Reports highlighting the difficulties young people face in securing their first meaningful employment have become impossible to overlook. UK labour market data from the Office for National Statistics has consistently shown higher unemployment rates among 16–24-year-olds than among the wider working-age population, a gap that typically widens during periods of economic slowdown. With exam results for the next generation of workers arriving imminently, Emily Shenton, co-founder of Arrival — an organisational performance consultancy whose social impact practice partners with corporates to help ambitious young people build careers — and Susie Sek, Sustainability Manager at Investec, discuss why supporting young people through the transition into work matters and what every professional can contribute.

Graduate roles now draw hundreds of applications each. Even candidates with the strongest CVs are submitting dozens, and in some cases hundreds, of applications without success. Sectors that have historically absorbed large numbers of graduates — including financial services, technology, and professional services — have seen periodic contraction in entry-level hiring as organisations navigate elevated interest rates and restructuring. Combined with the difficulty of finding part-time work during studies and mounting uncertainty over how artificial intelligence will reshape entry-level positions, it is clear why so many young people and their support networks feel anxious about what lies ahead.

No single business can resolve the structural challenges of the early careers market, nor should that be expected. Companies cannot create positions absent a genuine business need. The question, then, is what those leading and working in business can realistically do to help ambitious, hard-working young people persevere through an exceptionally difficult labour market.

The encouraging answer is that everyone can do something straightforward: give an hour of their time.

Susie Sek: Research from The King's Trust found that more than 70 per cent of young people wish they were not starting their careers in today's economy. Does this reflect what early-careers students are telling you?

Emily Shenton: The labour market is undoubtedly difficult, and no one I have spoken to pretends there is an easy answer. Arrival was working with young people during the 2008 financial crisis, and this situation is far more serious.

It is important to emphasise that this is not about handling a few rejections. It is about what happens after forty, fifty, or sixty applications — months of silence and the gradual erosion of hope.

I recently spoke with an impressive young engineering student at Imperial College London. He achieved excellent A-levels and is clearly smart, thoughtful, hardworking, and driven. He told me he was on application number 46 and had yet to receive a single positive response. The "new norm" is to receive no response at all.

Susie Sek: How are the young people you work with through Arrival responding?

Emily Shenton: What I have observed working with young people from lower socioeconomic communities is how remarkably resilient they are as a group. But I am increasingly seeing the negative effects of repeated rejection. After months of silence and rebuffs, it is entirely understandable that they begin to question whether all their hard work will ever lead anywhere.

That concerns me deeply. I am fortunate in my work to meet thousands of smart, ambitious young people who want to contribute to our economy and society, who want to build lives and prosper in the UK.

Increasingly, though, I am hearing a question I rarely encountered a few years ago: "Should I stay in the UK? I'm not sure I can build a future here."

Susie Sek: That is deeply worrying. What can we do to make a genuine, positive difference?

Emily Shenton: I believe we can all play a valuable role in helping talented young people maintain belief that the future they are working so hard for remains attainable. That is a major benefit of the Career Catalyst programme we run with Investec. Nearly half (46 per cent) of this year's cohort eventually secured roles, and when participants were surveyed, their confidence in their future jumped to 82 per cent — up from 21 per cent at the programme's outset.

But you are right — we cannot create jobs where there is no business need. So what can we do? Quite simply, we can all give an hour to share our experiences. That might mean explaining how recruitment processes work, or offering guidance on interview techniques. We can review a CV and provide feedback. We can remind young people that rejection is a feature of many successful careers. We can open our networks and encourage someone who is beginning to lose heart. We can provide confidence as well as opportunity.

None of these actions creates a job in itself. But all of them can help someone keep going until the right opportunity comes along.

Susie Sek: If every City AM reader decided to give just one hour this year to support early-careers students, what would you encourage them to do?

Emily Shenton: Three things.

First, start where you work. Ask your HR, Early Careers, CSR, or Social Impact team what programmes and initiatives they have in place and how you can get involved.

Second, if your organisation does not have a formal programme, offer an hour to a university careers service or employability organisation.

Finally, do not just open the door — wedge it permanently open. We always encourage our alumni to stay in touch with the professionals they meet. But many do not when things are not going well. They do not want to feel they are imposing or reaching out without good news to share.

What I have seen make the biggest difference is when the professional proactively reaches out. A simple message asking, "How are you getting on?" can restart a conversation that might otherwise never happen. Sometimes it leads to advice. Sometimes to an introduction. Sometimes it is simply the reassurance that someone cares.

Investec recently convened senior clients from its Female Leaders Network with a cohort of female students to share the advice they would give their younger selves, through a fast-paced speed-networking event. Initiatives of this kind are important, giving students the opportunity to connect with and question senior leaders and build relationships — helping to prepare them as they embark on their journey into the workplace.

Investec has partnered with Arrival since 2008 to support programmes that help ambitious young people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds develop the confidence, commercial understanding, and networks needed to build successful careers. Over the past 18 years, hundreds of Investec colleagues have volunteered their time as mentors, speakers, and facilitators.