Gone are the days when walking away from a university with a single qualification would assure you graduate employment in the corporate world.

This is not to say that degrees aren’t valued – they are. But these days it’s just as important to show an ongoing aptitude for learning as it is to present a potential employer with a completed bachelor’s degree.

Savvy graduates are recognizing that to gain employment in a candidate-rich market requires additional steps, including up-skilling. This may mean enrolling in a second university degree or post-graduate degree, but there are also plenty of smaller steps to consider, such as completing a short course in one particular skill.

Either avenue presents multiple advantages to graduate job-seekers. In a broad sense enrolling in a degree or course enables you to present yourself in job interviews as someone who takes initiative and is prepared to think outside the square to achieve your goals.

Up-skilling also has the benefit of keeping you busy while you seek work, ensuring that you remain focused on your chosen career and don’t allow yourself time to fall into inactivity or depression. As well, training courses can put you in touch with like minded individuals and help you keep your ear to the ground for job vacancies that may arise.

Up-skilling may also take the form of seeking out internships in the area in which you’d like to work, using the opportunity to learn in a very hands-on way from those who are already employed with the company.

Because employment markets are in a state of constant flux it’s wise to investigate which courses or degrees carry the most weight amongst employers and opt firstly for those. Think always of not only what you will gain personally from the additional training, but how you can use it as a marketing tool to give yourself a graduate employment advantage.