Latest news: Liverpool retains graduates

After graduation many students move away from the city they studied in, leaving a skills gap in many areas. The Liverpool Chamber of Commerce is hoping to overcome this with a new scheme.

It has launched the innovative and employment focused Graduate Retention Programme/GRAvitas, which aims to retain graduates and senior executives and plug the brain drain.

With at least four groups of graduates planned to participate over the next year the first intake are a diverse group, with a wide range of skills covering everything from law to entertainment.

‘In the current climate of negativity, it's great to see graduates of all disciplines, ages and backgrounds taking positive action to improve their job prospects, and proactively promote themselves to Liverpool businesses,’ says Carole Crosby, Liverpool Chamber's Deputy Chief Executive.

Whilst covering traditional career skills such as interview technique and psychometric testing, the course gives a solid grounding in skills that graduates may not have traditionally brought to an employer, such as project management, presentation and negotiation skills.

The scheme has already made a big impact on the initial group. David Pickavance, an IT & Multimedia Computing graduate from a local university, feels that, ‘The course supports you with practical skills such as improving your CV and knowledge of the commercial world, as well as giving me more confidence in my abilities.'

Carole continued, ‘Liverpool Chamber of Commerce believes that with its commercial and business contacts, it can help retain motivated and practically trained graduates within the Liverpool area, and potentially find them placements within local organisations where they can demonstrate their new skills.’

The graduate and senior executive retention programme is part-funded by the European Union through the European Social Fund and co-financed by the Skills Funding Agency.