With 70 graduates applying for every vacancy this is going to be a tough summer for those coming out of University. It is likely to be even tougher for those from disadvantaged backgrounds, particularly ethnic minorities.

Last year overall 9% of young people who graduated were still unemployed in January of this year. But while for white graduates the rate was 7.8%, for Black and British Bangladeshi students it was approximately double (at 17.1% and 16.3% respectively)*. In other words, ethnic minority graduates were finding it twice as hard to find a job.

Picture a scenario where two new graduates turn up for an interview. One is a young man of Moroccan origin, call him Raheel; the other, Simon, is white British. They have comparable qualifications and are equally talented and intelligent. They have had to be equally self-disciplined and applied in order to gain their degrees. The subtle differences only become apparent at interview stage.

Raheel's parents have taught him to be subservient to adults. So he shows deference to the panelists - avoids eye contact, speaks softly and describes his achievements with modesty. He may have had to work long hours to put himself through university, or perhaps had family caring responsibilities for younger siblings. So a gap year would have been out of the question. The interviewers think he lacks confidence, experience and charisma.

Meanwhile, Simon's parents are British, completely at ease with the social rules which govern the job market. Having had the support of his parents he has been able to build up a CV rich with extra-curricular activities, possibly a summer unpaid internship or done voluntary work in a developing country. He may even have benefited from personal introductions to people in the organisation. His parents will have given him interview tips and made sure that that morning he set off looking his sharpest.

While stringent anti-discrimination, human resources and recruitment policies can screen for differences at selection stage, they will find it much harder to make up for these subtler shortcomings at interview stage. Understandably, better off students will come across as better prepared to make the transition into work than others.

So in a world where first impressions matter, can anything be done to level the playing field for talented students from poorer backgrounds? We believe it can.

The Young Foundation has created Fastlaners, a two week carefully-crafted programme which works with unemployed young graduates from the East End of London. During the fortnight we work with participants on sharpening practical career skills (such as CV and presentation writing), soft skills (such as communication skills) and providing access to our networks of employers from the public, private and third sector. Fastlaners attend networking events, carry out employer visits, mock interviews and assessment centres and have access to mentors. The main aim is to provide participants with 'real-world' experiences.

Importantly we seek to addresses the deep issues, such as confidence and self-belief. Already we have reports of significant differences with participants feel about themselves, from small successes like asking more questions at careers fairs, to more substantial ones like asking for personal contacts and networking.

The answer to graduate unemployment is not to produce fewer graduates. Getting a child through higher education remains one of the greatest aspirations for families from disadvantaged backgrounds, particularly those of migrant background. It acts as a huge incentive for people to invest time and commitment to their children's education.

Even at a time of high unemployment when competition for jobs is intense, our experience has been that a small investment can be transformative. As well as the huge human costs of graduate unemployment, this is better than wasting the huge investment of taxpayers money.

*Thanks to Charlie Ball at HECSU for these figures.

To find out more about Fastlaners click here.