Only 3,200 graduates apply for €30,000 state jobs

To be honest there are a lot of reasons for this. Emigration is probably number one.

After that its very mixed despite high rise of unemployment for graduates and for nearly everyone regardless of age, gender, skill, profession, level, how well educated and how experienced someone is.

I suppose the usual reason would have been graduates would like a graduate job with more of a challenge and that they might like to change from job to job to get gain more work experience.

Typically the reason is that they like a different or new type of job rather than a civil/public service one.

The most common reason would be students either go on to do further study or go travelling or still want to stick with the jobs they might have even if its just part time work as its more within their area.

Many of those jobs in the area of Law, Economics, Tax, HR, Accountancy, Finance as mentioned above require most students to not only have a degree but have professional qualifications in particular for tax, accounting and law. Not everyone who studied them in their degree would have gone on to do the professional exams.

They are specific areas that require further study and professional qualifications even work experience. I have noticed that the more qualified and more research a graduate has done the more likely they will be hired, not just having a degree, done further study and have relevant experience seems that more they be more qualified and have done more research, a graduate has done seems to be a requirement in the Civil/public service regardless of discipline.

In all fairness 30k per year isn't bad for a new graduate starting out.

There could also be other reasons for a low number of applications. Some might want to gain further work experiences before settling down on one job for life.

Some might be currently in the middle of a masters or Phd and might not be able to commit to full time employment.

Salary and cushy job might not suit them. The media could have a bit to do with them not wanting to apply. Might not be enough graduates in those disciplines or have decided to change career/disciplines as there is less work in the area of Law and HR, though accounting/economics/tax should be booming.

There could be also other reasons too but if you have a look at this article from the Gradireland blog give you an insight of the other side of field. Mainly deals with how skills are mismatched with the current job market. Does not sound good when there were only aprox 6,000 vacancies available in the country between the months of April and June. While a shockingly 300,000 people aprox were unemployed during those months despite that number having increased to nearly the 400,000 mark!

http://gradireland.wordpress.com/2012/02/13/skills-mismatch-highlighted-once-more-as-jobs-news-worsens/

So basically there are a number of factors for a low number of applicants to these public/civil service jobs.

Degsy wrote: »

Graduates dont want to work for 30 grand..they'll happily sit on the dole unntill somebody rings them up and offers a 50 k job with company car and bonuses.

These people are not living nin the real world..a bunch of wasters.

If you had the chance of pulling in 50k plus bonuses wouldn't you wait it out?

Degsy wrote: »

How long exactly do they want to wait?

Untill a foreigner with better qualifications agrees to do it for less money?

Idiocy..people need to wake up to the fact that they shood be working for peanuts if necessary rather than bleeding the country white on the dole.

I think it's fair if a graduate want to wait a few months to give themselves the best possible shot at landing a well paid job. It wouldn't make sense initially to take a filler job if they're only going to be taking days off to go for interviews all the time

x43r0 wrote: »

If you had the chance of pulling in 50k plus bonuses wouldn't you wait it out?

What graduate is going to get that? Most finance, accounting or economics grads would be starting on less than half of that and those lucky enough to get a bonus would be getting less than a month's salary, not the millions you read about the top tier of management getting in the papers.

Even in IT (where we continuously hear there's no recession :roleyes:) you aren't going to get 50k until you've a minimum of 5/6 years experience.

Sleepy wrote: »

What graduate is going to get that? Most finance, accounting or economics grads would be starting on less than half of that and those lucky enough to get a bonus would be getting less than a month's salary, not the millions you read about the top tier of management getting in the papers.

Even in IT (where we continuously hear there's no recession :roleyes:) you aren't going to get 50k until you've a minimum of 5/6 years experience.

Granted a small percentage but it does happen. I'm 8 months out of college doing IT and in that percentage. 9 others from my college are in the same grad program as well so it does happen but I accept it's a small minority

murphaph wrote: »

It's fine to wait it out for the reasons you give, but not at taxpayers' expense. If grads want to play a waiting game, don't sign on!

On reflection of my previous comment, I totally agree with what you said there.

jewett wrote: »

Yeah, just look at the great job they did in picking Kevin Cardiff. -
- the man who advised the government that Bank Bailout was a good idea. Hindsight is a great thing...

Look at the great job they did in picking Patrick Neary. - Hindsight is a great thing.

Look at the great job they did picking Frank Daly for NAMA. - Hindsight is a great thing.

It's always very easy, after the proverbial hits the fan, to throw muck around. For example, I wonder who you voted for in the last few general elections Jewett? Any individuals / parties who you wish now you hadn't? I don't know much about the other two, but I know Frank Daly had a very solid background, having had a very successful stint in charge of Revenue.

jewett wrote: »

The whole "recruitment" system in the PS is just a front and a charade. From my experience, nepotism is how most people get jobs in the PS.

Sorry now, but you'll either have to share your "experience" or you're just talking guff... As someone who's been through PS recruitment in the last few years I take exception to that suggestion - nepotism may have been the case in the distant past (in Ireland just like in any other country I'd imagine), but not any more.

jewett wrote: »

In the past three elections, I voted for independents.

I saw through FF's "how to buy an election" strategy a long long time ago. Equally, I cringed at the limp opposition FG offered.

As for nepotism in the PS, it is still rampant but certainly better hidden now. I know this from personal acquaintances.

So you met Gigino then ?

x43r0 wrote: »

Granted a small percentage but it does happen. I'm 8 months out of college doing IT and in that percentage. 9 others from my college are in the same grad program as well so it does happen but I accept it's a small minority

Is your location accurate? There's certainly a lot more scope for a lot of IT people in the UK. Contracting in London I easily doubled my income but have too many roots here to make the move permanently.

If not, care sharing the degree you did and the type of IT you're in? I might be looking for a career change!

It's entirely the location so x43r0, a graduate doing business analysis in Ireland would be lucky to start in the high twenties.

Godge wrote: »

(1) There are probably over a million people working in the private sector who wouldn't last two days in the public sector.

For what reason(s) do you think they wouldn't last 2 days?

Godge wrote: »

(2) Nepotism is rife in the SME and small business sector in the private sector - several family businesses that I know of and all jobs go to friends and family

You can't have a family run business by definition without hiring family members. But private enterprise are entitled to hire whoever they like as they are accountable only to their owners. The state as a whole owns the public sector.

Godge wrote: »

(3) Civil service jobs are the fairest in Ireland by a long shot in selection

I went for a job interview a long time ago in a prominent university. I was told unofficially that the position was already filled internally, but to be seen to be doing the right thing they had to interview external candidates.

JohnMearsheimer wrote: »

I worked in the human resources department of a public sector organisaton and I can tell you that nepotism is not rife. It's far more common in the private sector.

I still work in HR of a Public Sector organisation. Not much recruitment these days. I would estimate that I've sat on about 20 interview boards. Not once have I been asked or asked someone to show favour to a certain candidate. Sometimes it just worked out that the candidate was related to someone already in the organisation, we always wanted the best candidate, who wasn't always available but that's a different day’s story.

I also worked for a large wholesaler. 4 of the managers were related. All of their wives and most of their children worked there. OK it wasn't tax payer funded but it's a bit rich that Private Sector employees expect a certain standard when the organisations they work for don't even meet these standards themselves.