Experience requirements make students struggle
As a final year student, in the process of completing his graduation project, Le Minh Tan - a student at the Institute of Posts and Telecommunications Technology - is starting his journey to find job opportunities. Tan shared that he always tries not to be "slowing down" compared to friends and the labor market. However, the process of finding a job was not as smooth as expected.
"I have found a job on many recruitment platforms but have not yet found a suitable position. I have accumulated experience through internships, but when I found a job, I realized that many businesses required candidates to have a few years of experience. The positions for new graduates are mostly in the form of internships, with the main support level being travel and lunch expenses" - Tan shared.
According to Tan, this situation causes students to fall into a vicious cycle: they need experience to get a job, but it is difficult for them to have the opportunity to accumulate experience in the right field if they are only accepted as trainees.
"Many of my classmates are in a similar situation. Even though they want to work in the right major, they are hindered by the experience requirements that new graduates cannot meet immediately" - Tan said.
Similarly, Nguyen Tien Hoa - a student majoring in Information Security at the Academy of cryptography - said that he felt quite " generous" when starting to find a job, even though he only had a short time left to complete the entire study program.
"I felt quite tired when looking at the job description of many employers. Many positions are Fresher (position for new graduates) but require 6 months - 1 year of experience. In fact, I wonder: If new graduates are not admitted, where do I get the opportunity to accumulate 6 months to 1 year of experience as required?" - No wonder.
Hoa said that she has tried to accumulate experience by participating in internships and doing personal projects. However, when compared to the expectations of many businesses, I still felt that was not enough.
Overcoming barriers of experience with skills and attitude
In fact, the situation of final-year students being "overwhelmed" by the requirements of employers is not new, but it is becoming increasingly clear in the context of a competitive labor market and increasingly high job requirements.
Talking to Lao Dong reporter, Dr. Luong Dong Son - lecturer at the Institute of Journalism and Communication ( acclaim of Journalism and Communication) said that when employers "require experience" from candidates, they do not simply find someone who knows how to work, and what they are really looking for is safety.
"Aries want to hire someone with the lowest risk: someone who does not need to spend too much time on start-up training, someone who understands office culture and someone who can adapt quickly to the pace of work. Experience is proof of those things" - Dr. Son said.
Dr. Luong Dong Son emphasized that students need to be proactive and "create" their own experiences.
"You need to understand that the experience that an employer requires does not necessarily have to be an official, full-time job. That is the summary of the skills, knowledge and attitude that they have accumulated through practical activities. Most specifically, it is the internship" - he said.
However, Dr. Son said that students need to change their mindset to go on internships. "Don't go to an internship just to get a confirmation stamp. Consider it a serious job, be proactive in observing, learning and being willing to accept unnamed things. It is those stumbles that create experience" - he emphasized.
In addition, Mr. Son said that students need to cultivate two groups of skills in parallel. The first is compulsory professional skills, the second is soft skills and attitude.
"A student may lack professional experience, but if he/she shows an open-minded attitude, a disciplined spirit and the ability to explore and solve problems on his/her own, he/she will definitely be given priority" - the teacher said.
In the current context, Dr. Luong Dong Son believes that students also need to supplement their technological acumen. "You need to proactively learn and use new tools, such as generative AI, to improve work performance. Let's show employers that they not only know how to do the old way, but also know how to use technology to do a better job" - Mr. Son added.
