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Europe: a single market for graduates?

For graduates with a yearning for adventure, working in the European Union can be an exciting and rewarding prospect. But getting a job abroad poses its own set of tough challenges, as Joel Clark discovers.

Britain can be a depressing place for final year students and new graduates. Saddled with endless debts and the pressures of an increasingly competitive job market, many graduates are facing the possibility that they won’t find the job they want after university.

But very few are taking advantage of a big opportunity nestling away just beyond the English Channel – living and working in Europe.

As citizens of the European Union, British graduates need not worry about visas, work permits or other red tape. They can just pack up their suitcases and move to any European city to look for decent graduate positions. But very few are actually doing it.

Of the nearly 250,000 British students who graduated from their first degree in 2004, less than 4000 - just 1.6 per cent - left British shores to work, according to research by the Higher Education Careers Services Unit. And even fewer – just 0.7 per cent of graduates – found their first jobs in European countries outside Britain.

Yet experts in the field of graduate recruitment all agree that opportunities in Europe are on the increase.
With the enlargement of the European Union in 2004 to include ten new countries, EU institutions have grown in size and created vacancies within the bloc’s political framework and civil service.

And large multinational companies in Europe are increasingly looking to take on the brightest of young graduates, regardless of their nationality. While many young people in Europe are heading to popular large cities such as Madrid and Paris, there are opportunities all over the continent.

The European Commission, the EU’s executive wing, can’t do enough to encourage people to work outside their home countries, naming 2006 as the European Year of Workers’ Mobility. The Commission’s initiative aims to raise awareness among all EU citizens of the benefits of working in another member state.

‘Most people who have experienced working in a different country say that they have benefited greatly from the experience,’ said EU Employment Commissioner Vladimir Spidla at the launch of the initiative.
‘Mobility opens the door to new skills, a new culture, possibly a new language and a new working environment.’

But despite the wealth of good jobs available in Europe, it seems that British graduates are not taking full advantage of them.

Of the small number of UK graduates currently working in Europe, research shows that the majority are working in teaching or tourism, while only a small number are actually working in professional positions.
Russell Gilbert, editor of Eurograduate, an annual magazine which aims to encourage British graduates to work in Europe, says that competition for the top jobs is intense.

‘European companies don’t think in terms of national borders anymore,’ he says, ‘Employers now have a massive pool of recruitment from all over Europe so it’s not easy to land a good job.’

And Gilbert worries that British graduates stand no chance in Europe until they open up to the idea of working away from home.

‘We’re still very insular as a nation and graduates don’t tend to think beyond national boundaries. People just aren’t being educated about opportunities in Europe and so they’re not going abroad in large numbers.’

But even if graduates are open to the idea of going abroad to work, and are schooled in the opportunities available, the strategy of finding the right job isn’t always straightforward.

Although it may seem logical to look to big companies within the UK which might take on graduates in international offices, this is rarely easy to achieve in practice.

‘People think there are hundreds of international opportunities in the big blue-chip companies, but it’s simply not the case,’ says Nannette Ripmeester, director of Expertise in Labour Mobility, a Dutch organisation which advises multinational employers and graduates on recruitment.

She recommends that if a graduate wants to work for a large company in another country, the only real option is to apply within that country. But she warns that graduates need to properly research employment patterns in the country they want to work in.

‘They need to prepare well and understand that the CV is the main marketing instrument. CVs are written differently in every country and simply translating it won’t be enough to get you the job.’

In Germany for example, job applicants cannot get away with any time gaps on their CVs - every month must be accounted for and exact dates must be included. Meanwhile in France, it’s still acceptable - and often desired - to make handwritten job applications.

While blue-chip companies in the UK may not be packing fresh graduates straight off to Europe by the boatload, there’s still the chance of secondments and transfers higher up the career ladder.

Gary Argent, head of graduate recruitment at IT firm LogicaCMG (www.logicacmg.com/uk), says: ‘More research - for example on a company’s web site - should give you a better idea of whether European travel is a realistic expectation within your first couple of years.’

He adds: ‘Additional languages and experience of living and working in a different culture will often be very useful if you want to work abroad.’

Sarah Shillingford, graduate recruitment partner at accounting firm Deloitte (www.deloitte.co.uk), says that once graduates have trained in the UK, there are always opportunities to go abroad either on short assignments or full-length secondments of several years.

‘Of course trainees with good language skills will always be at a considerable advantage when it comes to picking people to go abroad,’ she says.

The firm currently has more than 150 employees working overseas and there are some clear advantages to training up with a large company in the UK and being sent abroad later on.

Deloitte senior manager in graduate recruitment Sally Whitman adds: ‘We offer secondments to offices in other countries for staff who have been with the firm for three years.

‘Placements in non-English speaking countries provide a great opportunity to utilise and improve language skills.’

Like most other blue-chips, Deloitte offers relocation benefits to its overseas employees, such as shipping and travel expenses back and forth to the UK and the guarantee of a job when the placement ends.

And if a Deloitte employee is seconded to somewhere like Poland, where the average wage is about four times less than the UK wage, they can be assured a decent western salary.

But such benefits are not available to the graduate who wants to work abroad straight away. If lucky enough to land a job in Europe, he or she will be paid in euros and taxed at local rates, often far higher than in the UK.

And there are other difficulties – such as loneliness and homesickness – that can make it a tough route for someone just out of university. The challenge to find a decent place to live and to make new friends can also be more acute when the graduate is living far from home, working long hours and trying to communicate in foreign languages.

But there are plenty of networks available in large cities to help expatriate workers with such problems. Industry experts say that facing and overcoming the challenges will ultimately lead to greater employability and recruiters suggest that graduates do need to be more flexible and less afraid of failure.

Robin Chater, secretary-general of the Federation of European Employers, says working abroad is a good option for graduates, even if the job is in manual labour or retail.

‘The first few years after university should be a period of experience and experimentation,’ he says.
‘It’s important to have a few different jobs in different countries – if a graduate can reach the age of 25 having worked in Europe, got some experience of the real world and even failed at something, most employers will welcome them with open arms.’

So as the European Union steps up its efforts to get people of all ages to cross national borders in their search for work, it seems British graduates need to start crossing their own borders.

The message is clear - jobs are there for the taking in Europe, but the route can be a hard one and the competition is no less intense than back home.

The language issue
Language skills are of course essential to any British graduate who hopes to land a job in Europe, but this is an area where Britain is particularly weak.

According to EU research, some 70 per cent of British citizens speak only one language, putting British graduates far behind their European rivals.

‘English may be the most widely spoken business language but it won’t get you the job you want’ says Ripmeester from Expertise in Labour Mobility. ‘It’s essential to speak three or more languages, ideally fluently.’

And even if the job itself is done mostly in English, a good knowledge of the local language will be essential if the graduate is to build a social life, go shopping or integrate into the local community.

Although employers do increasingly require at least a fluent second language as a pre-requisite, graduates without good language skills need not worry – they can pick up the basics relatively quickly.

There are plenty of language schools in the UK where fast-track courses will soon improve that rusty GCSE French. Or failing that, most large European cities boast a range of colleges where part-time courses or night classes can be taken once the job has started.

The message is that taking languages seriously is a clear necessity for any graduate hoping to be taken on by a large company outside Britain

What’s my degree worth?
Just because you’re a UK graduate, it doesn’t necessarily mean that firms across Europe will recognise your qualifications or degree. All the EU states have different education systems, leading to some confusion it comes to qualification requirements for certain jobs.

However, this is set to change as the EU member states have signed an agreement – called the Bologna Declaration – which by 2010 will harmonise degree standards and quality control.

Luckily for UK graduates, the system stipulated by the agreement is broadly similar to our current setup, with a three-year undergraduate cycle followed by a possible period of postgraduate study for a master’s or doctorate qualification.

As well as the transferability of academic achievements, the system will also encourage universities to promote the European dimension for students, researchers and lecturers.

The Bologna Declaration should go some way towards helping current – and future – graduates in gaining graduate work in EU states, but it’s still wise to check entry or academic requirements with any potential European employer.


Finding a job in Europe

•    Tailor your CV to the requirements of the particular country
•    Make sure your language skills are up to scratch
•    Don’t be afraid to pitch up in a country to look for work
•    If you’re applying to UK firms, ask about the possibility of working abroad

Living and working abroad

•    Make every effort to meet other young people
•    Try to become part of the local community
•    Always look to improve language skills

Pros and cons of working in Europe
Pros
•    Increases your employability and CV cachet
•    A move to EU states is not hindered by visas or work permits
•    Good way to keep up language skills
•    Exposes graduates to different cultures and experiences
Cons
•    You’ll be far away from the familiarity of family and friends
•    There’s the possibility of lower wages and higher taxes
•    Red tape - although EU membership means no visas or work permits are necessary, it’s not always easy to get set up with a bank, doctor or dentist with foreign nationality.

Useful contacts
•    Expertise in Labour Mobility: Provides detailed guides to advise on job-hunting in 40 countries worldwide www.labourmobility.com
•    Eurograduate: Annual magazine on graduate opportunities in Europe, www.eurograduate.com
•    Hobsons Graduate Careers in Europe, www.careersineurope.hobsons.com
•    European Union young professionals recruitment, europa.eu.int/epso/index_en.htm
•    European Commission traineeships, europa.eu.int/comm/stages/index_en.htm
•    Learndirect, offering home or classroom-based language study, www.learndirect.co.uk
•    The Open University has a large number of language courses for all levels, www.open.ac.uk
•    Meetin.org – an online social hub for making new friends, www.meetin.org

Case Study
Laura Citron, project manager, British Council, Brussels

Laura Citron, 23, grew up in Wimbledon, South London and studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Oxford.

When she graduated in June 2004, she headed straight to Flensburg in North Germany to do an internship at the European Centre for Minority Issues.

‘I couldn’t wait to get out of Oxford and out of the UK,’ she says, ‘Flensburg was really hard at first – scraping by with GCSE German in a provincial town where I knew no one – but by the end of the summer I was really sad to leave.’

While interning in Germany, Laura realised she wanted to work permanently in Europe and applied for jobs in several countries.

‘I saw a position at the British Council in Brussels and thought I’d apply as I’d worked for them as a temp in the UK and enjoyed it. I had an interview and a short written test which I didn’t think had gone very well, so I was very surprised to be offered the job.’

In October 2004 – just a few months after graduating – Laura hopped on the overnight train from Germany to Belgium and started working as Project Manager for the British Council.

Now, 18 months on, she is happily settled into her job and enjoying life in the Belgian capital.

‘Brussels is a great little city to live in, even if it’s no Amsterdam or Paris. It has great cafes, amazing cheap food, nice places to go out, markets to walk to on Sundays and loads of young people.’

But she admits that life in Brussels has not been without its difficulties. ‘At the beginning I found it hard to settle in and didn’t have the energy to start all over again making new friends. But now I feel much more settled – like I’ve made a life here for myself.’

Laura is locally employed by the British Council, pays Belgian taxes and gets paid in euros.
‘I manage fine in Brussels but feel very poor when I go back to the UK and have to pay in pounds,’ she says.


Case study
Zoe Ware, junior project officer, European Parliamentarians for Africa, Amsterdam

Zoe Ware, 22, also from South London, left St Andrews University in June 2005 with a degree in History and International Relations.

An essay she wrote in her final year on Britain’s relationship with Africa was good enough to be published in an academic journal and landed her an internship with the Commonwealth Policy Studies Unit in London last summer.

While networking in London, Zoe secured another internship but this time in Amsterdam where she is currently living and working for AWEPA (European Parliamentarians for Africa), a non-governmental organisation which works to put Africa on Europe’s political agenda. 

‘Working in Amsterdam was definitely not something I’d ever envisaged when I left university,’ Zoe admits. ‘But living abroad always appealed to me and it’s worked out really well.’

Although currently still an intern, Zoe gets 1,000 euros a month (about £690) which she says easily covers her living expenses, and has been offered a year-long contract as junior project officer, which will start shortly.

While she has enjoyed the experience of living abroad so far, it took time to settle in at first.
‘It’s very different to arriving at university where there is a whole network for students to make friends,’ she says. ‘I felt quite lonely when I first arrived in Amsterdam.’

But Zoe joined a free internet service, MEETin, which is geared towards young professionals who want to meet people.

‘It’s an amazing service and I’ve met loads of expats - it gives you a lot more confidence in a new city once you have made some friends.’

Zoe has also joined two local bands where she plays the clarinet and trombone, and she hopes to start a language class to pick up some Dutch.

‘I manage fine with just English’ she says, ‘but when people speak Dutch to each other, it does make you feel like a bit of an alien and as I’m going to be here for a while, it seems worth taking a class.’

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