Entering the job market in Covid times
What nobody tells you about your first job application — in a nutshell.
“The global population of university graduates is expected to nearly double over this decade and next to reach 300 million by 2030.” — ICEF
Every year thousands of graduates get ready to jump into the professional world after courses learnt by heart, technical skills, certificates of excellence, top-scored grades, and perfectly met academic expectations.
But after all, does all of that content make you employable?
The first distinction which must be made between college and work is in the nature of the concept itself: one thing which tends to happen to many scholars once they first try to enter the job market is the expectation that writing a CV will very likely feel like writing an essay, — which isn’t the case.
The job market has completely changed during the last years and has recently been affected by covid pandemic’s effect on businesses.
What changed as well, is the conception of what a “good candidate” is to a company, nowadays.
And it might be hard to hear but getting a job now after a consequent rise in the number of skilled graduates, an ongoing digital revolution, and a world-wide active pandemic — requires you to be more than “good” to stand out from the crowd.
If a good candidate only sticks to formal degrees to certify his skills, a great one has had the ability to understand the shifting trends of the job market, develop further skills and acquire extra-scholar knowledge, through the years.
Graduate jobs are expected to fall significantly in 21 countries, with most unlikely to recover next year, according to a report by Britain’s ISE.
In the UK alone, the percentage of unemployment is expected to rise by 20%, jumping from 1.34 M to more than 6 million as a result of the covid pandemic, according to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research.
In Spain, such a number arises to a solid 33.2% vs 20.3% in Italy and 21.8% in France, according to CNBC, in a report published last June.
The following report by The Institute Of Student Employers (ISE) visually illustrates the current situation in the main affected countries.
The question automatically appears as an obvious statement :
How do you sell yourself to a company, considering the current high competition and the low job offer on the market?
If the question had been asked a few years ago, I would have pointed out that a well presented and organized classic CV, a degree and a good looking outfit would have already been good factors to passing your first interview for a position. But that’s because back then, companies often looked for efficiency and focused on quantity more than quality.
Yet times have changed, and visions too.
Companies are now looking for people who are passionate, driven and excited, and who could bring a valuable contribution which goes beyond technical skills. This is also justified by the technological shift throughout history which automatically leads towards innovation.
And innovation requires outstanding and unexpected imagination and creativity.
That being said, bear this in mind. When you are writing a CV, the first thing to understand is that you are literally “selling yourself” to the company— and for those who haven’t watched the movie The Wolf of Wall Street, this is a hint to do so.
You need to understand that such a piece of paper is the first thing that a recruiter will see of you, before even seeing your face.
Do you want it to look boring, standard, and unexpressive?
When you are down to writing a CV keep the following things in my mind: whichever experience you have accumulated through the years, is all brought down to your way of adding value to it.
You don’t need to display a multitude of high ranked top positions in well known top companies to have a chance to be hired, nor to invent any.
Do you think that the job experience you firstly had at your parents' restaurant on that summer vacation is irrelevant for applying to a business development position? Get that off your head and start understanding that you taking orders, welcoming clients, pushing out the dish of the week, and organizing the menu’s schedule for the month, are pure management and marketing skills. Babysitting on weekends, volunteering, and dog-sitting shouldn’t be jobs that you’re ashamed of because you were young and in need of extra-pocket money — you just need to bring that down to what those experiences taught you on a corporate level, and write it down.
Start seeing every experience as an enriching and valuable step stone instead of a temporary and quick work arrangement, and your perspective will shift with it. So will your CV, consequently.
Don’t be scared to be real, and don’t be ashamed of not having a “dreamy” professional background — because trust me, it is often unlikely that someone has that in their early twenties. And although some companies unreastically try to suggest that they do expect that from you, don’t be scared of being real. Stop comparing or underestimating your professional — existing or not — background: everybody starts somewhere.
If you want to be hired for a position which other candidates are applying for, you don’t want to be “like them”.
Trust me, nothing bores a recruiter more than a pile of CVs with the same identical simple and standard background. You’re not a machine nor a robot, there is no need to fake it, and often that only brings you backward.
Experience, analyze, and forecast.
Understand what skills you were able to learn through the years and which ones you are lacking practice at. Improve.
The second piece of advice to successfully entering the job market is the possibility of improvement: note this down somewhere and circle it in red if necessary.
No matter how good you can be at some things there is always a chance to improve, and you need to be open for that to happen.
Whichever field of studies, current situation, or personal interests and expectations — I advise you to engage in things and practice them until you can fully master them.
The difference between someone who has achievements but stands still and someone who is constantly seeking for more and engaging in new things, is what drives a recruiter‘s consideration of your application.
Whether it’s learning a new language, following an extra-scholar course, trading, having a blog, or playing an instrument, those are things that not only make you unique — but show the possibility of improvement.
Don’t be scared of the required “formal” format of a CV: it does need to be short and catchy but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t represent you.
Embrace that.
I have had the chance to read a few friends' resumes or cover letters over the years, and one thing which has always left me surprised is the tendency for them to often idealize and look up too much to a position until it almost sounds like they are begging for it.
When you’re applying for a job, the first reason for working in the first place is to guarantee yourself a living — although what will make the difference in the long run, is how much you like what you do. I do understand that sometimes the circumstances can be tight enough to be open for any job, and that again is a valuable skill to have— adaptability.
But sometimes seeing such great candidates full of skills and potential selling themselves short for less than they deserve when alternatively having the choice, surprises me.
You need to get a job, but you also do need to know that if you’re engaging yourself in something long-term, you have to consider your alternatives and spot a minimum of interest for it.
You do need to have the experience, but that doesn’t require you to compromise yourself, your passions, and goals in the long term. It is amazing to be able to start somewhere, embrace such possibility and run towards it — but know when to start considering your own interests, and shift towards what truly drives you.
Dare to believe that you deserve to get there.
The current consequences of this pandemic on our societies have also brought to surface what several businesses had already been anticipating for a while now — going digital.
If you have the chance to have a computer and a stable Internet connection, and you know how to run a Zoom conference, a Skype presentation, manage e-mails and make it through online classes — you’re already way ahead of many.
I often find myself realizing how many human beings tend to learn the fastest when pressured — and somehow this is also what this pandemic is teaching us. There is no time to constantly postpone, and yes, you can definitely go through what you would have classified as “imaginable”, and beyond.
Learn digital. The most precious advice I can give you right now in terms of job market entry in the middle of a global pandemic is to anticipate the trends and immerse yourself in it.
Whichever field you are aiming to work in, digital will be required as an entry-level standard.
Universities are shifting to online courses, businesses have been improving their online platforms for years, and for some, completely shifting towards an e-business model.
The virtual revolution is taking all over the place, would you rather be on the good or the bad side of it?
If you are currently graduating or planning to be in the next years — get ahead of times and prepare your entry into the professional world, by working on yourself.
The time which you will put into your education, interests, passions, and knowledge will pay a high return on investment rate, which will exceed your expectations.
And if you’re on the other side of the medal and have already been applying for professional opportunities in these crazy complicated times — no matter how many no’s you might have gotten, don’t stop trying and don’t settle for less.
Understand, improve, and try again — let these three words guide you on your way through professional and personal achievement.
These times will pass, and you shall get through it with more than you initially had.
— “Cooperation leads towards elevation.”
My Linkedin is always open for any advice, review, networking, words of motivation, and support throughout your journey.
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