Graduate job vacancies are anticipated to rise by a staggering 14.6 per cent over the next 12 months, although employers have lingering concerns relating to the difficulty of filling these positions, or so new research from the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR) suggests.

According to the AGR’s latest annual survey, the number of UK graduate vacancies will rise for the third consecutive year in 2006 and at almost three times the rate of last year’s 5.1 per cent increase. Starting salaries are also expected to increase once more, to a median average of £23,000.

Despite the good news for graduates, however, employers continue to have doubts over the quality of graduate appointments, with individual recruiters bemoaning a dearth of ‘applicants with the right skills or qualifications’ and poor ‘graduate perception of the industry sector’.

‘Employers are likely to be looking to graduates who can demonstrate softer skills, such as team-working, cultural awareness, leadership and communication skills,’ ventures the AGR’s chief executive Carl Gilleard.