The gap between graduating and getting hired
Every year thousands of people finish BSc and MSc degrees in data science, artificial intelligence, analytics and related subjects. They have studied machine learning, written dissertations and completed projects. And months later, sometimes years later, a good number of them are still applying for their first role and wondering what they are doing wrong.
Usually the answer is nothing to do with intelligence or effort, and nothing to do with having chosen the wrong degree. It is that universities teach the subject and employers hire for the job, and nobody explains the difference. Job descriptions ask for experience that a graduate cannot have. Recruiters use language nobody taught. Applications go unanswered, and confidence drains away.
What this session is
We bring together people who are now working as data scientists, AI engineers and analysts, and who were in exactly this position not long ago: graduates with the right degree and no offers. They talk about how they got their first role, what they changed after graduating, and what they wish they had known. Then they take your questions.
Nobody is selling anything. The speakers are not there to describe a course. They are there to explain, as plainly as they can, how they got from where you are to where they are.
What you will hear about
- How each speaker actually landed their first data or AI role
- What they changed after graduating that made the difference
- Which skills turned out to matter, and which did not
- How to build credible experience when nobody will give you any
- What a hiring manager is actually looking for when they read a CV
- What they would do differently if they were starting again today
The aim is that you leave knowing what to do next, not just feeling better about it.
Who it is for
- Recent graduates in data science, AI, analytics or a related subject
- Final-year students thinking about what happens after the degree
- Early-career professionals who are finding it hard to get a foot in the door
- People changing career who want to move into data or AI
If you have sent out dozens of applications and heard nothing back, or you are not sure what the job descriptions are really asking for, this session is for you.
Why we run it
We provide Data Science and Generative AI training, and we hire practitioners. We have watched too many capable graduates give up on the field for lack of a few honest conversations. This is our attempt to provide them. The session is free; places are limited so that there is time for questions.