padgrad is a free career platform for graduates. It matches jobs to your degree, generates AI-powered CV checks and cover letters, and sends daily personalised job digests matched to your field of study.

Yes. You get 10 free credits on sign-up to use on AI CV checks and cover letters. All other tools — job matching, budgeting, application tracking, rejection logging — are free with no credit card required.

How does the AI CV Checker work?

Upload your CV and paste a job description. The AI analyses your CV against the role requirements, gives you an ATS compatibility score out of 100, and tells you exactly what keywords and formatting changes to make — helping you pass automated screening systems used by graduate recruiters.

How many jobs should I apply for as a graduate?

Graduates typically need to send between 20 and 50 applications to land a role, with top graduate schemes receiving an average of 58 applications per vacancy. Focus on quality over quantity — tailor each CV and cover letter to the role rather than spamming the same application everywhere.

How long does it take to get a graduate job?

Most graduates take between 3 and 6 months to land their first graduate role, though it varies by sector. Consulting, tech, and investment banking tend to have faster hiring cycles. Larger graduate schemes can take 4-6 months from application to offer.

What is the average graduate salary for 2026?

Graduate salaries vary widely by country, sector and region. Investment banking, law and tech tend to pay the highest, while public sector and charity roles typically start lower. Salaries in major cities usually sit above the national average — check local salary guides for figures relevant to your market.

How do I write a graduate CV with no work experience?

Focus on transferable skills from your degree — research projects, group assignments, presentations, and coursework. Include volunteering, society memberships, part-time jobs, and any placements or internships. Use Padgrad's CV Builder to structure your CV for ATS systems, then run it through the AI CV Checker to see how it scores.

How are jobs matched to my degree on padgrad?

We scrape thousands of graduate jobs daily and match them to over 300 specific degree fields. Whether you studied Biology, Law, Engineering, Psychology, or History — we only show you roles that fit your subject area and send them straight to your daily digest.

Do graduate schemes pay well?

Graduate schemes typically pay a competitive starting salary, with some industries paying significantly more. Law firms and investment banks often pay the most. Most schemes also offer benefits like bonuses, pension contributions, and professional qualification sponsorship — check each employer's offer for the specifics.

How many applications does it take to get a graduate job?

Research shows top employers receive an average of 58 applications per graduate vacancy. Most successful graduates send 20-40 tailored applications before receiving an offer. Track every application using Padgrad's Application Tracker to spot which types of roles you progress furthest in.

Can I apply for graduate jobs before I graduate?

Yes — most large graduate schemes open applications 6-12 months before the role starts, so you should apply in your final year. Smaller companies and direct-entry roles tend to hire closer to the start date. Padgrad's daily job digest includes both graduate schemes and entry-level roles you can apply for straight away.

What should a graduate CV include?

A strong graduate CV should include: your degree with predicted or achieved grade, relevant modules and dissertation topic, transferable skills (research, teamwork, communication), part-time work or volunteering, technical skills and software proficiency, and a personal profile. Most recruiters spend under 10 seconds scanning a CV — use Padgrad's AI CV Checker to make sure yours passes the six-second test.

Virtual work experience gives graduates real tasks and real certificates with no job history. See how free simulations work and how to use them on your CV.

Virtual Work Experience for Graduates: A 2026 Guide

TL;DR

Virtual work experience is free, online and open to any graduate.
Employers build the tasks. You finish them at your own pace.
It is not a job. Put it under projects or certificates on your CV.
One programme takes a few hours. Two or three is plenty.

What Is Virtual Work Experience?

Virtual work experience is a short online programme. It copies the real tasks of a real job. You work from any laptop, at any hour. There is no interview, no fee and no dress code.

A typical task looks like this. You clean a sales data set. You draft a client email. You review a set of accounts. A senior person at the firm records a short briefing first. You upload your work. Then you compare it with the firm's own model answer.

It is not paid work. It is not an internship either. Think of it as a taster you can start today.

Why Employers Take It Seriously

Forage runs the largest set of these programmes. It reports that its participants are 3.3 times more likely to land a job after a job simulation, according to Forage in September 2026. Its site lists over 250 job simulations with 90+ employers. More than 9 million students have signed up.

The numbers are not the whole story. A simulation shows three things a CV alone cannot. You know what the role involves. You finish what you start. You studied the firm before you applied.

Free Virtual Work Experience Platforms in 2026

Platform	What you get	Cost	Best for
Forage.	Simulations built with banks, consultancies, law firms and tech teams.	Free.	Testing a sector you have never worked in.
Springpod.	Virtual programmes and live employer sessions, mainly with UK firms.	Free.	Students and school leavers planning a first move.
Your target employer's website.	Insight sessions, online case studies and open virtual programmes.	Varies.	Firms you have already applied to.

Programmes are open to graduates in most countries. Some employers still limit places by location. Check the fine print before you start. In Kenya, Uganda and the Philippines, start with the global platforms above, then add local employer pages.

How to Finish One in a Weekend

Most programmes take three to eight hours. Split the work like this.

Pick one link to a job you want. Ignore the others for now.
Watch the briefing. Write the task in one line before you begin.
Do the work, then compare. Read the model answer before you send your file.
Fix one thing. Rewrite your weakest section and keep both versions.
Save the certificate. Store the link and the code. You will need them again.

How to Add It to Your CV

Be clear and honest. Most employers read it as a project or a certificate, not as a job.

Right: "Forage, Data Analytics Job Simulation, 2026. Cleaned a mock sales data set and built a dashboard."
Wrong: "Data Analyst, Forage, 2026." That reads as a job you never had.
File it under projects, or under licences and certificates on LinkedIn.
Keep it to two lines. Name the tasks, not the feelings.

If you have no work history at all, this is the fastest way to fill that gap. Read our guide to graduate jobs with no experience for the full plan.

How to Talk About It in an Interview

Keep it short. Use three beats: the task, your choice, the result.

For example: "I did a consulting simulation for a retail client. I sized the market and picked two options. The model answer picked one of them, so my shortlist held up."

Then stop. Let the interviewer ask for more. The STAR method works well for this.

Mistakes to Avoid

Listing it as paid work. It is not, and recruiters check.
Collecting ten certificates and learning one thing from each.
Copying the model answer word for word.
Skipping your own market. Local firms post opportunities too.

To add deeper skills at the same time, compare our list of free online courses that recruiters notice.

How to Pick the Right Programme

Start with the job you want, not with the biggest brand. Ask three quick questions.

Does the work match the tasks in the job adverts you see?
Will the skills transfer to other firms, or is it niche?
Can you finish it this week without burning out?

If you are still undecided, pick two short programmes in different sectors. A finance one and a marketing one will tell you more in a weekend than a month of reading. Then use the results to narrow your search.

Make It Count Beyond the Certificate

A certificate alone does little. Pair it with proof and one clear story.

Save your file. Show the working, not just the badge.
Add a two-line note on your profile about what you built.
Repeat one task on your own data, so you can talk about it freely.

Graduates who do this stand out on paper and in conversation. Employers want proof you can do the work. Two solid programmes beat ten you cannot explain.

The Bottom Line

Virtual work experience will not replace a paid role. It fills a different gap. It proves you understand the work, and it gives you real examples to discuss. That is often what a hiring manager is testing for. Pick one programme this week, finish it properly, and put it on your CV the right way.

Check your CV in seconds with our free CV checker. Then build a clean version in the CV builder. Create a free Padgrad account to get matched graduate roles by email, every day.

By Ori