Softcat bucks graduate recruitment trend

VAR dismisses claims that graduate opportunities are drying up as it looks to recruit aggressively

Congraduations: Softcat is looking for 70 graduates in the next 12 months

Microsoft LAR Softcat has scorned reports that there are no opportunities for new graduates, claiming it has plenty of positions open for university leavers.

Recent research from the Association of Graduate Recruiters has claimed that university leavers this year must compete with an average of 68 other applicants for each job.

But Martin Hellawell, managing director of Softcat, said the figures are based on larger employers and do not apply to all businesses.

“People are concerned about there being 68 graduates for every job,” he said. “In our experience, the opposite is true: you could almost say we have 68 jobs for every graduate.

“We are growing quickly and have plenty of vacancies, but finding the right talent is a big challenge for us, even today. There are plenty of smaller, fast-growing organisations like ours looking to recruit,” he said.

The firm revealed that it aims to recruit up to 70 graduates for sales and account management positions over the next 12 months.