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Young turn to net for career help

14 Sep 2007

Young turn to net for career help New research suggests that many young people are relying on the internet to learn about jobs, because they don't get enough career development in full-time education.

The YouGov study was launched this week by the recruitment consultants Harvey Nash at an event with Professor Mike Campbell, Director of Development at the Sector Skills Development Agency.

It found that only ten per cent of young workers had received career advice.

The vast majority of those who did get it said they found it unhelpful and confusing.

The evidence suggests that many university leavers still have no idea which career path they'd like to take. Some 62 per cent of young people had still not decided on a career before they'd left full-time education.

Nearly 75 per cent of respondents also said they would turn to friends and colleagues first for advice. Online job sites were their second preference, ahead of formal career development services.

Albert Ellis, CEO of Harvey Nash, said: "The rudderless approach young people are taking to the early stage of their careers has a serious knock-on effect for the recruitment industry and business in general.

"We need to engage young people in their career choices early and in a focused way to ensure we get the right talent in the right places."

Around five per cent of young people also said they used Facebook or MySpace for careers advice and professional networking.

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