Job interviews, many students 'don't know what to say'

"Most of the students, when interviewed, only know how to introduce their name, age and major. Many of them complete the self-introduction in just 20 seconds, then don't know what else to say," commented the CEO of Austfeed Binh Dinh Company.

The 2016 job fair program with the theme The key to success is within your reach was organized by Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry on May 7 to help students have the opportunity to find suitable jobs right after leaving the lecture hall. Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry is the only school of Hue University that organizes a job search program to help students and has attracted the attention of many corporations and businesses.

After 3 years of organization, thousands of engineers from all training majors of the school have signed labor contracts with businesses, have stable jobs and salaries.

1,200 students from all majors of Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry eagerly apply for jobs at desks arranged by businesses. Photo: Dac Duc.

Mr. Pham Phu Phat, Deputy General Director of CP Vietnam Joint Stock Company (one of the accompanying enterprises and having the largest number of labor recruiters at the festival) assessed that Central students are intelligent, diligent and highly responsible for the assigned work.

However, most of the businesses participating in this recruitment said that, in addition to being good at the theory they have learned at school, Hue students are still "weak and lacking" in soft skills when responding directly in interviews.For this reason, many students lose the opportunity to work in large companies and enterprises even though their expertise is highly appreciated. In addition, the ability to speak English is also a huge limitation for most students.

"We are in the integration period, soft skills and good foreign language skills are the number one priorities for businesses to decide whether to recruit or not," Mr. Phat commented, adding that if students have the necessary skills, job opportunities are always open to them.

As a former student of Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry, Huynh Ba Thanh returned to school after 2 years of being recruited by CP Vietnam Company as an aquaculture engineer. Thanh said that after two years of training and working in a professional environment with attractive benefits and regimes, his current salary is over 15 million VND/month.

"I know that when you graduate, you will be very confused, and sometimes you have to learn many skills from scratch. But once you get used to the job, you will change a lot and this is really a good opportunity that students need to grasp to find a job that suits them," Thanh shared.

Students are advised by experienced staff of consulting companies in preparing recruitment applications. Photo: Dac Duc.

Citing the limitations of students when participating in recruitment, Mr. Duong Vinh Que, CEO of Austfeed Binh Dinh Company, said that through many recruitments, the company has favored graduates from Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry. However, most of them, when interviewed directly by the company, only know how to introduce their name, age and major. Many students complete the self-introduction in just 20 seconds, then do not know what to answer.

"In addition to introducing professional qualifications, employers also need to hear about students' strengths or even weaknesses. Besides, we will be interested if we know more information about students who have practical experience from part-time jobs to experience life and improve their skills," said Mr. Que, adding that just a few small details are a simple way to "score points", and students can immediately own a labor contract and be paid right after the interview ends.

As a recruiter, Mr. Que informed that in the near future, the company will open 5,000 more pig farms imported from abroad and will need to recruit 25,000 engineers majoring in Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine to work in the Central and Central Highlands regions. However, recruitment is facing many difficulties because the number of students majoring in Animal Husbandry or Veterinary Medicine graduating each year is too small. Meanwhile, many majors have excess people, causing an imbalance in the needs of society today.

"In addition to training in professional theory, the school should also coordinate to open soft skills training sessions when approaching businesses for students. Only then will students be confident and not miss opportunities," Mr. Que shared and said that given the needs of many businesses in some specific industries, school leaders should also consider admission.

Soft skills and foreign language ability are still the weaknesses of students in the Central region. Photo: Dac Duc.

Agreeing and appreciating the employers' sharing, Associate Professor Le Van An, Principal of Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry (Hue University) affirmed that the job fair program has really created a great spread, becoming a bridge between businesses and students of the school.

"It is expected that this year, about 1,000 graduates from all majors of the school will be recruited by businesses. Many businesses do not limit the number of employees they recruit, so it will be an opportunity for students to demonstrate their abilities," said Mr. An, adding that although he knew that employers' demand for human resources was very large in many majors that the school was training, increasing the input quota required a long-term roadmap.

"Change takes time, and when it comes to training people, time is considered a decisive factor," Principal An emphasized.

According to VNE