How to get a job right after graduation?

(Baonghean.vn) - 600 job positions from 26 businesses and employers, along with dozens of scholarships for studying and studying languages ​​abroad, are attractive opportunities for 1,000 Vinh University students at the 2017 Job Fair.

The 2017 Job Fair was organized for the first time by Vinh University in collaboration with 26 businesses and employers. Photo: Thuc Anh

This is the first time this activity has been held at Vinh University, with the cooperation of domestic and foreign units, businesses and employers. Employers not only receive job applications and interviews but also share with students their experiences and secrets to improve their chances of success in finding jobs at home and abroad.

How to get a job right after graduation?

This is the common mentality of final year students, especially in the context that the whole country has a surplus of more than 1 million workers, of which over 200,000 have university and postgraduate degrees. The number of unemployed workers in Nghe An alone is about 30,000 people, young workers aged 15-34 account for 40%.

How to find a suitable job right after graduation is something that many students are interested in learning. Photo: Thuc Anh

Associate Professor Dr. Bui Van Dung, Head of the Economics Department of Vinh University, affirmed to nearly 1,000 students present at the Job Fair: “Labor is an essential need for human survival. Without labor, you cannot become a complete human being. But how to avoid unemployment after graduation? The answer is to choose the right career.”

Mr. Bui Van Dung also commented that Vietnamese students have a common “disease”, which is studying and working out of habit without a plan, without responsibility and high determination. Students are still passive in understanding the needs of the labor market, not bold enough to face challenges and not well prepared in terms of hard skills as well as soft skills.

“You want to be a swimmer but you are afraid to go into the water, or you only go into the water in the summer, but you don’t want to do it in the cold winter. How can you be successful like that? If you want to quickly find a suitable job, you have to be flexible and bold. When the music is fast, you dance fast, when the music is slow, you dance slowly.”

Mr. Bui Van Dung, Head of the Faculty of Economics, Vinh University: "Most Vietnamese students suffer from the "disease" of lacking a plan and determination." Photo: Thuc Anh

Mr. Dung also advised students to prepare well right from their school days with knowledge about their profession, expand their general knowledge about economics and society and practice good working style and labor discipline. "The higher the requirements of employers, the better your salary", Mr. Dung affirmed to students.

Ignite the dream of starting a business

Startup is one of the hottest keywords in the Vietnamese job market in 2016. However, how to start a business, what factors need to converge to start a business smoothly, are questions that many students are wondering.

Mr. Tran Kim Viet, Director of Viet Incubator and also a former student of Vinh University, brought to the 2017 Job Fair his own real experiences on the path of starting a business. Coming from a family with difficult circumstances and being disabled, Viet determined early on that there was no other way to change his life other than through knowledge.

Students fill in personal information and submit job applications at the 2017 Job Fair. Photo: Thuc Anh

Working part-time since his first year of university, enrolling in an additional major in Information Technology in addition to his major in Agriculture, Viet experienced difficult times when he had to borrow 500,000 VND from a teacher in school to have enough money to buy an old computer that cost more than 1 million VND at that time to serve his studies.

After graduating from graduate school, Viet decided to return to his hometown to open a company specializing in seedling production and supporting farmers with biotechnology. With no capital, Viet worked as a service provider to accumulate small amounts, starting from the smallest tasks. He also traveled to over 30 provinces and cities to learn about seedling production and the practical experiences of farmers. To date, Viet Nursery has created jobs for 13 stable workers and 10 seasonal workers, producing 300,000 seedlings each year.

Talking about his startup process, Viet shared: “Fresh graduates who want to start a business lack two things: Experience and capital. But you have to keep in mind that everything is difficult at the beginning, nothing is easy.

Life in society is like a sine wave graph, sometimes up and sometimes down. If you want to be successful, you have to be proactive and flexible to adapt to those changes. Don’t worry or be afraid, if someone in Viet’s situation can do it, then no one can’t do it.”

Employers directly consult students at the 2017 Job Fair. Photo: Thuc Anh

Mr. Nguyen Huu Bac, Chairman of PhucGroup Tourism Investment Company, also gave useful advice on starting a business. For him, there are four important factors that a startup must have: mindset, capital, good products and management skills. He also encouraged young people to dare to be creative and change their mindset.

“But you have to define who you are to start a business. Having illusions about yourself will definitely lead to failure,” Mr. Bac reminded students who are excited about the so-called “storm” of startups in Vietnam.

What do employers expect from students?

Many large enterprises and units such as Hoa Sen Group, Unilever Vietnam, SeaBank Vietnam, etc. organized direct consulting and recruitment at the 2017 Job Fair. Experts from these corporations and units also gave students advice on skills, how to prepare documents, and interview for jobs.

Dos and don'ts when you make a resume, CV, according to advice from Unilever Vietnam's HR department. Photo: Thuc Anh

Unilever Vietnam team had an interactive session with Vinh University students about basic skills when applying for a job. Most of the students did not have much experience so they were quite confused.

Ms. Nguyen Doan Trang, Head of Human Resources at Unilever Vietnam, commented: “As third and fourth year students, you should prepare yourself right from school with soft skills in communication and behavior. There are still a few months left until graduation, so those who are not prepared should pay attention to practicing soft skills right now.”

Unilever Vietnam also said that for new graduates, employers mainly require high labor discipline and working attitude. Modesty, patience, eagerness to learn and willingness to travel on business as coordinated by the company are also the criteria that employers prioritize.

Thuc Anh