‘There aren’t enough jobs to leave round for everyone’

Law graduate James Harrison left university with high hopes of landing a role in the sector he trained for.

But reality soon sank in, as James’s inbox became littered with no’s from legal roles to coffee shop work.

In November seven million people watched James’s video on Instagram detailing his rejection from a role as a barista.

“Nine out of 10 people I recognize didn’t enter a role within nine months of graduating,” James explained.

During his battle to discover a job, James started posting online with advice and tips about life after university.

“It went a bit crazy,” James laughed.

James thought the viral video was slightly controversial and it received a mixed reaction.

“A lot of people said I shouldn’t feel entitled to get a job just because I have a degree whilst a lot of other people are said they were in the same position,” James said.

The 22-year-ancient started his law degree at The University of Lincoln in 2020 and graduated in 2023.

“It was extremely challenging, I took a year out to focus on applications,” he said.

Applying for roles became a daily schedule; from applications, tests and video interviews, he became immersed in finding a job.

But he was getting turned down for everything.

James believes the sparkle of degrees has faded a little and they are now “overly saturated”.

“Thousands of people are leaving university with great encounter and amazing grades.

“There are not enough jobs to leave round for everyone.”

“I’d gone through three years of a law degree and got encounter at law firms,” he added.

Data from the ONS shows the number of graduates aged 21-30 in highly talented jobs has fallen from 61.7% in 2022 to 60.4% in 2023.

Stephen Isherwood, joint-CEO at the Institute of learner Employers, said it had always been a test to land a graduate job.

Mr Isherwood said many students experienced a “wake-up call” when leaving university as course places often did not correlate to the amount of industry positions.

“The number of applications students are making means there’s a lot more competition for jobs,” Mr Isherwood explained.

“Most employers do not limit who can apply, which means more students can apply for jobs, which means more students will be rejected,” he added.

After a 15-month job search James secured a role as a paralegal at a law firm in Hull.

He still posts on social media, in the aspiration of helping people who are in his position and feel “lost”.

“Social media paints this picture with law where you leave to university and you arrive out with a training agreement,” he said.

He advises graduates struggling to discover roles to “not receive rejection personally”.

“receive it in your stride.”

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