Rumours of a graduate exodus from Ireland may have been exaggerated

With the gloom surrounding Ireland's banking sector, and the cancellation of their graduate programmes for the third consecutive year, it's easy to assume the best option would be to look for opportunities overseas. However, the reality is that the vast majority of students stay close to home.

In what could be construed as kicking the country while it's down, the Union of Students in Ireland suggested last week that 1,250 students are leaving the Emerald Isle every month and that 150,000 could emigrate over the next five years.

This is not to say it won't happen, but recent statistics suggest that Ireland's graduates are generally reluctant to pursue international opportunities. Trinity College Dublin, for instance, told us that on average 6-8% of its students go to work in jobs overseas, a figure that rose to 11% for the class of 2009.

Similarly, University College Dublin says that of the 76% of the 4,000 students graduating in 2009 whose destinations it tracked, just 261 left Ireland.

Within the financial sector, there are certainly motivations for leaving. Not only have the traditionally voluminous grad recruitment programmes of the domestic banks been absent from campus again this year, but the likes of BlackRock, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have been on the Irish milkrounds selling the virtues of their UK-based programmes.

"The number of opportunities with Irish financial sector is relatively limited for graduates again this year," says Sean Gannon, director of the careers advisory service at TCD. "What's more, not only is it extremely competitive, employers are being much more selective. The importance of work experience, an internship and a top notch application has never been greater."

While graduate opportunities in the financial sector have been fewer than in the boom years, 2010 has been decidedly better than the recent past.

Banks such as Dexia Bank, KBC Ireland, Ulster Bank have been recruiting students again this year, while the Central Bank's 60-strong graduate intake has proven popular.

There's also the suggestion that while formal graduate programmes aren't in place within Ireland's domestic banks, they have been recruiting grads for certain specialist skills, such as IT.

Also, in line with record intakes elsewhere in the world, Big Four accounting firms have upped their graduate trainee numbers again this year. Insurance firms are also hiring, suggest graduate recruiters.