The larger organisations have always been more prolific in employing graduates since they can more easily cater for their immediate training needs but for SMEs, the small to medium-sized businesses that are the mainstay of the British economy, the decision is a more difficult one.

Despite the fact that around 90% of SMEs employing graduates report a considerable benefit from taking on the right type of graduate, and around two-thirds admit that the graduates are a valuable source of original ideas for small companies, the perceived training cost and lack of experience are still seen by some as prohibitive.

In Scotland, there has been some recognition of the problem and a number of graduate employment initiatives have been set up by the local enterprise companies, the universities, and of course by the firms themselves.

Graduate placements and training schemes are becoming more popular as a means of graduates fitting into the workplace, although in some cases they are criticised because of the level of remuneration.

Nevertheless they are often the means by which that ubiquitous work experience is gained and are worth consideration especially by those who know that a degree, particularly a general degree, is only the first step on the road to achieving the skills for work.

Most graduates on work placements find themselves assigned to a specific project for which they are likely to have control. Sometimes that experience works out first time, but it is important as far as possible for the graduate, working with those organising the placement, to try to find the combination of graduate and business so that both can make the most of the opportunity and accrue the maximum mutual benefit. Many employers report that recruiting through placement is a cost effective way of taking on suitable graduates and, where it works out, most are likely to offer the graduates permanent positions in the company.

From the graduates' point of view, even without the added bonus of a job at the end of the day, the placements enhance their skills and widen their experience, making them more attractive to potential employers.

There are few professions that do not build in their own post-graduate experience. Graduates in areas like medicine, law, ophthalmics, actuarial work, accountancy, banking and engineering, for example, usually have to train in the workplace for several years beyond graduation before they are qualified to the level accepted by the various professional bodies.

In almost every instance, the treatment of trainees has changed. Gone are the bad old days of tea- making and photocopying. Few firms can afford not to utilise the skills graduates bring from the outset, so trainees are seen as valued members of the team and are given challenging work and hands-on experience, under the guidance of partners or other assistants or associates.

Many firms are looking for more than mere legal qualifications. They want people with management skills, good communication skills and an ability to bring business through the door.

This is true for recruits to banking. The Clydesdale Bank uses the milk round to recruit potential staff from the final year university students. Taking them from a range of disciplines, the bank is generally interested in self motivators and self starters because of the nature of its fast track graduate management training scheme, which encourages individually-paced career progression. The graduate management training scheme involves building a foundation by starting at the bottom, with hands-on branch duties.

After six months, the graduate trainee will move on to a customer advisory role which involves interacting with customers through interview, building up advisory, supervisory and decision-making skills.

It is likely that most people participating on the Graduate Development Programme will also take professional banking exams, through the Associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers for two years and then through the Membership of the Chartered Institute of Bankers.

The Bank of Scotland recruits around 30 business-minded graduates to its graduate training programme every year, and sees it as a two-way process, with graduates bringing a wide knowledge base and a range of interpersonal and communication skills and the bank offers a fast-track, customer- focused, stimulating career with a breadth of options.

''Graduates have always been very important to us and we aim to provide a challenging career with early responsibility,'' said Graeme Fraser, director of training and staff development with the Bank of Scotland.

''With a high retention rate of more than 90% among graduate entrants, the success of our programme is evident.''

The NHS financial management training scheme is another option for those from various degree disciplines to consider. The Health Service in Scotland employs around 75,000 people and the NHS Management Development Group recruits around 24 people every year for its financial management training scheme, its business and operations management scheme and its human resource management scheme.

Twelve of those graduates will participate in the financial management scheme, training at the same time for the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy qualification, with the block release aspects being undertaken at the CIPFA Education and Training Centre in Edinburgh and Glasgow Caledonian University. Like most management trainee schemes, it has a hands-on approach, with much of the training being carried out in NHS hospitals where the problems and issues can be addressed first hand.

Insurance companies like Commercial Union and Standard Life also offer graduate training schemes and once again, the emphasis is on the practical aspects of the job and the development of management skills.

One major attraction of the two- year scheme is the range of training it offers as well as the choice of career routes. Initially there is a grounding in all departments including underwriting, sales, claims, accounts and research.

As with the banking graduate management training schemes, this is fast track, leading to clearly defined career steps. The trainee programme provides a structure which supports the trainee and builds confidence.

While on the scheme and apart from the technical on-the-job experience, the trainees are likely to participate in general management skills courses covering communication, negotiation skills, influencing skills and learning to team trade.

The trainees are also likely to be aiming simultaneously for their Chartered Insurance Institute examinations.

The continuing move into the service industries is apparent in the number of graduate management traineeships in areas like retail, with major stores like Sainsbury's, Tesco and ASDA recognising the value of graduates in addressing the changing nature of management roles within their companies.