In a time where tuition fees are trebling, Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) has been scrapped,and employment is harder to find, the prospects for young people across the board are starker than ever, but none more so than those of graduates.
The BBC's 'Up for Hire' series highlighted some of the problems facing young people nationally, but what about those in Preston who are set to graduate next summer?
The BBC's 'Up for Hire' series highlighted some of the problems facing young people nationally, but what about those in Preston who are set to graduate next summer?
Figures at the start of this year showed that graduate unemployment is at a record high, with one in five graduates not in work. These statistics are made worse given that the term 'employment' doesn't take into account whether the jobs that have been taken on are at a graduate level or not. Unemployment for young people has risen sharply again in 2011, as the graph here shows. You can view the full data for this graph here.
So, what is it that sets apart the 80 per cent of graduates that get employed, from those who don't? Arguably, work experience holds the key to becoming more employable.
The mad rush for jobs around graduation time means that from Easter onwards, thousands of young people will be bombarding employers looking for work, but with no relevant experience, it is debatable how useful searching will be.
Work experience is always cited as being one of the most important factors in gaining employment, so why does this really set graduates apart? Employment Engagement Officer, Andrea Pye, from Futures, the University of Central Lancashire's (UCLan) careers advice centre, explains how high work experience ranks compared to a variety of other factors.
Work experience and employability skills rank highly across many job sectors, especially within journalism and the media. Having relevant experience can be the tipping point between candidates, and is almost essential for all students.
So, with journalism being one of the most competitive industries to try and break into, together with media outlets cutting jobs or closing altogether, the jobs pool is getting smaller, meaning graduates have to up their game.
UCLan Students' Union (SU) offers their students a range of student media outlets to get involved with. Pluto newspaper is the longest running outlet at UCLan Students' Union, and has an estimated readership of 6,000. The newspaper is printed fortnightly, with regular updates and a digital edition of the newspaper appearing online too.
PR1 magazine is a monthly publication which allows students to contribute to features, music, entertainment and style sections. Frequency Radio is broadcast daily and has a range of 35 different shows per week. PSTV is the new television station which is establishing itself amongst students this year.
The offer of such a varied amount of practical journalism experience in the form of student media is a popular one in Preston. UCLan SU Media Officer, David Stubbings, explains what the main benefits of contributing to student media are, and how they can prepare a student in the future.
Although the digital versions, websites and operating platforms for both Frequency Radio and PSTV are online, and available for all, the hard copies of the newspaper and magazine serve all Lancashire campuses of UCLan. Copies are delivered to both Mysercough and Burnley campuses, as well as being distributed amongst most Preston campus buildings, as the map below shows.
View Student media distribution in a larger map
Getting involved with student publications can be hugely beneficial to future journalists, and this is a well-known fact taught amongst journalism schools across the country. The subject has been written on time and time again by aspiring hacks, and it is widely acknowledged that applying for a job without relevant experience would not be recommended. Although some criticise contributing to student media and prefer to get 'real life' work experience, many defend the decision to get involved.
Excellence within student media is widely acknowledged every year with award ceremonies held by the Guardian, National Union of Students and the Press Gazette.
More on this story:
-UClan Futures employment service
-National Council of Work Experience
-Increase in unemployed graduates
-Graduates struggling to find work in the downturn
-Graduate unemployment at 15 year high
-UClan Futures employment service
-National Council of Work Experience
-Increase in unemployed graduates
-Graduates struggling to find work in the downturn
-Graduate unemployment at 15 year high
