How to find a Job as a Recent Graduate in 2020?

Every Crisis Can Be An Opportunity To Change Your Life

2020 has been difficult for all of us till now. Due to COVID -19, everything has come to standstill. Many lost their jobs, businesses faced huge losses and educational institutions were closed. Many companies that provide placements to recent graduates are taking back their offers and many colleges on the campus couldn't take place due to lockdown.

This has created a lot of fear and uncertainty for future opportunities among people especially for students who have recently graduated or were looking forward to getting started with their career.

I agree it's difficult to find a job in the middle of the pandemic, but not impossible. Why to put a pause on your dreams and goals. It's always better to keep trying instead of giving. If you adopt the right plan and strategy to find a job you can get one.

So here are a few tips I would like to discuss which can help recent graduates to find a job.

  • Network as much as you can

    • Social media and the internet are awesome weapons when used effectively. It can help you as a recent graduate to find a job through networking which is a skill that can simplify the process. Since many employers and companies prefer employees based on referrals for their jobs so it can be helpful for you also.

    Try to talk to as many people as you can, ask your friends, family members, and seniors who are working to check if their company has a job which is suitable for you and can they refer you if possible. Try to build a good rapport with these people so that your relationship with them can benefit you.

    Along with this, you can build profiles on Linkedin, indeed, these recruitment websites where a large number of job vacancies are posted by employers and companies from many fields. You can make connections with people who work in companies in which you are interested to apply. Speak up for yourself and let everyone know you are looking for a job.

    Pro Tip: Try to make a Linkedin profile that stands out from others. Try to put a professional bio and profile picture and be active on it.

    Check out the video
    Interview questions answered by the recruiter herself : HR Talk with Ms Shweta A. | CV Owl
  • Build a great resume

    • For recent graduates, a resume plays a crucial role in order to find a job. In these extremely competitive markets, you need to make a resume that perfectly defines you, your skills, and your personality. Companies know that freshers don’t have that much experience or exposure according to industry work ethics so in place of that they expect a great resume and perfection of your skills. Follow these resume writing tips and build a great resume.

    Things to keep in mind while making a resume:-

    These are a few mistakes which you can avoid as a recent graduate if you want to get a job.

    (Click here to know how does a graduate resume should look like)

  • Keep Polishing your skills

    • A wise man said, “There is always a space for improvement, no matter how long you have been in business”. He said it right. No matter how much we are good at our skills we should keep polishing our skills and I don’t think there is something wrong in it.

    In this process to find a job recent graduates or students can improve their skills. Online learning websites like udemy and Coursera have ample of personalized courses for students like us where we can learn trending skills and make yourself an expert in it.

    skills

    What's even great is that many courses are free and you can even find discount coupons. You are just a few clicks away from getting your dream job.

  • Practice to ace interview rounds

    • Acing an interview round is really a crucial step in getting a job. Freshers or recent graduates are not so fluent in their communication skills.

    Work on your communication and soft skills. It attracts the attention of the interviewer. You can practice mock interviews which are really helpful. You can practice for interviews 30 minutes a day. Try to make surround like a real interview scenario.

    They basically help you develop confidence and a sense of trust in yourself. Keep reading articles and watch tutorials to improve yourself for the interview round.

    (click here to know mistakes you should not do in a job interview)

    Check out the video
    “We would love to help you create your CV. You can connect with us at hello@cvowl.com and consult an expert”
  • Don’t be desperate to apply as soon as you find a job posting

    • Freshers and recent graduates have a common tendency of each and every job they see. You cannot just blindly apply to each and every job posting you see. Instead of this, you should first clearly read about the job and skills the employer needs, why waste your time in applying for a job which is not according to your preferences and skillsets. In place of this search for the job according to your skills.

  • Turn on Job alert notification

    • Even if you check for job postings every day you may sometimes ignore the important job postings so it's better to turn job posting alerts. Not only it helps you to focus on the important job posting but also simplifies your tasks.

    Instead of checking each hour you simply get alerts through emails or messages on your smartphone. Deviate your free will towards other important things that need your attention.

  • Understand your strength and weakness

    • Everyone has some strengths and weaknesses. You need to find your weakness and strength. From years in each and every job interview, one question that a recruiter always asks is What are your strengths and weaknesses? Recent graduates find this question a very tricky one.

    Many people talk only about their strengths but a few talk about their weaknesses. The reason for this is they feel like if they talk about their weakness will give a bad impression about them.

    But this is not true, You are not a superhuman who doesn't have any flaws and employers know that. Some people pay too much attention to details which can reduce their efficiency, some people lack confidence so see everyone have some weakness and you can talk about it.

  • Stay positive

    • To find a job is doing a job itself due to so much competition in the market, especially for recent graduates. It is tedious work. At some point every person gets disappointed, even I feel like this when I try to find one. But in those moments you should try to focus on being positive and to have faith in yourself.

    It will take a lot of effort and patience and at this moment you can't take a chance of giving up. The more you try, the closer you are to your dream job. Try talking to your friends and family when you feel demotivated and believe it works.

    positive-person-how-to-find-job-as-recent-graduate-in-2020

  • Look for an Internship/ Part-time job

    • Until you find a job as a recent graduate you can search for an internship that you find suitable according to your skills and preferences. It may be for short and you may have to go for one which is unpaid or less paid but will add value to your resume. There are many websites where you can find internships for recent graduates and students.

    Sometimes you may have to go unpaid one, I know it feels really bad when you have to work for free but in order to add some value to your resume, you need to do it. It will help in the long term. You can try different types of internships to explore your interest area.

    One thing to keep in mind is that you don’t have to be unpaid every time because when you can do something good, why do it for free. One or two unpaid internships is enough.

    Check out the video
    The HR Talk with Ms.Poulomi Bhattacharya, Director - Corporate HR, Bestech Hospitality
  • Go for an informational interview

    • An informational interview is one in which it is kinda informal conversation between you and a person who comes from the field of work you are interested in. As networking is essential in finding a job, it can help you find people with whom you can have a session of information interviews. This kind of interview helps you gain information about the industry you want to work in.

    Benefits of Informational interview:-

  • Get to know about the realities of the industry
  • You get to know about the careers you didn't know existed
  • You get tips about how work is done in a specific organization
  • You create more contacts

At first, you will find informational interviews quite weird if you are an introvert but when you start expanding your network you will be great at it. Many companies on their own come forward and organize informational interviews but in this pandemic instead of the actual one, they are organizing the online informational interview.

Trust me, these interviews are great opportunities for recent graduates and can help them a lot in getting a job.

I hope these tips would help recent graduates like in your journey to find a job you want to do and may make it a little easy. As a recent graduate it is not easy out there you will face a lot of rejection and competition, At every point, you need to prove yourself. But in the end, all will be worth it.

No one could have ever thought that something like COVID 19 will appear. This was something which was unpredictable and nobody has ever thought it could be so direct and severe on employment, health, economy, and our lives.

The only thing we can do is to try to stay positive, have faith, and protect ourselves. We should never lose hope and should always try. That's only I can tell you as a friend. Stay safe!

All the best!



Written By :
Riya Singh
Career Expert at CV Owl

Your CV or resume is your first impression for any company. With the help of CV Owl, you can get a well-structured CV and your time will be saved. Everything on your CV should be written in a formal manner and in a precise way. You have only 20 seconds to impress your recruiter with your CV, make the best out of it. Visit our series “The HR Talk” where we help you know everything about your job interview from the recruiters.

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