. You aren't getting here yet, but when you do having good STAR responses to competency questions etc will be needed

You will want to practice and prepare for this now (if you aren't already) because when you do get an interview you will want to do it well.


I found the whole process frustrating, part of what helped was having a plan - and every day there were things I would be doing:

(i) looking for roles - and not just in the usual places, because the more widely advertised the role the more competition you face
(ii) iterating my application materials, because the more tailored the application the better (usually)
(iii) making applications, again looking to stand out a little
(iv) getting feedback / reviewing CV etc
(v) getting feedback improving interview technique etc
(vi) rehearsing my answers in front of a mirror, or even better video and watching back
(vii) reading around the subject, because you may get a question about something current / topical and it will make you stand out (this happened to me at an interview and really made a difference) - keeps your knowledge current too

Remember, research shows that even the most accurate recruitment process only gets it right about 50% of the time - so it really is a numbers game - but be careful taking a role that isn't right because you feel desperate. My first job after graduation was in manufacturing, it was a really bad fit and I quickly left, which was hard to explain when I went back to the job market


Also remember, about 50% of graduate jobs are not with big organisations. Smaller organisations can be much less "professional" in their selection processes and tend to hire people they like / know / trust. Not sure where you are based but there may be events you can go to, get to know people and then get lucky with a piece of work - FWIW there is a shortage of good BAs in digital design and lots of smaller digital agencies struggle to get good people.

And finally, don't just apply for advertised roles, they are the ones where you will face the most competition. Be proactive, reach out to folks who might have work. Get used to sending speculative letters, get used to using LinkedIn to track down good connections etc

How does your degree in Chemistry prepare you for a career in Business Analysis? I would assume that employers will be asking themselves this question. Does your cover letter specifically address this?

Why did you quit your Financial Audit job after just six months? Employers will likely see that as a red flag, as they will be worried that you will quit their job too, after they've spent six months training you and getting you to the point of being a productive member of the team.

In the last few years, you've switched your interests from chemistry to book-keeping to financial audit to business analysis. That doesn't suggest the stability, reliability and dependability that employers are likely seeking.

Would you accept that the above doesn't present you as the ideal candidate?

they said I have a 50% of getting through.

Have you considered the Armed Forces?

Did they say you have a 50% of getting rejected?

I'm curious how someone without experience of procurement would be offered a £40k job in it 🤔

I’m sorry to hear that you’re struggling. In all honesty, the economy is not that great right now; so trying to get into a historically competitive industry is even more competitive.

Just keep trying, and, take what you get offered. Climb the ladder

I do, I did a training in business analysis all summer. I got recommend by a trainer, so they invited me to the Interview.

Sorry, how is working in procurement a BA role?

I've never seen someone in procurement use any BA techniques.... BAs are needed in projects to do the MoSCoW analysis to support a tender, but that's not a job in procurement.

I GOT A JOB BOYZZZ yeeee!!!! That one I talked about

I GOT A JOB BOYZZZ yeeee!!!! That one I talked about

I GOT A JOB BOYZZZ yeeee!!!! That one I talked about

Congratulations! What do you think helped the most in your CV or Interview to get through? (I need advise because I'm going to start University soon ahaha)

So, my situation:
2.1 chemistry Bristol.
Plenty of work experience at uni on top of full time studies.
Award winning dissertation, Academic awards at school.

Also, after uni my first job was in financial Audit where I worked for 6 months in central London before quitting.

I also worked as a book keeper during my summer holidays.

I enrolled into Business Analytics training program this summer after leaving audit. I achieved very high marks in the training and I have additionally scored #1 in years for one of the practical tasks ... and my work is now used as an example.


I'm trying to apply to jobs in business analysis and similar fields....and my Result:
I never even get invited to the interview or even given a numerical test to do. I thought things could be linked to my bad CV or Cover letters.... as a result i showed my CV to a few HR people... including my mums best friend, who is HR at a huge bank. They did give some minor comments... my CV was very good already. It didn't help!!! I get rejected all the time on the first stage.

I'm over 1 year out of uni... unemployed, living with my parents... I don't know where to go from here . People I know are all getting jobs.... while I get left out. I'm starting to suffer from a depression... even begun vomiting due to stress. I sacrificed a relationship with a girl years ago, so I can build a perfect foundation for my career... some of my grades at uni were high 80s. I have extensive experience working with people with excellent feedback about me.

As a result I'm a loser. My Parents call me a lazy fck, my bank account is almost null... please help.