Unemployment figures are rising, that’s a sad fact. Even a brand new degree and the proudly displayed cap and gown ‘photo doesn’t mean a job.

Certainly not the sort of position that rewards the newly qualified, after all the years of studying and exams.

That’s what makes the news of 3 months paid internships for 300,000 of the 2009 graduates all the more encouraging. A drop in the ocean, maybe, but it’s 300,000 who’ll not be counted in the unemployment figures for a while.

Now if I was being cynical – which I must admit I am inclined to be in these matters - I just might dismiss this as messing about with the employment figures, but in actual fact it’s not a bad idea at all.

The intention is that the internships will, if nothing else, give the participants some valuable experience in the right environment. There’s a double edge to this, too. Employers will be able to judge their abilities and it could lead to job offers and three months is a fair trial to judge potential.
The pay they’ll receive will only be marginally more than their income as undergraduates, which they receive via grants and loans, but they true value is that they should become more employable.

The scheme is being drawn up by Universities Secretary John Denham and the Conservatives reaction was predictable – shadow skills secretary David Willets stated that the small number of firms offering the scheme (four at present) was welcome, but “does not match the scale of the crisis facing young people trying to find jobs.”

I have to agree with that, but it’s surely a start!

Happy New Year Readers,

Dot Piper
Editor