Companies visiting campuses to recruit graduates are increasingly being targeted by protest groups and can even face the threat of physical violence.
Terry Dray, who runs the University of Manchester’s Careers Services, said he was preparing guidance for universities on how to combat the problem. Chairing a workshop session at the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR) Conference, he said it was often outsiders, not students, who were behind the protests. 

Environmental campaigners have tried to prevent recruitment at companies such as BP and Shell. Defence systems manufacturer BAE Systems has also been targeted.
Employers such as Shell say they have often allowed protesters to address recruitment events to share their point of view. However, they have removed them on occasion when such speakers have attempted to agitate the audience.
Dray said: “The need for some guidance was reinforced as there were some big brands present [at the AGR Conference] and they indicated a need.
“We’re trying to become more professional in managing recruitment events on campus. In so doing our aim is to allow all students [who want to] to benefit from listening to a variety of visiting organisations in an appropriate and safe environment.”

Helen Connor, of the Council of Industry and Higher Education, addressed the conference on the growth of alternative models of higher education. She said there was a perception that universities only offered full-time, classroom-based learning.
Businesses often want “small chunks” of learning, she said. There was a lack of awareness among employers that higher education could be a supplier of their workforce’s development needs.