Applications for graduate finance jobs at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) have soared as more and more graduates are chasing fewer jobs at the big finance companies.
Last year, PwC received 20,000 applications for the places on their graduate scheme. This year, with over 200 applications falling through the letterbox each day, the finance company is on course to receive around one and a half times that number of applicants for the 2012 programme.
That would mean that there could be around 30,000 graduates chasing just 1,200 finance places on the PwC graduate scheme this year.
Chairman and senior partner at PwC, Ian Powell, told The Daily Telegraph that his company expected to interview fewer than a quarter of the graduates who had applied for the 2012 intake and said it was a shame to eliminate so many people at the first stage of application.
Mr Powell worried that such a low ratio of interviews to applications would mean that some graduate talent could inevitably slip through the net.
Speaking of the seemingly insatiable interest in graduate finance jobs compared to other sectors of UK business, Mr Powell said:
“There are not the same opportunities out there now. People are looking for the security of a professional qualification. But I think it's important that other parts of industry become just as attractive, like engineering, as there's a real need to have a balanced economy.”
Source: E4s.co.uk, Friday 6th January 2012
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Saturday, 7 January 2012
Friday, 6 January 2012
Bentley sales soar as bright outlook predicted for automotive graduate jobs
If you’re considering which engineering sectors are best for graduate jobs, you’ll be interested to learn the latest news from the automotive industry. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has predicted that new UK car registrations in 2012 will be 2.1% up on 2011. And considering the picture for five to ten years’ time, the society commented that ‘UK automotive manufacturing could be on course for near-record highs’. Meanwhile, Bentley Motors has just announced that demand for its vehicles returned to pre-recession levels of demand in 2011, with global sales up by 37%.
The SMMT described 2011 as a ‘step change year’ for UK automotive manufacturing. It highlighted ‘unprecedented levels of international investment in the UK’ (over £4 billion was earmarked by manufacturers in 2011 for UK-based projects) and ‘long-term commitments to building new and existing vehicles and engines across the country’. It estimated that total vehicle and engine production in 2011 would be over 5% higher than in 2010. (Figures were announced in late December, and as such were not 100% complete.)
However, these predictions should be viewed in the context of a challenging domestic economy, and the need for export markets to remain healthy. New UK car registrations fell in 2011 (down 4.5% on 2010). The SMMT also commented that consistent growth depended upon ‘economic stability in the Eurozone and global export markets’.
Bentley sales grow 37%, fuelled by overseas demand
Bentley Motors sold 7,003 vehicles in 2011, an increase of 37%. It saw growth in all its major markets, though performance varied widely: sales almost doubled in China and increased by 88% in Germany, while growth in the UK was much more modest at just over 5%. Its December 2011 sales were the second highest ever (up 69% on December 2010). Bentley’s design, R&D, engineering and production facilities are based in Crewe, employing just under 4,000 people. The company states that it is ‘the third largest R&D investor in the UK’s automotive sector and the 18th largest nationally’.
‘2011 – a very significant year for UK motor industry’
The SMMT’s chief executive, Paul Everitt, stated that: ‘2011 has been a very significant year for the UK motor industry. We have seen a remarkable series of investment announcements by global vehicle manufacturers with a total of £4 billion of investment promised for the UK, securing new model programmes, production facilities and jobs. Despite the uncertainty within the Eurozone, these decisions demonstrate real confidence in the future of UK manufacturing and its role within a rebalanced economy.’
Jaguar Land Rover doubles graduate intake
For graduates, the most significant recent announcement has been Jaguar Land Rover’s drive to double its graduate intake. As reported on TARGETjobs Engineering online, the company increased its recruitment target from 135 to 280 graduate jobs.
Source: Targetjobs.co.uk, Wednesday 4th January 2012
Thursday, 5 January 2012
Executive 'forced out of job' over LinkedIn CV
A human resources executive was forced out of his job after angering his employer by putting his CV online and advertising that he was interested in other “career opportunities”, a tribunal heard.
John Flexman, 34, is thought to be the first person in the country to bring a case for constructive dismissal after a dispute with bosses over his profile on the professional networking site LinkedIn.
Mr Flexman is claiming hundreds of thousands of pounds from BG Group, a major gas exploration firm based in Reading, Berks, where he earned a £68,000 salary in charge of graduate recruitment.
As well as loading his CV onto the site, Mr Flexman ticked a box to register an interest in “career opportunities”.
But he was contacted by his manager while on holiday in the United States and ordered to remove his CV. On his return he was accused of “inappropriate use of social media” and called to attend an internal disciplinary hearing.
He was handed a list of disciplinary charges and told he could be sacked, Reading Employment Tribunal heard.
BG Group said he was in breach of new company policy on conflicts of interest which it said banned employees ticking the “career opportunities” box.
He was also accused of including confidential information in his CV such as details about how he had reduced firm's the rate of staff attrition.
However, Mr Flexman claims the details he posted were available in the company’s annual reports and that 21 of his colleagues, including the manager of the disciplinary process, had ticked the "career opportunities" box but had not been disciplined.
Mr Flexman, a married father of a two-year-old daughter, said: “In his email Mr [Antony] Seigel [Mr Flexman's manager] said that a complaint had been made about my LinkedIn profile and that I was required to remove it immediately.
"He told me to remove from my profile all information regarding BG Group except for job titles and dates. I did not think this was reasonable.
"It seemed to me that the focus of the charge sheet was the posting of my CV online."
LinkedIn is social networking service similar to Facebook, but focused on building professional rather than personal relationships. More than eight million British members are encouraged to keep a record of their skills and experience online and up-to-date to help them make useful business contacts.
The dispute over his profile led to Mr Flexman’s resignation in June following a breakdown in his relationship with senior executives.
The case raises broad issues for how employees use websites such as LinkedIn. According to a study of the service in 2007, around half its members indicate they are interested in career opportunities on their profile.
“We welcome the opportunity to present our case at the tribunal, the appropriate forum," a spokesman for BG Group said.
"We will defend our position but do not wish to pre-empt the tribunal’s ruling by commenting further."
The hearing continues.
Source: Christopher Williams, Telegraph.co.uk, Thursday 5th January 2011
John Flexman, 34, is thought to be the first person in the country to bring a case for constructive dismissal after a dispute with bosses over his profile on the professional networking site LinkedIn.
Mr Flexman is claiming hundreds of thousands of pounds from BG Group, a major gas exploration firm based in Reading, Berks, where he earned a £68,000 salary in charge of graduate recruitment.
As well as loading his CV onto the site, Mr Flexman ticked a box to register an interest in “career opportunities”.
But he was contacted by his manager while on holiday in the United States and ordered to remove his CV. On his return he was accused of “inappropriate use of social media” and called to attend an internal disciplinary hearing.
He was handed a list of disciplinary charges and told he could be sacked, Reading Employment Tribunal heard.
BG Group said he was in breach of new company policy on conflicts of interest which it said banned employees ticking the “career opportunities” box.
He was also accused of including confidential information in his CV such as details about how he had reduced firm's the rate of staff attrition.
However, Mr Flexman claims the details he posted were available in the company’s annual reports and that 21 of his colleagues, including the manager of the disciplinary process, had ticked the "career opportunities" box but had not been disciplined.
Mr Flexman, a married father of a two-year-old daughter, said: “In his email Mr [Antony] Seigel [Mr Flexman's manager] said that a complaint had been made about my LinkedIn profile and that I was required to remove it immediately.
"He told me to remove from my profile all information regarding BG Group except for job titles and dates. I did not think this was reasonable.
"It seemed to me that the focus of the charge sheet was the posting of my CV online."
LinkedIn is social networking service similar to Facebook, but focused on building professional rather than personal relationships. More than eight million British members are encouraged to keep a record of their skills and experience online and up-to-date to help them make useful business contacts.
The dispute over his profile led to Mr Flexman’s resignation in June following a breakdown in his relationship with senior executives.
The case raises broad issues for how employees use websites such as LinkedIn. According to a study of the service in 2007, around half its members indicate they are interested in career opportunities on their profile.
“We welcome the opportunity to present our case at the tribunal, the appropriate forum," a spokesman for BG Group said.
"We will defend our position but do not wish to pre-empt the tribunal’s ruling by commenting further."
The hearing continues.
Source: Christopher Williams, Telegraph.co.uk, Thursday 5th January 2011
Wednesday, 4 January 2012
100 Trainee Dentists will Struggle to get NHS Job
Around 100 trainee dentists will be left without a job in the NHS as a result of a shortage of training places in the UK.
It has been revealed that there are too few training places available in the NHS and this will mean that around 100 graduates will be forced to join private practices or train abroad.
Postgraduate training is essential to be able to work in the NHS in the future, but 100 trainees will be forced to undertake private training or complete a course abroad in order to fulfil the requirement. There has been concern that competition for places has increased due to a rise in the number of foreign students applying for places on courses in the UK.
Talking to the Telegraph a dental student, who wished to remain anonymous, said that it was a waste of money opening new dental schools if there are no training jobs for dentists once they graduate.
Dr Susie Sanderson, chairman of the British Dental Association’s Executive Board, said that the current system is letting both students and taxpayers down, as there is an obvious mismatch between the number of graduates and the number of training places. She added that the issue should be considered carefully by the government.
Dr Barry Cockcroft, Chief Dental Officer, said that the vast majority of candidates were successful in getting a place but added that he expects more places to become available in the near future to cater for the increase in the number of dental graduates.
Source: Cosmeticdentistryguide.co.uk, Wednesday 4th January 2012
It has been revealed that there are too few training places available in the NHS and this will mean that around 100 graduates will be forced to join private practices or train abroad.
Postgraduate training is essential to be able to work in the NHS in the future, but 100 trainees will be forced to undertake private training or complete a course abroad in order to fulfil the requirement. There has been concern that competition for places has increased due to a rise in the number of foreign students applying for places on courses in the UK.
Talking to the Telegraph a dental student, who wished to remain anonymous, said that it was a waste of money opening new dental schools if there are no training jobs for dentists once they graduate.
Dr Susie Sanderson, chairman of the British Dental Association’s Executive Board, said that the current system is letting both students and taxpayers down, as there is an obvious mismatch between the number of graduates and the number of training places. She added that the issue should be considered carefully by the government.
Dr Barry Cockcroft, Chief Dental Officer, said that the vast majority of candidates were successful in getting a place but added that he expects more places to become available in the near future to cater for the increase in the number of dental graduates.
Source: Cosmeticdentistryguide.co.uk, Wednesday 4th January 2012
Tuesday, 3 January 2012
PwC gets record number of applicants for graduate scheme
Accountancy giant PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) is on track to receive a record 30,000 applications for its graduate entry scheme in the latest indicator of the strains in the British labour market.
The firm's graduate scheme - which has 1,200 places - has been inundated with expressions of interest, with more than 200 applications a day being received.
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Ian Powell, chairman and senior partner of PwC UK, said: "It's incredible. One of the big issues we face is that we could end up with 30,000 applications for just 1,200 places."
The figure is 50pc higher than the 20,000 applications Mr Powell said the firm - which unlike other large financial services firm maintained its graduate intake throughout the recession - received for its 2011 intake.
"There are not the same opportunities out there now. People are looking for the security of a professional qualification," Mr Powell said. "But I think it's important that other parts of industry become just as attractive, like engineering, as there's a real need to have a balanced economy."
Mr Powell noted however that one of the "real challenges" of applications on this scale was the fear of quality candidates slipping through the cracks.
"We'll interview getting on for about 7,000 really which is a massive effort. That means you're eliminating a lot of people on paper.
"So what I'm fearful of is we lose some diversity. And what I mean by this is of background, of experience, coming into the firm," he continued. "I want to keep the diversity of admission; otherwise we'll be irrelevant in 15 years time because we'll have recruited from a stereotypical background."
Mr Powell also revealed that he intends to stand in the firm's upcoming chairman election, as his current four-year term comes to an end in March.
Source: James Quinn, Telegraph.co.uk, Monday 2nd January 2012
The firm's graduate scheme - which has 1,200 places - has been inundated with expressions of interest, with more than 200 applications a day being received.
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Ian Powell, chairman and senior partner of PwC UK, said: "It's incredible. One of the big issues we face is that we could end up with 30,000 applications for just 1,200 places."
The figure is 50pc higher than the 20,000 applications Mr Powell said the firm - which unlike other large financial services firm maintained its graduate intake throughout the recession - received for its 2011 intake.
"There are not the same opportunities out there now. People are looking for the security of a professional qualification," Mr Powell said. "But I think it's important that other parts of industry become just as attractive, like engineering, as there's a real need to have a balanced economy."
Mr Powell noted however that one of the "real challenges" of applications on this scale was the fear of quality candidates slipping through the cracks.
"We'll interview getting on for about 7,000 really which is a massive effort. That means you're eliminating a lot of people on paper.
"So what I'm fearful of is we lose some diversity. And what I mean by this is of background, of experience, coming into the firm," he continued. "I want to keep the diversity of admission; otherwise we'll be irrelevant in 15 years time because we'll have recruited from a stereotypical background."
Mr Powell also revealed that he intends to stand in the firm's upcoming chairman election, as his current four-year term comes to an end in March.
Source: James Quinn, Telegraph.co.uk, Monday 2nd January 2012
Monday, 2 January 2012
Birmingham woman changes careers from drug addicts to cupcakes
She used to work with junkies – but now people are addicted to her cupcakes.
Bubbly Birmingham businesswoman Dalvinder Cheema worked with heroin addicts at a city charity for 18 months before a holiday break spurred her to cook up a whole new career.
Now the biochemistry and molecular medicine graduate has set up Kiss Me Cupcakes with pal Mary Ashman.
And it’s proving to be a real recipe for success.
“People thought I was crazy giving up my job,” says Dalvinder, 31. “But I just love cupcakes!”
It’s a far cry from the days when Dalvinder worked at the charity Drugs Solution Birmingham.
“I was there to monitor the drugs the addicts were taking and I was working very closely with them,” she recalls. “It was all about motivating people, finding out what was going on in their lives and what their daily struggles were.
“I really enjoyed the job because I wanted to help. But it was incredibly draining at times.
“It made me realise how lucky I was to have the life I did. Sometimes the drug users would lose their temper and shout at me. I admit that I did get upset a couple of times.
“But I knew I was there to get them on the right path, so they would eventually stop using drugs.”
It was rewarding work but an extended holiday soon gave Dalvinder food for thought.
“I did the job for 18 months before I got the chance to go travelling with Mary,” she explains. “We went to South America, New Zealand and Australia, where we spent three months.
“There was a little cupcake shop Down Under that Mary and I would visit every Friday. We just loved it. We thought we were in heaven!
“When it was time to go home, Mary asked me if I wanted to go back to work for the charity.
“I realised that I didn’t because I felt like I was on a treadmill. It was the same cycle over and over again, and it just didn’t change.
“I didn’t want to be stuck there. I wanted to see wonderful things and be happy every day. I wanted my life to be beautiful.
“I told Mary that if I was to win the lottery, I wanted to open my own cupcake shop. She said: ‘Why wait for the lottery? Why not do it anyway?’”
When they came back to Birmingham the pals set to work, turning a half-baked idea into the finished item.
“Mary originally came up with the name Kiss My Cupcakes,” says Dalvinder. “But I told her we couldn’t use that!
“So we changed the ‘my’ to a ‘me’ and it works really well.
“It was really difficult setting up at first and we found ourselves on a very steep learning curve. But eventually word of mouth got around and we started getting orders from big companies.
“We also happened to be one of the first cupcake companies to set up in Birmingham, so we’d get a lot of recommendations.
“I’m passionate about cupcakes and making a go of the business. Mary loves it, too. She’s the baker, whilst I create the sugar craftings to decorate the cakes, dream up design ideas, and sorting out admin.
“This job really does make me happy and I wouldn’t change it for the world.”
Source: Anuji Varma, Sundaymercury.net, Sunday 1st January 2012
Bubbly Birmingham businesswoman Dalvinder Cheema worked with heroin addicts at a city charity for 18 months before a holiday break spurred her to cook up a whole new career.
Now the biochemistry and molecular medicine graduate has set up Kiss Me Cupcakes with pal Mary Ashman.
And it’s proving to be a real recipe for success.
“People thought I was crazy giving up my job,” says Dalvinder, 31. “But I just love cupcakes!”
It’s a far cry from the days when Dalvinder worked at the charity Drugs Solution Birmingham.
“I was there to monitor the drugs the addicts were taking and I was working very closely with them,” she recalls. “It was all about motivating people, finding out what was going on in their lives and what their daily struggles were.
“I really enjoyed the job because I wanted to help. But it was incredibly draining at times.
“It made me realise how lucky I was to have the life I did. Sometimes the drug users would lose their temper and shout at me. I admit that I did get upset a couple of times.
“But I knew I was there to get them on the right path, so they would eventually stop using drugs.”
It was rewarding work but an extended holiday soon gave Dalvinder food for thought.
“I did the job for 18 months before I got the chance to go travelling with Mary,” she explains. “We went to South America, New Zealand and Australia, where we spent three months.
“There was a little cupcake shop Down Under that Mary and I would visit every Friday. We just loved it. We thought we were in heaven!
“When it was time to go home, Mary asked me if I wanted to go back to work for the charity.
“I realised that I didn’t because I felt like I was on a treadmill. It was the same cycle over and over again, and it just didn’t change.
“I didn’t want to be stuck there. I wanted to see wonderful things and be happy every day. I wanted my life to be beautiful.
“I told Mary that if I was to win the lottery, I wanted to open my own cupcake shop. She said: ‘Why wait for the lottery? Why not do it anyway?’”
When they came back to Birmingham the pals set to work, turning a half-baked idea into the finished item.
“Mary originally came up with the name Kiss My Cupcakes,” says Dalvinder. “But I told her we couldn’t use that!
“So we changed the ‘my’ to a ‘me’ and it works really well.
“It was really difficult setting up at first and we found ourselves on a very steep learning curve. But eventually word of mouth got around and we started getting orders from big companies.
“We also happened to be one of the first cupcake companies to set up in Birmingham, so we’d get a lot of recommendations.
“I’m passionate about cupcakes and making a go of the business. Mary loves it, too. She’s the baker, whilst I create the sugar craftings to decorate the cakes, dream up design ideas, and sorting out admin.
“This job really does make me happy and I wouldn’t change it for the world.”
Source: Anuji Varma, Sundaymercury.net, Sunday 1st January 2012
Sunday, 1 January 2012
Training tops ‘wanted’ list for job-seekers says Ernst & Young
Graduates rank training and development above a large salary when selecting a future employer, according to a survey by Ernst & Young.
The online poll showed that 41 per cent of graduates view training and development as the most important consideration when weighing up a potential employer, down from 44 per cent in 2007.
Salary and benefits are the second most popular factor, increasing slightly from 18 per cent in 2007 to 21 per cent in 2011.
Stephen Isherwood, head of graduate recruitment at Ernst & Young, said: “The poll raises interesting questions around the expectations of the post-recession class of 2011 versus those of 2007, who were graduating into an uncertain future.
“Despite the burden of university debts, today’s graduates still see their first job as a prime opportunity to gain qualifications and skills which can benefit them long into the future.”
The biggest change in students’ views was around work-life balance, which fell from the third most important factor in 2007 to the fifth in 2011.
Business reputation was rated highest by 13 per cent, people and culture by 12 per cent, work/life balance by 11 per cent, and ethical and environmental reputation by two per cent.
Source: Yorkshirepost.co.uk, Wednesday 28th December 2011
The online poll showed that 41 per cent of graduates view training and development as the most important consideration when weighing up a potential employer, down from 44 per cent in 2007.
Salary and benefits are the second most popular factor, increasing slightly from 18 per cent in 2007 to 21 per cent in 2011.
Stephen Isherwood, head of graduate recruitment at Ernst & Young, said: “The poll raises interesting questions around the expectations of the post-recession class of 2011 versus those of 2007, who were graduating into an uncertain future.
“Despite the burden of university debts, today’s graduates still see their first job as a prime opportunity to gain qualifications and skills which can benefit them long into the future.”
The biggest change in students’ views was around work-life balance, which fell from the third most important factor in 2007 to the fifth in 2011.
Business reputation was rated highest by 13 per cent, people and culture by 12 per cent, work/life balance by 11 per cent, and ethical and environmental reputation by two per cent.
Source: Yorkshirepost.co.uk, Wednesday 28th December 2011
Saturday, 31 December 2011
Stephen Hawking seeks geek to maintain his unique wheelchair
Could you repair and tweak superstar physicist Stephen Hawking's robot voice box and gadget-laden wheelchair? If you reckon yes, then the celebrated author and cosmologist wants to hear from you.
He has a technical assistant job going, with a modest graduate salary, and it involves maintaining the electronic systems that allow him to speak in public and meet others in the rock'n'roll globetrotting world of physics.
Ironically, the position involves working for one of the University of Cambridge's top theoretical scientists yet performing rather practical tasks. If chalkboards and equations are your game because tangled wires and humming circuits scare you off, then this probably isn't the career path for you.
It's implied that Prof Hawking's go-go-gadget wheelchair isn't well documented and, as you can see from the picture below, rather ad-hoc. There's no technical support for the gear - whoever gets the job will be the technical support.
The Brief History of Time author has motor neurone disease, which has left him almost completely paralysed, and the black hole probing boffin lost his voice after a tracheotomy operation in the 1980s.
He relies on his souped-up wheelchair to get out and about, and various bits of gear to translate small hand movements into words, spoken in the monotonic robotic voice that - outside the arena of particle physics - he is best-known for. The supercomputer wielding, alien invasion fearing prof also controls things like the lights and doors, TV and other gadgets in his home and office by remote control from his wheelchair.
According to the unconventional job advert: "It is not a PhD or post-doc position for academics looking to study physics, but a purely technical post to allow Prof Hawking to function within the physics community and as a public speaker. The original purpose of this position was to aid Professor Hawking in those areas which he has difficulty due to his disability. The job has since expanded."
Duties include booking travel arrangements for the prof and his entourage (including yourself), developing and fixing his speech systems, repairing his adapted van, help prepare his lectures, fend off journos, maintain his website and deal with the public.
Most importantly, the ideal candidate must be able to work under pressure, maintain "black box" systems with no instruction manual or technical support, be a whiz with computers and electronics, be able to speak to large audiences and show others how to use complex systems.
Not a big ask, then. The salary is roughly £25k ($38.5k) and the start date is somewhere between February 20 to 27.
Source: Chris Williams, Theregister.co.uk, Friday 30th December 2011
He has a technical assistant job going, with a modest graduate salary, and it involves maintaining the electronic systems that allow him to speak in public and meet others in the rock'n'roll globetrotting world of physics.
Ironically, the position involves working for one of the University of Cambridge's top theoretical scientists yet performing rather practical tasks. If chalkboards and equations are your game because tangled wires and humming circuits scare you off, then this probably isn't the career path for you.
It's implied that Prof Hawking's go-go-gadget wheelchair isn't well documented and, as you can see from the picture below, rather ad-hoc. There's no technical support for the gear - whoever gets the job will be the technical support.
The Brief History of Time author has motor neurone disease, which has left him almost completely paralysed, and the black hole probing boffin lost his voice after a tracheotomy operation in the 1980s.
He relies on his souped-up wheelchair to get out and about, and various bits of gear to translate small hand movements into words, spoken in the monotonic robotic voice that - outside the arena of particle physics - he is best-known for. The supercomputer wielding, alien invasion fearing prof also controls things like the lights and doors, TV and other gadgets in his home and office by remote control from his wheelchair.
According to the unconventional job advert: "It is not a PhD or post-doc position for academics looking to study physics, but a purely technical post to allow Prof Hawking to function within the physics community and as a public speaker. The original purpose of this position was to aid Professor Hawking in those areas which he has difficulty due to his disability. The job has since expanded."
Duties include booking travel arrangements for the prof and his entourage (including yourself), developing and fixing his speech systems, repairing his adapted van, help prepare his lectures, fend off journos, maintain his website and deal with the public.
Most importantly, the ideal candidate must be able to work under pressure, maintain "black box" systems with no instruction manual or technical support, be a whiz with computers and electronics, be able to speak to large audiences and show others how to use complex systems.
Not a big ask, then. The salary is roughly £25k ($38.5k) and the start date is somewhere between February 20 to 27.
Source: Chris Williams, Theregister.co.uk, Friday 30th December 2011
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