6 Reasons to Consider a Job in Telecoms

Unsure about what you want to do when you graduate? You’re not alone!

Take a look at this guest blog post written by Kate Buckton on behalf of Virgin Media to find out more about the benefits of a career in telecommunications.

According to Prospects, more than a third of students and graduates are uncertain about their career path. If you’re wondering what lies ahead for you, have you considered a career in telecoms?

Research from the Office for National Statistics shows that, as a nation, we’re spending more time online than ever before. Whether it’s chatting with friends over Zoom, watching Netflix, shopping, or anything else, we rely heavily on connectivity. And being a part of that can be an exciting adventure.

Here are 6 reasons why many graduates are embracing a future in telecommunications:

1. Role diversity

There’s a common misconception that you need to be technologically minded to build a career in the telecoms industry. What many graduates don’t realise is that there are a huge variety of potential roles, both technical and non-technical.

Opportunities may include product development, commercial marketing, software engineering, sales, digital security, risk & compliance, investor relations, and more.

You could be out in the field, or in the office. The telecoms umbrella covers a lot of positions.

2. Learn and work

As the telecommunications industry is fast-moving, employers place a great deal of importance on learning, adapting, and evolving on the job. After all, technology and communication needs are continually changing. It’s very different to other types of career paths that focus more on training first, and then working. In telecoms, there are often opportunities for employees to learn and work simultaneously, making it easy to earn a living and focus on ongoing professional development.

3. Opportunities to be innovative

Outside of the arts, telecoms is perhaps one of the most creative sectors. It’s an industry that never stands still; it’s constantly moving forwards. This means that some jobs in telecoms are less about ‘this is how we do things’, and more about ‘this is what we could do’.

It’s a great sector for anyone with an innovative streak. It’s an industry where it’s OK to ask ‘what happens if we try this?’.

Telecoms employees have opportunities to shape the future and change how we talk to each other.

4. Career progression

Graduates often find that there are many opportunities for career progression in telecoms. The sector has quite a complex hierarchy, which means there are chances to move up, or to make lateral moves to other departments. Entering as a first-line support technician? Perhaps you’ll eventually move into second- or third-line support with a more focused technical speciality. From there, maybe you’ll move into a senior infrastructure or network role. There’s lots of potential here.

5. A chance to work in a growing industry

The telecoms sector is growing at an impressive rate. Globally, experts are predicting a 3.8% annual growth rate to 2026 as connectivity becomes an increasingly critical necessity. And in the UK, growing investments in telecommunications is creating more and more jobs. For example, in 2021, the UK Government pledged to invest £5 billion into Project Gigabit; a large-scale infrastructure initiative to bring broadband to more than one million hard-to-reach homes.

6. Opportunities to work with prolific organisations

Finally, it’s worth noting that the UK is home to some of the world’s most impressive and well-recognised telecommunications companies. So if you’re looking to build a career with the very best, telecoms is a good place to start. For example, you could land a job with the likes of Virgin Media, helping to bring Virgin Media broadband deals to homes and businesses across the country. Some large businesses are known for being passionate about helping graduates get a foot in the door, and Virgin has hired over 400 graduates.

 

For full full details of Virgin Media’s graduate opportunities, go to their website careers.virginmedia.com/future-careers/graduates/