If you don’t know this season is ‘planning season’ for 2026/27 recruitment year. Where companies confirm headcount and what internship and graduate roles they’re hiring for.

I’ve been busy speaking to many early career teams across Law, Consulting, Banking and Insurance, understanding their needs but also what they look for in ideal candidates.

And i’m going to share the tea on what repeatedly came up in conversations:

1.Make your CV memorable

They go through thousands of CVs. Now yes, they do filter on academic achievement, but they don’t want NPC’s - they want to know what you do outside of academics - so they look heavily at your extra-curriculars and positions of leadership to see if you’re unique

2.Show why you really want to work at this company

They go through hundreds of video interviews and they hear the same repeated lines. about why this firm. They want you to show you really understand the firm - what is their USP, what is their future strategy, what are their core values, why this company over their competitor?

3. Commercial Awareness
Something EVERY early career individual I spoke to was that in the final rounds, they’re really looking for individuals who can demonstrate that they really understand the industry and how trends and news impacts business outcomes and actions.

They said most final round students can list headlines, but they want those who can go one step further and give an opinion on what that headline means for the industry and the business

One of our key goals at FO Perspectives is to help every young person and professional kickstart their career - part of this is to understand what you actually need

So we’re launching something BIG

We’re conducting our first ever nationwide survey, “Voice of Early Careers: Inside the Candidate View” - which aims to share and understand the frustrations, painpoints and thoughts of young people navigating the job search

By completing the survey, you’ll be put into a draw to win £800 worth of prizes including:

Got a Spring Week offer and want to convert? Join this session to learn what employers are really looking for,and the practical steps you can take before, during and after your Spring Week to improve your chances of converting it into future opportunities.

You’ll also hear directly from students who’ve successfully converted spring week all the way through to graduate roles

Secure your space here

Want to know whether your CV is actually strong enough to land interviews? Join our CV Clinic, where we’ll review CVs live, break down what employers look for, and share practical tips to help you strengthen your applications.

Secure your space here