Training opportunities at top of employment wish list

Training opportunities are deemed more important than career progression in employment, a new survey of young people has revealed.

The research, conducted by the World of Learning, involved surveying 800 graduates across the UK in a bid to discover the factors that would appear on their employment 'wish list'.

The graduates were asked the question: if the salary packages were similar, would you choose an employer based on their training scheme ahead of its career prospects? It was found that two-thirds of respondents would prefer an employer with an excellent training scheme over one with good career prospects.

Andrew Gee, senior project manager at World of Learning, said: "The next generation of employees has spoken: for young people about to enter the workplace, salary aside, it's learning and development that tops the wish list.

"Businesses need to ensure they have the expertise in place to create a compelling learning and development offering and be mindful that offering a solid training programme plays a major role in attracting young recruits."

On September 29th and 30th, the World of Learning Conference and Exhibition is taking place at Birmingham's NEC. The event has been designed with learning and development professionals in mind and with the help of leading suppliers and top industry innovators, aims to examine, discuss and shape the future of business learning.

Keynote speakers at the event will include Michael Storrier, senior consultant at PwC, who will deliver a session titled 'Increasing the retention of your graduates'.

Mr Storrier commented: "At PwC we believe that we can attract and retain the best graduates by offering them a fair remuneration package along with a clear learning pathway. The days of organisations offering a 'job for life' are gone.

"Instead, today's graduates want reassurance that if they join an organisation, they will be given the opportunity to learn new skills, improve their knowledge and develop and grow their expertise in their chosen careers."

For over 20 years, Virtual College has provided online courses to individuals and companies across the world, breaking down the boundaries of traditional learning to deliver cost reducing, time efficient training. Find out more about us: https://www.virtual-college.co.uk/about