Graduate Hires: What to Look for and What Questions to Ask
By Matthew Ward, Founder and Director6 September 2021
Hiring for a digital marketing role can feel like a minefield, especially if a full-time employee isn't quite the right fit yet. What should you actually look for in a graduate candidate, and what questions genuinely tell you whether they're ready? Having spoken to hundreds of graduates over the years, here's what we've learned works.
A tailored application, visible soft skills, and genuine ambition tell you more about a graduate candidate than years of experience ever could, especially combined with a digital portfolio that shows real work.
What to look for on paper
A tailored application
Has the graduate actually adapted their application to your specific role, or sent out the same generic version to everyone? Someone who takes the time to personalise their application usually has the attention to detail needed to meet a brief properly, and it says something about how seriously they take their work.
Genuine soft skills
More graduates than ever are highlighting soft skills on their CVs, which is a good sign. Look for real evidence of communication, teamwork or listening skills rather than the words alone sitting in a bullet list.
Real ambition
Does the candidate talk about where they want to go, what they're working on developing, or how they're actively upskilling? That kind of forward motion tends to signal a genuinely driven person, which matters more long-term than most technical skills you can teach on the job.
Where to actually find this talent
LinkedIn tends to be where graduates showcase their work and expertise most visibly, so it's worth following hashtags tied to graduate cohorts and opportunities to find an active community of them. When a graduate reaches out, ask whether they have a digital portfolio. A good one takes real skill to build, creativity, the ability to pull information from multiple sources, and strong writing to actually convey the work, so a compelling portfolio is usually a strong sign someone's ready to be interviewed.
Questions worth asking at interview
What achievement are you most proud of so far? The answer reveals a lot about personality, whether it's academic, professional, or something entirely unrelated to work. What are your goals, or career aspirations? This tells you whether the candidate is driven and gives you a natural opening to discuss how you'd support their development, mentoring, training budget, or regular goal-setting conversations. And finally, what motivates you? Getting a degree takes real resilience, so understanding what drives someone helps you get the best out of them once they're on the team.
If you're looking to bring graduate talent into your business without the commitment of a full-time hire, Lead Kinetics talks to talented graduates every week and can help match you with the right person, or you can work with our Freelance Marketing Graduates on a monthly plan. And if a strong portfolio is part of what you're screening for, why graduates shouldn't neglect having a digital marketing portfolio explains why it matters so much.
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