Over 870 students have provided their perspectives in a recent survey by NCE Seafood. The data shows that seafood employers face a significant opportunity to attract talented students through strategic employer branding. To succeed, it is important to understand when and how students decide where they want to work.
When do students make career choices?
Awareness of future career aspirations increases throughout the course of study. At the same time, we see that many students in their final year of their bachelor's or master's degree have already decided where they want to work. The increase is particularly noticeable during the final year of both bachelor's and master's degrees (Fig. 1). If you want to reach as many of the most attractive students as possible, you should therefore be out there earlier than this. Being present with employer branding initiatives throughout the entire course of study can quickly pay off,
Behind the graph we also see differences in different fields of study. Engineers in their final year, for example, were much more certain about where they wanted to work – with over 40 percent in this category. On the other hand, students in biology had a share of around 20% with high certainty. We already know that engineers in particular are very attractive across industries (previously highlighted in the article "Three tips for those with recruitment problems" https://www.intrafish.no/kommentarer/tre-tips-til-deg-som-har-rekrutteringsproblemer/2-1-1533767 ), so you have to be early here!
How do students make career choices?
Another dataset from the same survey shows the different sources students use to gather information about future job opportunities (Fig. 2). The percentages in the graph represent the proportion of students who used each category.
If you want to reach students, you should emphasize personal and direct interactions. Summer and part-time jobs, internships, and bachelor's and master's theses are most popular. Career events, including company stands and networking events, are in second place. Friends, family, or acquaintances also serve as a significant source of information, which indicates the importance of personal networks in the job search. Traditional channels, which were previously very effective, are performing much worse among young people. This applies to websites, traditional media, and career counselors.
Strategic measures for employers
To maximize the effectiveness of employer branding towards students, you as an employer can take the following strategic measures:
1) Establish opportunities for students to get to know you as an employer through direct engagement.
Also, make sure that the opportunities reach students at different points in their studies. This will allow you to reach a wider range of students, while also securing the very best talent early on. Examples of this could be:
- Summer job and/or part-time job
- Assignment writing
- Seafood Case Days
- Company visits for line associations
2) Use your presence at career fairs smartly.
Several of the companies we have spoken to say that it is often the access to employees with relevant professional backgrounds that is the biggest obstacle to participation. Therefore, you do well to use the tool that career fairs are, strategically. Select the career fairs where you meet the students who are most relevant to you. One thing you can also do is to bring specific opportunities (point 1 above) to your stand, then your company will quickly become popular.
3) Create a workplace your employees are proud to be a part of.
Ultimately, the reputation you have on the outside will be a reflection of how things are on the inside. When you have a workplace that your employees are proud to talk about, the work of employer branding is also much easier.
Where does the insight come from?
This fall, the report "Industry Insight: Talent Attraction" will be released, a report that addresses the status, opportunities and challenges surrounding employer branding and talent attraction in the industry. Over 870 students have contributed their perspectives, representing a diverse group from across the country.
| Employer Branding: Employer branding is a general term for the activities a company carries out to communicate what makes this company an attractive workplace. This applies to both existing employees and potential new employees. Source: snl.no |
