Strategies and Requirements for School Leavers to be Employed
For many students and recent graduates the job market can be
frightening because it is un-chartered territory. However, with the right advice
you can go from being nervous to confident, apprehensive to self-assured, and a
college student to a member of the
workforce!
REQUIREMENTS:
1) Help and encourage early school leavers back into
education
There are a
number of programmes which can assist early school leavers such as the Links to
Learning Community Grants Programme. This programe assists young people aged 12
to 24 years who have left school early or who are students at risk of leaving
school early, and provides them with a range of opportunities to remain in or
re-enter mainstream education and training.
2) Practise interviews with
students
As
employers conclude a day of interviews in the on-campus recruitment program at
schools, they are asked to complete an evaluation of the students they
interviewed. One of the questions on the evaluation is "What are the top three
things you look for in a candidate (for example, grades, experience, etc.)?"
Repeatedly, the most popular factors include the following: "motivation",
"attitude", "enthusiasm", "energy", "commitment", "eagerness to learn",
"excitement", "ambition", "confidence" and others along these
lines.
Think
about it! You've already impressed the employer with your resume or you wouldn't
have been invited to the interview. In preparing for the interview, of course
you'll thoroughly research the organization and create a great first impression
by being well groomed and professionally dressed. But once the door closes and
the interview begins, remember that you hold the power to determine your
ultimate success. Realize that you are in control and express yourself so that
your enthusiasm, energy and confidence are evident to the recruiter. Then sit
back and watch what happens!
3)To have complete
knowledge and information on the abilities of school-leavers and the
characteristics of jobs offered by employees;
The transition from
school to work is often regarded as a ‘’rite of passage’’ in which young people
are introduced to the world of labour. This transition process takes place in
stages and is a turbulent and uncertain period. First of all, school leavers
have to compete for the available jobs with those who have already gained a
position in the labour market. Their lack of work experience often forces them
to face unemployment. Secondly, school leavers often end up in jobs that do not
match their educational qualifications very well. These ‘’job mismatches’’ are,
for instance, in some cases the result of incomplete information on the
abilities of school leavers and the characteristics of jobs offered by
employers.
4) Incorporate literacy and
numeracy skills into your programme
A good way of
supporting students who experience learning difficulties is to incorporate
literacy and numeracy skills into the fun programmes you
run.
For example if
you have a group of young people who want to run a band night you can work with
them on:
Literacy
and numeracy skills can be incorporated into just about any
programme.
5)Helping students prepare
for a job interview- Interview preparation
Transitioning from college life to the working world
can be a daunting task. Having an approaching graduation with a lack of
job prospects can make even the coolest person hyperventilate. Though finding a
job isn't always easy, it's certainly not impossible. In fact, job seekers can
greatly increase their chances of finding the right job by using the right job
searching techniques. Unfortunately, many students don't learn those techniques
because they don't take advantage of a great resource that is right there on
their college campuses. Career Services departments inside schools help students
to enter the working world by providing connections with prospective employers
and teaching students and recent graduates job search strategies that work. They
can offer a wealth of knowledge on everything from preparing a winning resume to
dressing to impress on the interview. "Which suit? Which shoes? Do I need a
haircut?" These questions are common pre-interview thoughts, but the audience
is rarely taken into consideration. To prepare for the interview, the applicant
should be able to answer questions such as, "Do you understand the framework of
the company?" or "How would you be an asset to the company?" To answer those
in-depth questions (preparation past the outward appearance) in-depth
preparation must be completed before the interview. To properly plan for
the interview, the applicant should complete a checklist before the process
begins. First, when receiving information for the pre-interview process, be sure
to ask who will be conducting the interview and their position in the company
(i.e. a human resource representative, a manager, or the CEO). To complement the
interview process, research the company to enhance knowledge of the internal
functions, responsibilities, partnerships, and community involvement. Knowing
the background of the company will enhance the applicant’s ability to
appropriately respond to questions from the interviewer. Preparation is the key
to increasing interview success. Finally, to gain an edge on an upcoming
interview, visualize the interviewer and what your future contribution to the
company will be. It's important for students to be flexible about their career
options. Don't limit yourself to one particular type of employer. Every business
needs accounting and computer personnel. Consider a career with the federal
government. Many students think government jobs are dull, when in reality the
work can be very rewarding. In searching for a job, presentation is critical.
Have your resume critiqued by your career services staff to ensure that you've
presented your skills in the best possible manner. Your appearance must be
professional. Your oral presentation skills are extremely important. Be prepared
for behavioral interview questions, be comfortable, and tell "your" story.
Lastly, don't take rejection personally, and don't quit! Looking for a job can
be a job in itself.
In
considering all of the factors that are important to employers as they recruit
students in colleges and universities nationwide, college major (a college
qualification/ degree), grade point average, and work-related experience usually
rise to the top of the list. Granted, the importance of these three factors
should not be underestimated and are critically important in the selection of
candidates for interviews. However, once an interview (schedule is developed) is
set and the day of the interview arrives, there are several factors that are
totally within your control that will make the difference in who gets invited
for second interviews, and ultimately, who receives the job
offers.
STRATEGIES:
1) Work with schools
so that students won’t leave school early
One of the best ways
to assist early school leavers is to help prevent young people from leaving
school early.
Schools are
under increased pressure to deal with a range of "welfare" issues affecting
young people with very limited resources to manage these issues. For example
many schools do not have a full time student counsellor and many schools engage
in practices such as suspension without having programs in place to deal with
the issues as to why young people are misbehaving or not coping at
school.
2)Invest in additional
education
Two adjustment
strategies are possible for school-leavers who have a job mismatch or do not
have a job at all. A first strategy to improve the situation is to look for
another job. In all European countries - with the exception of Denmark – school
leavers with a non-matching job more often look for another job than those with
a matching one. In the Southern European countries (Greece, Spain, and Italy)
the percentage difference is relatively large. The reasons for this job search
are diverse, but it may be expected that job dissatisfaction is one of the main
reasons for the job search behaviour of school leavers who work outside their
field of education.
A second strategy to deal with job mismatches is to
invest in additional training, in order to compensate for skill deficiencies in
initial education. It is assumed that if the field of education attended by
school leavers corresponds to the field that is required on the work floor, the
need for further training is less.
Only in Hungary, the Netherlands, and
Slovenia, do school leavers with a non-matching job participate more in
continuing vocational training than those with a matching one. Furthermore
in
Spain,
France, and Italy, there is no association between continuing vocational
training and having a job mismatch.
In all other countries the conclusion is that
continuing vocational training complements rather than substitutes for the
knowledge and skills acquired in initial education (i.e. participation in
continuing vocational training is lower among school leavers with a job mismatch
than among those with a job
match).
3)Work experience within
schools ( with the help of European Projects and local institutions that may
hire students during holidays or for various periods of
time).
4)Find a suitable job in
accordance with their level (of characteristics) of (their)
education;
The percentage
of school leavers working in a job outside their field of education is highest
in Italy (47%), followed by Greece (40%). Denmark and Sweden also have a
considerable proportion of school leavers with a non-matching job. In the
Netherlands, on the other hand, the incidences of job mismatches is lowest
(29%). In Finland, Slovenia, Austria, and Belgium the percentage of job
mismatches is also relatively low.
In most European countries, women are more likely to
be employed in a non-matching job than men. The exceptions are for Belgium,
Spain, France, and the Netherlands, where male school leavers are more likely to
be working in a job that is not directly related to the field of education
attended. The difference is largest in Belgium and the Netherlands, where the
likelihood of having a job mismatch is 8% higher for men than for
women
5) Out-smart the employer and competitors
The
best way to compete for jobs is to out-smart the employer and competitors. You
must market yourself in a way that seems appealing to a possible employer. How
would you do this you ask?
With this advice you
should be well on your way to starting your career.
6) Working with multinationals and offering students their requirements
for the labour market
The best way to find
out what our local school needs for their students to be engaged is to
ask. Most schools have a range of existing programmesand the support they can
receive may be support for an existing programmes, rather than the development
of a new programmes.
Multinationals may develop a written proposal
outlining the programmes and support options they can provide and meet with the
school representative to negotiate the type of programmes they can offer. They
will outline the educational and social benefits of their programes for
the worldwide economy and support options and how their service will be reliable
and consistent in its delivers.
Best programmes for early school
leavers:
for
not being able to read well, e.g. by asking young people to fill out a survey or
do a reading exercise as part of a group-work programme.
For many students and recent graduates the job market can be
frightening because it is un-chartered territory. However, with the right advice
you can go from being nervous to confident, apprehensive to self-assured, and a
college student to a member of the
workforce!
REQUIREMENTS:
1) Help and encourage early school leavers back into
education
There are a
number of programmes which can assist early school leavers such as the Links to
Learning Community Grants Programme. This programe assists young people aged 12
to 24 years who have left school early or who are students at risk of leaving
school early, and provides them with a range of opportunities to remain in or
re-enter mainstream education and training.
2) Practise interviews with
students
As
employers conclude a day of interviews in the on-campus recruitment program at
schools, they are asked to complete an evaluation of the students they
interviewed. One of the questions on the evaluation is "What are the top three
things you look for in a candidate (for example, grades, experience, etc.)?"
Repeatedly, the most popular factors include the following: "motivation",
"attitude", "enthusiasm", "energy", "commitment", "eagerness to learn",
"excitement", "ambition", "confidence" and others along these
lines.
Think
about it! You've already impressed the employer with your resume or you wouldn't
have been invited to the interview. In preparing for the interview, of course
you'll thoroughly research the organization and create a great first impression
by being well groomed and professionally dressed. But once the door closes and
the interview begins, remember that you hold the power to determine your
ultimate success. Realize that you are in control and express yourself so that
your enthusiasm, energy and confidence are evident to the recruiter. Then sit
back and watch what happens!
3)To have complete
knowledge and information on the abilities of school-leavers and the
characteristics of jobs offered by employees;
The transition from
school to work is often regarded as a ‘’rite of passage’’ in which young people
are introduced to the world of labour. This transition process takes place in
stages and is a turbulent and uncertain period. First of all, school leavers
have to compete for the available jobs with those who have already gained a
position in the labour market. Their lack of work experience often forces them
to face unemployment. Secondly, school leavers often end up in jobs that do not
match their educational qualifications very well. These ‘’job mismatches’’ are,
for instance, in some cases the result of incomplete information on the
abilities of school leavers and the characteristics of jobs offered by
employers.
4) Incorporate literacy and
numeracy skills into your programme
A good way of
supporting students who experience learning difficulties is to incorporate
literacy and numeracy skills into the fun programmes you
run.
For example if
you have a group of young people who want to run a band night you can work with
them on:
- numeracy
skills such
as budgeting for the event, working out how many drinks to buy, ticketing,
counting income, working out how many songs can fit into a play list for
each band etc - literacy
skills such as writing a media release, writing
information for flyers, writing an evaluation
etc.
Literacy
and numeracy skills can be incorporated into just about any
programme.
5)Helping students prepare
for a job interview- Interview preparation
Transitioning from college life to the working world
can be a daunting task. Having an approaching graduation with a lack of
job prospects can make even the coolest person hyperventilate. Though finding a
job isn't always easy, it's certainly not impossible. In fact, job seekers can
greatly increase their chances of finding the right job by using the right job
searching techniques. Unfortunately, many students don't learn those techniques
because they don't take advantage of a great resource that is right there on
their college campuses. Career Services departments inside schools help students
to enter the working world by providing connections with prospective employers
and teaching students and recent graduates job search strategies that work. They
can offer a wealth of knowledge on everything from preparing a winning resume to
dressing to impress on the interview. "Which suit? Which shoes? Do I need a
haircut?" These questions are common pre-interview thoughts, but the audience
is rarely taken into consideration. To prepare for the interview, the applicant
should be able to answer questions such as, "Do you understand the framework of
the company?" or "How would you be an asset to the company?" To answer those
in-depth questions (preparation past the outward appearance) in-depth
preparation must be completed before the interview. To properly plan for
the interview, the applicant should complete a checklist before the process
begins. First, when receiving information for the pre-interview process, be sure
to ask who will be conducting the interview and their position in the company
(i.e. a human resource representative, a manager, or the CEO). To complement the
interview process, research the company to enhance knowledge of the internal
functions, responsibilities, partnerships, and community involvement. Knowing
the background of the company will enhance the applicant’s ability to
appropriately respond to questions from the interviewer. Preparation is the key
to increasing interview success. Finally, to gain an edge on an upcoming
interview, visualize the interviewer and what your future contribution to the
company will be. It's important for students to be flexible about their career
options. Don't limit yourself to one particular type of employer. Every business
needs accounting and computer personnel. Consider a career with the federal
government. Many students think government jobs are dull, when in reality the
work can be very rewarding. In searching for a job, presentation is critical.
Have your resume critiqued by your career services staff to ensure that you've
presented your skills in the best possible manner. Your appearance must be
professional. Your oral presentation skills are extremely important. Be prepared
for behavioral interview questions, be comfortable, and tell "your" story.
Lastly, don't take rejection personally, and don't quit! Looking for a job can
be a job in itself.
In
considering all of the factors that are important to employers as they recruit
students in colleges and universities nationwide, college major (a college
qualification/ degree), grade point average, and work-related experience usually
rise to the top of the list. Granted, the importance of these three factors
should not be underestimated and are critically important in the selection of
candidates for interviews. However, once an interview (schedule is developed) is
set and the day of the interview arrives, there are several factors that are
totally within your control that will make the difference in who gets invited
for second interviews, and ultimately, who receives the job
offers.
STRATEGIES:
1) Work with schools
so that students won’t leave school early
One of the best ways
to assist early school leavers is to help prevent young people from leaving
school early.
Schools are
under increased pressure to deal with a range of "welfare" issues affecting
young people with very limited resources to manage these issues. For example
many schools do not have a full time student counsellor and many schools engage
in practices such as suspension without having programs in place to deal with
the issues as to why young people are misbehaving or not coping at
school.
2)Invest in additional
education
Two adjustment
strategies are possible for school-leavers who have a job mismatch or do not
have a job at all. A first strategy to improve the situation is to look for
another job. In all European countries - with the exception of Denmark – school
leavers with a non-matching job more often look for another job than those with
a matching one. In the Southern European countries (Greece, Spain, and Italy)
the percentage difference is relatively large. The reasons for this job search
are diverse, but it may be expected that job dissatisfaction is one of the main
reasons for the job search behaviour of school leavers who work outside their
field of education.
A second strategy to deal with job mismatches is to
invest in additional training, in order to compensate for skill deficiencies in
initial education. It is assumed that if the field of education attended by
school leavers corresponds to the field that is required on the work floor, the
need for further training is less.
Only in Hungary, the Netherlands, and
Slovenia, do school leavers with a non-matching job participate more in
continuing vocational training than those with a matching one. Furthermore
in
Spain,
France, and Italy, there is no association between continuing vocational
training and having a job mismatch.
In all other countries the conclusion is that
continuing vocational training complements rather than substitutes for the
knowledge and skills acquired in initial education (i.e. participation in
continuing vocational training is lower among school leavers with a job mismatch
than among those with a job
match).
3)Work experience within
schools ( with the help of European Projects and local institutions that may
hire students during holidays or for various periods of
time).
4)Find a suitable job in
accordance with their level (of characteristics) of (their)
education;
The percentage
of school leavers working in a job outside their field of education is highest
in Italy (47%), followed by Greece (40%). Denmark and Sweden also have a
considerable proportion of school leavers with a non-matching job. In the
Netherlands, on the other hand, the incidences of job mismatches is lowest
(29%). In Finland, Slovenia, Austria, and Belgium the percentage of job
mismatches is also relatively low.
In most European countries, women are more likely to
be employed in a non-matching job than men. The exceptions are for Belgium,
Spain, France, and the Netherlands, where male school leavers are more likely to
be working in a job that is not directly related to the field of education
attended. The difference is largest in Belgium and the Netherlands, where the
likelihood of having a job mismatch is 8% higher for men than for
women
5) Out-smart the employer and competitors
The
best way to compete for jobs is to out-smart the employer and competitors. You
must market yourself in a way that seems appealing to a possible employer. How
would you do this you ask?
- Visit a company you would
not work for and sit through the interview. This is your first line of
experience and it helps rid you of the nervousness you may have. From here
on job searching will be easier. You will find people to be very warm and
friendly. - Know what company is best for you. You should try to find those
that will fit your qualifications/educational background. Remember,
companies don't waste time on those who are not
qualified. - Have a resume and Keep it Short and Simple (KISS). Use it like it's
a flyer that you would send to employers. Remember a job application asks
for ordinary information such as education, work experience, and references.
You are an "extraordinary person," you have skills, abilities, and
accomplishments. Put them on your
resume. - Employers look at a typical resume for 10-15 seconds. If the resume
is too long, too wordy, too cluttered, or disorganized – it is disposed of.
Typically, a resume is one page long, organized, clean, and easy to look at.
This generally tells the employer that a person is qualified and can deliver
results. - Look in your local job centers, local newspapers, online career
sites, placement offices of your college, employment agencies, and most of
all network with your family and friends. As a major tip, get your resume in
before the company advertises. - Always follow-up with a phone call after you turn in your resume.
This shows the company that you have an interest in them. In turn they may
have an interest in you and request an
interview. - You already made it half way through with selling yourself on
paper. Now its time to sell yourself by your looks and knowledge. Executive
business attire is recommended, proper manners, and no
attitude. - When you fill out your job application, only use a basic black
ballpoint pen. Print legibly and do not ever put "see resume" on your
application. It shows you are lazy. - Ace your interview by asking questions, taking notes, being
prepared, and selling yourself. - You should always send a thank you letter after an interview.
Again, it shows an interest in the
employer.
With this advice you
should be well on your way to starting your career.
6) Working with multinationals and offering students their requirements
for the labour market
The best way to find
out what our local school needs for their students to be engaged is to
ask. Most schools have a range of existing programmesand the support they can
receive may be support for an existing programmes, rather than the development
of a new programmes.
Multinationals may develop a written proposal
outlining the programmes and support options they can provide and meet with the
school representative to negotiate the type of programmes they can offer. They
will outline the educational and social benefits of their programes for
the worldwide economy and support options and how their service will be reliable
and consistent in its delivers.
Best programmes for early school
leavers:
- listen to the views of
young people and provide opportunities for them to have their say about
program design, management and
evaluation - use a strengths-based approach, acknowledging and building on young
people's existing strengths and celebrating
achievements - establish positive and respectful relationships between young
people and supportive adults - build teamwork and cooperation between
students - set fair rules and expectations which are consistently
applied - encourage young people to take responsibility for their learning
and behaviour - focus on skills that are practical and prepare young people for
life and work and/or further
education
for
not being able to read well, e.g. by asking young people to fill out a survey or
do a reading exercise as part of a group-work programme.