PR Graduates in a Recession http://tinyurl.com/dd8b62

Having read Jed Hallams latest entry to his blog (http://www.rock-star-pr.com/ - read it - you might like it!) I am concerned he is giving a distorted picture to these eager graduates just about to embark on an exciting career. Graduates should be seriously worried about their prospects of getting a job and what it will involve.

There are two main reasons I say this, both of them taking in to account the current economic climate.

Firstly, many graduates (if not most), do not have the necessary basic skills clients are looking for. Simple grammar and spelling can be a real challenge for most graduates - just look at the blog entries for new entrants in the market - differentiating between "your" and "you're" for example...am I just old fashioned in thinking these things are important? Blogging as if you are sending a text? WTF? OMG? - Extreme examples I know but just take a look at some of the blogs of the junior staff in the leading social media PR agencies - is this acceptable? Are these posts a chat between friends or a professional statement on behalf of a commercial entity. Don't get me wrong, we all make mistakes but fundamental grammar and spelling has to be right.

The second is work ethic.

What do graduates think happens when you go to work? Is it all fun and games, long lunches, early finishes, working out on the grass when it's sunny, jotting a few notes on a blog and getting a hefty salary? Afraid not. (I digress slightly but did anyone else see the recruitment consultant on BBC breakfast on Tuesday morning at about 7:15am discussing entry level salaries for graduates suggesting £25k was the least they should be considering...I despair!) It's about hard work and often, mundane tasks that then, if you're lucky, lead to some really interesting work.

Jed makes a good point that social media is a growing area (and I am equally passionate about it) but it is still incredibly small in comparison to any mainstream marketing disciplines and therefore to the overall job market. Social media will need to show ROI to the client and for many at the moment it's still an interesting concept that businesses are trying but it hasn't got the empirical evidence to prove it works for everyone. One of the biggest pulls for most clients at the moment is that it is cheap - however, you often get what you pay for...

Good luck to all new graduates looking for challenging and interesting first step on the career ladder - it's going to be tough but if you're (your?) really good there will be something out there for you.