As an IT Graduate, you are in high demand. IT underpins everything we do and as a result the IT jobs market is a great place of opportunities for those with a good understanding of the subject.
However, IT is a big industry and so there are several different career paths you can head down, and although your first job doesn’t have to define your end career goals, choosing the right IT graduate job at the start can help you get to where you ideally want to be quicker.
Having completed your IT degree (most commonly “computer science”) it’s a safe assumption that you possess several of the key characteristics of an IT professional such as a good grasp of numbers and a high level of problem solving skills, however, what other skills and knowledge will you need for the different IT graduate jobs available?
Here we take a look at some of the core competencies required for some of the most common IT Graduate jobs available to give you a better idea of which role might suit you best.
Graduate Developer
This in itself splits in to two threads, software development and web development.
Both require you to be able to work well with technical and non-technical people as it is likely that your clients will not be as tech savvy as you are. You will also need to be able to follow exact instructions and be able to turn your client’s ideas in to workable plans for a realistic solution.
As a Graduate Web Developer you will also need to:
- Understand good web design
- Understand usability issues
- Have knowledge of international web development standards
- Have knowledge of web development languages
Graduate Analyst
As a Graduate Analyst you will need a good knowledge of both the IT and technical side as well as wider business knowledge in order to work out where IT systems can be improved or implemented in order to serve the business’s needs. This means you will need to:
- Have a good knowledge of programming, software and hardware
- Excellent data management skills
- The ability to budget effectively
- A creative approach to problem solving
Graduate Project Manager
Project Managers require a great deal of leadership ability and so as a graduate you will need to demonstrate you are able to take control and manage people, resources and budgets. You will also need:
- Exceptional organisational skills
- Excellent communication skills
- A flexible approach
- An understanding of business objectives and procedures
- The ability to work to deadlines
Graduate IT Support
Working with non-technical people on a daily basis, you will need to have excellent communication skills to be able to explain technical issues and solutions to people with very limited IT knowledge.
You will also need to be a people person as many of those you will come across will be stressed and frustrated at the issue in hand. You will also need to:
- Have excellent in depth knowledge of popular systems and software
- Be organised – good at keeping reports on issues and their solutions
- Have an understanding of knowledge management
Graduate recruiters are looking more and more for IT Graduates who have a wider understanding of business environments and objectives so if you can demonstrate this in your applications it is likely to set you apart from the crowd.
When choosing your IT Graduate job, it can sometimes be helpful to ask yourself a few probing questions and answer them honestly in order to help ensure you end up going down a career path you’ll enjoy! You could also try a psychometric test which will help reveal more about the careers that you could be suited to.
Here are a few helpful links to help you through the application process and help you land your dream IT Graduate job:
IT Graduate Interview Techniques
Graduate CV
IT Graduate Cover Letter