Description: Discover the hard truth about education unemployment, learn how to secure a meaningful job and how to pursue what you really want!
One of the most dangerous vices we experience in society today is unemployment. Many believe that joblessness is a gateway problem that increases the risk of subsequent involvement with crime and other illegal activities by youths in the community. For instance, problems of drug addiction, gambling, and even crime, are all attributed to youths not having sustainable jobs, yet a good number of them are highly educated.
It is true that educated youths, some holding a bachelor’s and others a master’s degree, have failed to secure meaningful jobs, and this unfortunate situation is referred to as education unemployment. This reality is affecting even those who are currently pursuing their degree courses, considering that they get to see recent graduates wasting away without jobs, yet they have always been taught that education is the key to success. If you are affected; you’ve gone to college and graduated with honors, but have failed to secure meaningful employment, how would you overcome this problem and find purpose with your life? Here are five ways to overcome the education unemployment problem.
- Entrepreneurship is your golden ticket to wealth and happiness
You have finished school and graduated with honors, but no job offers have come your way yet. The bright dreams you’ve had of landing a white collar job are now looking dim and are quickly fizzling into the thin air as reality dawns on you that, there are no jobs even for graduates! But, why beat yourself up because of lack of jobs? Instead of being employed, you can be self-employed through entrepreneurship! Entrepreneurship is your golden ticket to wealth and happiness. Did you know that the most successful people in the world are entrepreneurs? Instead of tarmacking in search of meaningful employment, they used their talents to start their own businesses and are now extremely wealthy and living a happy life! You too can go down this road and curve a wonderful life for yourself, but only if you take action early in life and decide to venture into entrepreneurship. Think about it; you will be your own boss, set your own hours, and never have to answer to no one, and more importantly, you will have avoided the problem of education unemployment altogether!
- Migrate to where job opportunities abound
You might have heard of this famous phrase: ”If the mountain will not come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must go to the mountain”. Well, it is quite simple, really. If there are no job opportunities in your local state, why not migrate to where job opportunities abound? Rather than stay put in a city that has nothing to offer, you can shape up and ship out, pronto!
Who knows, your dream job might just be waiting for you on the other side of the ocean. And labor migration doesn’t necessarily mean you get out of your country in search of better job opportunities; you can as well move to another state and search for employment there. Chances are you might find work where there are fewer job hunters, and if your local state is saturated with graduates, it would be best to reduce the competition by going to a new hunting ground where your skills are in demand. You might be shocked to find that even the wages offered in the new state are better than those currently on offer at your home state. So, rather than wallow in sorrow because of education unemployment, pack your belonging (your documents as well), and ship out in search of better job opportunities.
- Join apprenticeship programs
To be able to overcome the education unemployment problem, you need to think outside the box. Sometimes it is not the job market’s fault for your lack of gainful employment. It could be that your skills do not yet meet the standard that is required by the job market. However, don’t let that beat you down. You can still upgrade your skill level to meet the expectations of the industry you intend to work in, and this is achievable through joining apprenticeship programs. Apprenticeship is also referred to as dual-training program, considering that it combines academic instructions with practical training for those who want to venture into a particular industry. These programs are formal and paid as you learn, meaning you will be earning income while still upgrading your skill level, which is exactly the route you need to take if you want to hit the industry with a bang. Statistics show that college graduates are getting into apprenticeship to boost their skills as they prepare to join the workforce. In fact, the US Department of Labor shows a 42% growth in active apprenticeship programs in the US since 2013, and this number has continued to rise steadily throughout the years.
- Try Freelancing; it is a good income earner
Forget about all these big Fortune 500 companies, the small businesses are where job opportunities are available. Even so, these small companies are shifting from hiring full time workers to part time freelancers just to cut operational costs. So, why not work as a freelancer? According to Forbes, freelancing offers wonderful income earning opportunities with an average pay of $19 an hour! While your friends are busy preparing CVs to submit to companies that are no longer employing full time workers, you can go online and create a profile on one of the many freelancing sites and start earning good money depending on your skills. All you need is a good computer with internet connection, and boom, there goes your home office! And if you possess good writing skills, you can venture into content writing and produce quality articles and essays and be paid for it. In fact, paper writers can earn quite a considerable amount churning quality content as freelancers. Wait, there’s more!
- Internship
Unlike apprenticeship where you are paid as you learn, internship is all about building skills to prepare you for job entry, albeit without any pay. While you will be working for free, you will gain invaluable insights on how your industry works. What’s more, if you are hard working at the organization you are interning at, you might receive a job offer for a full time position. Don’t be discouraged because interns don’t earn money, but it is a step towards gaining meaningful employment, that is if you complete the internship successfully. Moreover, it is recommended that you network with co-workers during internship, as this provides support when transitioning from internship to full time employment. In fact, some of the people you meet during internship can be good references on your CV in case you decide to search for job elsewhere.
Don’t be discouraged because of the education unemployment problem. There are many ways of beating the system, and this article has highlighted only a few of them. Be steadfast in your search for employment and soon enough you will join your industry of interest as a full time worker, whether you decide to become self-employed, freelancer, or even land a white collar job. All the best!
Author’s Bio: Charles is a career mentor, motivational speaker & human resources consultant with over 10 years of experience in HR sector. Apart from career mentoring, he loves photography and football. Find him on Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook & Google+.