Why the a Career Strategy Needs to Start Before University and how 15–16-year-olds aspiring to attend a good university can prepare for the graduate job market they may face five to seven years hence
The UK graduate labour market is highly competitive. Increasing numbers of well-qualified graduates are finding that a good degree is not enough to secure their first career job.
Consider Emma*, an Oxford graduate with a first-class degree in English and French. Her experience reflects the frustration many graduates are currently reporting:
“The job market is so insane right now. I’ve got work experience and internships from the UK, Paris, and Hong Kong. I’ve taken courses, networked and am working in an admin job to try to get more skills, after no luck with applications.”
She also challenges a familiar assumption:
“My parents’ idea of ‘if you work hard, you’ll get what you want’ doesn’t really work anymore.”
Then there is David, who eventually found warehouse work after removing his politics degree from his CV.
“I feel as if I have been told all throughout my education to study hard and get a degree, and then you are almost guaranteed a job. But that wasn’t the case.”
These experiences matter to parents of teenagers who are already thinking about university.
A good degree is not a career strategy
Parents understandably want their children to maximise their academic potential. Aiming for strong GCSE and A-level results and, ultimately, a first-class degree from a leading university can be entirely reasonable.
But there is an important distinction.
Graduating from a good university is an educational objective. It is not, by itself, a career strategy.
A career strategy must address the question: What will this young person need to do during the years between GCSE and graduation to give themselves a credible platform for entering the career they want?
That means looking beyond grades.
At Career Lift-Off, I use objective evidence to help young people understand changing labour markets and identify strategies that could strengthen their future position. This is a central feature of the Career Strategy Programme.
Start with the labour market – not just the university prospectus
Young people cannot predict exactly what the economy will look like five, six or seven years from now. Nor can anyone guarantee which occupations will expand or contract.
That is not the point.
The point is to develop the ability to investigate the future rather than simply hope for it.
Young people can learn how to find and interpret quality labour market information, including information about sectors likely to benefit from major investment – such as renewable energy, health, and defence – alongside occupational data showing changing employment patterns and skills requirements.
They can then ask better questions.
Is the career I am considering likely to have opportunities when I graduate?
What skills are employers likely to require?
What degree subject would provide a strong foundation?
What could I do during university to make myself more competitive?
This is career thinking and maturity – and it can start well before university.
AI changes the equation
No career strategy for today’s teenagers can ignore artificial intelligence.
The question is not simply whether AI will eliminate a particular occupation. In many careers, the more immediate issue is how AI is changing the tasks performed by people already working in that occupation.
Young people therefore need to develop AI literacy: the ability to use AI effectively, critically evaluate its output and understand where human judgement remains essential.
They also need to develop capabilities that complement AI rather than compete directly with it.
Empathy. Adaptability. Creativity. Emotional intelligence. Collaboration. Openness to different perspectives. A consultative mindset.
These are not vague “soft skills.” They can be deliberately developed, practised, and evidenced.
Work experience needs a purpose
Work experience should therefore be more than something to put on a CV.
Paid work, volunteering, internships, placements, employer projects, and other experiences can all contribute to a young person’s career development – provided there is a reason for doing them.
A student can plan an experience beforehand: What do I want to learn? What capability will I practise? What evidence might I gain?
Afterwards, they can reflect and record what happened.
Over several years, this creates a bank of real examples that can eventually be used in applications and interviews.
As the young person progresses towards graduation, these experiences can be developed into competency-based interview answers using approaches such as the STAR method. They can also prepare for assessment-centre activities such as group discussions and observed exercises.
The objective is not to turn a 15-year-old into a job applicant.
It is to ensure that, several years later, they are not starting from scratch.
Career strategy starts at GCSE
This is why I believe career strategy needs to begin much earlier than many families realise.
The starting point is not predicting exactly what job a 15-year-old will have in 2032 or 2033.
It is helping them understand how academic choices, career interests, labour-market trends, AI, experience, and personal development connect.
Vocational psychology can add another dimension by helping young people explore their motivations, values, interests, and preferred ways of working – and consider the environments in which they are most likely to thrive.
The result is not a guarantee of future employment. No responsible careers professional can offer that.
It is something more realistic: a young person who understands that their future career will need to be actively built, rather than simply expected to happen because they achieved a good degree.
That is the purpose of the Career Strategy Programme at Career Lift-Off.
Names and identifying details have been changed.
