So, you’ve just graduated or about to graduate from zoom university and trying to find a job? Well, here is my take on what that process was like for me and how I eventually found a job.
After graduating with a Masters in Science in 2020 and deferring my PhD, I had not one, but two confirmed placements fall through thanks to covid over summer 2020. Upon my virtual graduation, I found myself without a job and outside education for the first time in my life. Made slightly more palatable with most of my friends in the same situation, many had been furloughed or worse had their grad schemes cancelled all together.
It would take me another 8 months just to find another job that thankfully didn’t fall through. It took an unfathomable amount of job applications, over 30 iterations of different CV’s, many more cold emails, with even more cover letters to just find my first entry-level job. Here are a few tips I learnt along the way, so hopefully you don’t face the same turmoil I did.
Finding a job
When filling out job applications, think less about applying for your ideal job, and more in regard to which job you will have the best chances with. Be realistic. Especially if it will be your first job. The reality is, any job is a luxury in this current climate.
I aimed to apply for at least one new job each day. I felt this was the sweet spot in making sure my application was thorough enough without being rushed, but more importantly, something I could stick to which kept me motivated.
Narrow down your role and where you will apply.
In the beginning, I applied to everything. From research/data roles at tech startups to technology consulting, data science, AI and machine learning, software engineering as well as teaching. Think of any of the new trendy buzzwords used for technology jobs in the 21st century, and chances are, I applied to it. I was riding high on my science degree and was naïve to think it would carry over and land me a technical job. Two rather strange jobs I remember applying for were at a sperm bank as a lab scientist, which I still am awaiting a response from 6 months later, and a bike company, which turned out to be a hidden pyramid scheme, which I didn’t know was still a thing.
Although getting a job is a numbers game, it’s also making sure those applications will be as successful as possible. You will struggle to be successful if you take a broad non-specialised approach during a time where job competition is at an all time high for most industries. I got disheartened with my constant rejections, and diversified the roles I applied for in hopes of success. I was lost without a plan and desperate to find something and as such, applied to everything. However, in reality, I was limiting my success by having a sub-par application due to a lack of experience and knowledge of these areas. This came through when I would stumble through the more technical questions in the interview.
Rely on your skills and previous experience and play to your strengths through your job application. Experience, skills and initiative is valued higher over a degree on the job market.
Refine your approach
Area:
Most job sectors disappeared overnight. Hospitality and events were hit the hardest, and many sectors pulled the brakes on hiring new talent over the unpredictable year. However, some industries exploded. My advice is to find an industry that is thriving during a pandemic. Instead of waiting for the world to normalize; take advantage of it and adapt before others. Be open and flexible. Besides, it’s clear many industries will change permanently, so playing the waiting game hoping for things to return to normal may be too wishful thinking.
Personally, I narrowed down wanting to work in a biotech startup. Why?
I had the background for it thanks to my biophysics degree and previous relevant internships (leveraging the experience I had to my advantage).
They were hiring. Funding for healthcare and biotech startups went up this year compared to other sectors which have seen a large drop.
Whatever area you decide on will be unique to your own personality, experience, and interests, but most importantly make sure it is realistic to maximise your chances.
How to find roles:
Where a company invests money into advertising is where they think the best candidate will be, it’s something rather subtle that’s overlooked. Not all the best job candidates are found through LinkedIn or Indeed, and few are!
The more the advertisement is tailored to you, the better your chances. If they are advertising at your university/degree website, chances are, they are looking for someone with skills that they expect those graduates to have and will likely result in a better chance of success. Take this into account the next time you come across a role. Are you looking for them, or are they looking for you? The latter is a much better position for you to be in.
You’re trying to get into a nightclub, but the queue is very long as the rest of the nightclubs in town are closed. You don’t even know if you’ll be allowed in as you are wearing trainers. You can go home and change out of your trainers, and hope the queue doesn’t get longer when you return, wait in the queue with your trainers in the hopes it doesn’t matter, or you can take a new approach. Go round the back and phone your friend already in the nightclub to open the back door for you. Everyone is trying to take the front door, not knowing about a potential backdoor. Finding a job is analogous to getting into the nightclub. It’s much easier if you can skip the standard procedure and have someone open the backdoor for you. This is called an internal referral in the recruitment world: Having someone within a company refer you for a role.
Just how the job market has changed, so too should your approach to finding roles. Finding any of these “backdoor” opportunities may be the secret for you to land a job, and often requires some creative thinking. It’s not just referrals or being headhunted but having opportunities exclusive to you will result in lower competition and a greater chance of success.
This is why networking is so key and partly why it’s so hard for recent graduates, and is the main reason why landing your first job is likely the hardest. Without any experience and limited previous employment/internships, we struggle to obtain an internal referral or external for that matter, or be shown any of these potential backdoors. We are stuck banging on the front door of the nightclub, only to be drowned out along with everyone else.
Networking and Referrals
Before Lockdown, on-campus job fairs and career events were a luxury and a perfect place for networking and chatting to potential employers. With everything moving online and in-person events postponed, networking is much much harder, but not impossible. You can’t network without putting yourself out there, so I recommend you do just that!
I started out by reaching out to those that inspired me, I recommend you do the same. I was pleasantly surprised how often people would be open to chatting with me over zoom after just an cold email, and they took time out of their day to give me a little advice, and in the process opened doors to opportunities.
Personally, I found reaching out to alumni through email or asking questions at the end of online events as some of the better alternatives to networking in the current climate.
How I found a job:
I reached out to the director of my university course, and I had a chat to update him since we last spoke on campus before the lockdown in the UK. It just so happened he is affiliated with a biotech startup through his own research, and when I told him I was looking to work for a biotech startup, he got me in touch with them and gave me a referral. I had an interview with the company, and a meeting later I had a job! I couldn’t believe it. In 8 months, an unexpected serendipitous encounter did what 100+ online applications failed to do. Land me a job.
Gain new skills and find a new career path.
One of the smartest things to do during a recession is to go back into education or gain skills to improve your employability. This can be seen by the soaring amount of master applications at universities this year, which can open up jobs that otherwise wouldn’t be possible.
Looking for part time work or volunteering is also a possibility. I reached out to a PhD student after a 6 month dry spell about a potential project I could be involved with. It allowed me to learn new skills and gave me something to focus on and explore new areas in the meantime.
Expect Rejection:
Any job search will involve some degree of failure/rejection. It is inevitable and comes with the territory but don’t take it personally, it’s a part of life. You cannot control rejection, but you can control how you react to it. Far easier said than done though.
While I hope my job advice helps you in some way, the reality is, there isn’t much you can do to change the state of the job market. The current workforce is the most skilled and able, yet simultaneously we have record levels of unemployment. Your inability to find a job is not your fault.
Can’t find a job? Don’t stress. It will be ok
Look after yourself, and look after those around you.
It’s arguably the best advice I’ve received at university and was given to me when I started my Masters in September 2019 by my physics tutor. It was very relevant to me as the academic year unfolded with isolation, depression and poor mental health at the highest levels ever, and which I struggled with myself. Exercise, eat well and reachout to those you haven’t heard in awhile. Try and find what works for you and be consistent and stay in touch with your friends and family.
Linkedin is Microsoft’s social media platform for the corporate world. And it’s just that, a social media platform. Like any other social media site though, don’t compare yourself to others on it. It is not healthy. Constantly seeing posts from people celebrating their new jobs, reminded me of my own reality of being unemployed. It’s hard to celebrate the success of an individual, without also highlighting the failures of everyone else. Don’t compare yourself to others, it’s really not healthy. We are all on different journeys, and there is no race.
Now, I understand that my path to the job is rather unique and difficult to repeat, but it worked for me, and thought to share it in the hope that some of my advice in the article helps you find the same success. It will likely require some adaptations. The road ahead is going to be hard, but it helps if you have people along the way helping you. So if you’re still struggling with finding a job and need advice, or just want to reach out to me to chat, feel free to do so and I’ll be glad to help. This is my way of returning the favour of those that I reached out to that helped me, paying it forward.
I’d like to thank Anna and Kou for their feedback in this article.
Edit: My job at the biotech start-up got cancelled the week I was due to start... The irony... Lesson learned to only publish an article about getting a job after starting it, and not when you are accepted :(
コメント