How Well Did University Prepare Me for the ‘Real World’?

Although university prepared me for the real world, it didn’t completely provide me with the right skills and tools to score the perfect dream job.

As a fellow graduate who previously experienced the despair of not finding a job straight away, here are a few helpful tips:

Interviews are undeniably daunting, and the only thing that will prepare you is practice!
Just like university assignments; research the company, understand how your values align with the organisation, practice answering common interview questions, and come up with good examples. Most importantly, be yourself, companies look for a cultural fit when interviewing job seekers, by showing your true nature you will likely score a job that best fits you.

It is hard to score your dream job in one go, so be prepared for failure. From my perspective, failure is just another pathway towards developing and strengthening one’s skills. Regardless of whether I passed or failed, every interview I attended made my answers stronger, I felt more confident, and was driven to move forward and apply for more opportunities.

During university, you may have had one pathway, but real life gives you a million new ones so don’t be afraid to try something different. Apply for internships, graduate positions, and volunteer, keep yourself busy! This will help build your resume and show your commitment towards self-development.

As a fresh graduate, I envisioned myself becoming a recruitment consultant but was clueless as to how I could get there. My instinct was to put myself out there and keep applying until I found a role that ‘sparked joy’! people2people’s graduate program was perfect for me, it really helped me discover what I’m passionate about. It gave me the opportunity to understand different parts of an organisation, how they create value and how I can become an important asset to them in the future.

The reality is, searching for a job is a full-time job in itself. You have to put a lot of effort into getting yourself out there and be noticed ahead of the other job seekers. But you will gain new skills and experiences along the way.

Good luck!