Graduates need to be given a chance to shine

"We are looking for applicants with at least one year's experience as an Assistant Psychologist, and do not short list applicants who are graduating this year."

This line is from an NHS job advertisement and it made me wonder writes Ioana Lazarov.

As more employers seem unwilling to hire fresh graduates - is the selection criteria fair or are employers choosing candidates that are 'safe'?

Regardless of your age-group, higher education and postgraduate training involves immense personal sacrifices.

For example, the exhaustive process of qualifying as a Psychologist involves continuous unpaid voluntary work, time and travel costs and plenty of stress and financial hardship.

Then, after all this, employers disregard your once-recommended voluntary work to favour candidates with previous paid experience or from universities of a higher reputation.

And for those of us with financial commitments, mortgages and bills to pay, this concept seems self-defeating.

It's a vicious circle that keeps me asking the same question time and time again: why are we misled to believe there is a future in Psychology?

In reality the opportunities seem very limited and there are no placements attached to a BSc (Hons) Psychology degree that would present one with the work experience that employers require.

There are extended waiting lists for people that would like to seek help from a mental health worker yet still, no-one to cater to their needs in time.

The ever-expanding and accumulating student dept, the sleepless nights, the sense of wasted time, worthlessness and hopelessness are just few of the issues graduates have to face today.

And if this does not seem enough of an issue, then the question of ethnicity, nationality, age, sexual orientation, marital status and number of children has become an apparent concern for employers behind closed doors.

I have recently overheard an unrelated employer saying they won't hire a female candidate that has been enquiring in an interview about childcare and stated they are reluctant to hire childless women as well, in the eventuality of a maternity leave.

So where does our employment future lie, when no-one is taking responsibility for the unemployed or refusing to hire the eager fresh graduates?

Recruitment decisions are still apparently being made based on bias and misconceptions of capability, knowledge and experience.