Paul Vance, head of resourcing, KPMG Ireland

Candidates with extra-curricular activities on their application form can demonstrate greater life skills, regardless of what these activities are, from sports to charity work.

The experience often helps an interviewer develop a greater understanding of a candidate’s strengths. Many of these activities will demonstrate valuable employer-related skills, such as teamwork, communication, dedication, work ethic, attention to detail and leadership skills. It certainly helps for the candidate to connect with the interviewer. An interviewer will draw inferences from extra-curricular activity.

Past behaviour can imply future behaviour, so the interviewer will want to know about academic achievements and non-academic achievements.

For example, an interviewer can draw a lot of information from a candidate by hearing about when a candidate gave up their free time for a charity event, or trained early mornings or late evenings, organised an event, or coached others.

Most students have to work hard to achieve good grades. Employers want people who are committed and hard-working, so any demonstration of this is important.

For those with poor grades, it is difficult to get past the application stage. My advice is that they leverage their network and find someone who works in their chosen field. As experience is built up, then this becomes more valuable.

Valuable traits for us include teamwork, leadership, attention to detail, communication, problem solving and relationship management.

In mid-September, we will be accepting applications from graduates. We are planning on hiring 280 graduates for 2015. We hope to attract graduates from all disciplines, including business, law, engineering, science and arts. We will welcome applications from any graduate with an interest in business.

Ken Carney, talent acquisition manager, Paddy Power

We want people who love life, are committed to self-development and, most of all, are passionate, so we look for anything that makes them stand out from the crowd.

We need people who get the brand and who are a right fit for Paddy Power.

We don’t just look at academic achievements. One person designed his CV with labels of beer bottles and it got him an interview. We hired Féilim Mac An Iomaire after he paid for a billboard, advertising himself for work (remember Jobless Paddy? That was him). Féilim has creativity and perseverance, and he has worked for us now for two years. Thinking outside the box helps. Paddy Power looks to hire potential and raw talent which comes in many forms, but academics are very important, as being smart and curious are critical requirements for success here.

Paddy Power really values people who are curious, creative, collaborative, fun and have flair. On top of this, we also look for people that are analytical, passionate and smart. Dodge ball trampolining is one activity that our employees enjoy.

The business is very competitive and fast paced, but we also like to enjoy ourselves. Not everyone has to be sports driven. We have an active charity committee that some of our staff members are involved with. Since we get so many applications for our graduate programme, picking successful candidates comes down to finer details. People involved in sport tend to have extra resilience and stamina, which helps in the competitive business we work in.

Stuart Murphy HR manager, ABP Ireland

All academic achievements and qualifications are important to demonstrate that candidates are proficient in their area of interest. However, it is involvement in sports clubs or societies that sets candidates apart.

Being actively involved in a club or society demonstrates skills above and beyond academic qualifications, for example, being able to work as part of a team, to make commitments and to communicate well.

An example of one of our graduates who has excelled in her personal achievements is Michelle McGrath, captain of the Waterford ladies team. Michelle has featured in our recent advertising campaign.

We’re looking for graduates across all disciplines, with 30 positions available. Email abphr@abpireland.com with your CV to apply.

Adrian Beatty, HR manager, Dairygold

We look for evidence of extra-curricular activities in college.

At graduate level, we like to see evidence of initiative and operating as part of a team – these two things are really important, so any examples to support this are welcome.

We do take work experience into account when shortlisting candidates for our graduate recruitment programme, but one of the basic screening criteria we use is overall educational qualifications.

We also look for excellent attitude, aptitude and commitment to do the job, with potential to grow and develop their career with Dairygold. We also look for strong communication and interpersonal skills, attention to detail, resilience and the ability to work as part of a team.