Is there any hope of employment for a fresh graduate

Welcome to the 2nd series in our Career Questions and Answers. This week, we feature Victoria Crispo to answer your burning career questions.

Career Questions & Answers-Is there any hope of employment for a fresh graduate

Question: Is there any hope of employment for a fresh graduate who has just his/her B.Sc and doesn’t have any professional certification or work experience?

First, congratulations on earning your degree! While finding your first job out of school might be causing you stress, don’t lose sight of your accomplishments along the way. Be sure to celebrate them.

As you’re reflecting on your experiences in school, see how you can use them as a launchpad for starting your career. Perhaps you held a leadership role in a student organization, published a writing piece in the literary magazine, or earned a scholarship.

Make a list of all your accomplishments, whether they seem important or not. As you start exploring job opportunities, you can finesse your list.

I always recommend to students that they use their time at university to prepare for entering the professional world. When you’re just starting out, any kind of work experience or volunteer work counts.

Ideally, you will have held some type of job (even if it was a part time gig or a job you did during school breaks) or perhaps you were involved in campus activities or volunteer work. These experiences can supplement for professional work experience for the time being.

Let’s assume though that you did not hold any jobs or participate in volunteer or campus activities. There are still ways to demonstrate your employability.

The key is to focus on your transferable skills– the soft skills that are appealing to almost every employer and the ones that will help you land an entry-level job. Think about the skills you used in your classes, and what you accomplished while using those skills.

After including these skills on your resume, think about the other things you can do to supplement your experience. While you’re looking for work, also find volunteer opportunities that you can take on in areas/causes that interest you.

Be proactive about creating opportunities to showcase your work- start a blog, create and sell crafts, or consider taking on some side gigs. As you amass more experiences, list them on your resume. This will help you showcase your talents and build your credibility.

Question: Good day sir. Am a graduate in Business Administration and management. I have discovered that I like leading and directing people, which even when I don’t feel like involving myself, people call on me to lead the group. What best do think I can being doing to fulfill my dream career. Thanks.

The skills that you’ve outlined will serve you well in any career field and in most job functions. At many organizations, the employees who demonstrate leadership skills are highly sought-after and appreciated.

Even if your primary job function does not revolve around managing others, the ability to lead will be helpful in managing your own work responsibilities, especially when working on interdepartmental teams.

Being a natural leader will likely be a great benefit to you, but I would advise that you assess your organization’s culture and the demeanor of your fellow staff members.

Be sure to get a clear directive from upper management on the role they want you to take- will the members of the team be directly reporting to you, or will the current reporting structure be maintained?

You want to ensure that you are accepted as a leader by your coworkers and that they are not feeling resentful about taking direction from you if you are not their direct supervisor. In addition to leading the group and scheduling tasks, you may find yourself needing to use your EQ- emotional intelligence- to manage the group’s dynamics and maintain a sense of unity.

You may need to provide assurance to the members of the group that while you are leading the project, ultimately each employee’s performance will be evaluated by their direct supervisors rather than you.

Be transparent to your group about the deliverables that upper management expects you to achieve, your plan for meeting those goals, and your expectations of each member of the group.

Thank you Victoria for sharing your insight with us.

Now over to you. Share your opinion in the comments or simply ask your own question here.