The Awards, now in their 10th year, are the world's largets student pioneered graduate awards- with more than 27,000 students voting. 

 

Trophies in the 24 categories, including 14 sector awards determined by an online student poll, were handed out at London's Grosvenor House hotel, attended by around 1,200 people.

 

Alongside the gong giving, the 27,000 students were polled by trendence to gauge the changing nature of the graduate jobs market. This found that, even though employers believe the climate is improving, graduates themselves remain cautious about their chances of landing a graduate job.

 

A lot of this is due  to the fact that landing a place on a desired graduate programme remains a considerably competitive process. 

 

The law firm Clifford Chance was voted this year's Graduate Employer of the Year. It anticipates receiving 3,000 applications for the 100 places on its two year programme. 

 

Graduate recruitment officer Laura Yeates points out the time and effort students put into their applications. 

 

"One of the things we have noticed over the past two years is that, if anything, applications have become more impressive and robust. The range of skills many graduates have is amazing," she says.

 

For the past four years, the company (which was also a runner up in both the new social mobility award and the diversity recruitment award) has been working on a wide range of initiatives, including helping to found a scheme called UpReach  to encourage socially disadvantaged students to consider a career in law. 

 

"The fact employers are starting to record and register socioeconomic background is an incredibly positive sign," agrees James Darley, director of graduate recruitment at Teach First. The diversity award winner is taking on 23% more graduates this year, or some 1,550.

 

"About 23% of our graduate cohort had free school meals at school and 32% were the first in their family to go to university. That is exactly the sort of school pupil we want to reach through Teach First. We want people with the empathy, understanding and background to be role models," he explaains.

 

What is vital when it comes to promoting diversity, inclusion and social mobility, is that it is genuine, and not sweet talk, emphasises Donna Miller, European HR director at Enterprise Rent-A-Car. 

 

"It cannot just be, for example, an HR initiative – it's got to have the chief executive, finance director and the board behind it."

 

The company is taking on 700 graduates plus 200 interns this year. It has also for a long time made a point of not limiting applications to students with a 2:1 degree.

"We engage with all universities, not just the top tier. What you often find is that someone from a socially disadvantaged background will not be able to afford to go away to university so they're more likely to choose to study closer to home," Miller says.

 

TARGETjobs National Graduate Recruitment Awards 2014 winners:
• Graduate employer of the year – Clifford Chance

 

• Most popular graduate recruiters:

Accounting and financial management – PwC

Banking, insurance and financial services – HSBC

Construction, civil engineering and surveying – Atkins

Consulting – McKinsey & Company

Consumer goods – manufacturing and marketing – Unilever

Energy and utilities – BP

Engineering, design and manufacture – Rolls-Royce

Investment banking and investment – JP Morgan

IT and technology – Google

Law – Allen & Overy LLP

Logistics, transport and supply chain – British Airways

Public sector – NHS Graduate Schemes

Retail – John Lewis Partnership

Scientific research and development – GlaxoSmithKline

 

• Best use of social media – The Army

 

• Best apprenticeship programme – HSBC

 

• Best school-leaver programme – KPMG

 

• Apprentice of the year – Reece Morrison (Mott MacDonald)

 

•Best student marketing campaign for organisations recruiting fewer than 50 graduates per year – Microsoft

 

• Best student marketing campaign for organisations recruiting more than 50 graduates per year – Deloitte

 

• Best graduate recruitment website – Enterprise Rent-A-Car

 

• Best undergraduate internship/vacation programme – BP

 

• Diversity recruitment award – Teach First

 

• Innovation on campus award – E.ON

 

• Advancement of social mobility in graduate recruitment award – Credit Suisse

 

• Rising Star – Kyle McQueen, Barclays

 

• AGCAS Award for excellence in careers service engagement – Shell