Few steps ahead…

The world of careers can be confusing to the new job seeker, considering there are so many avenues to explore. However, armed with the right information, those avenues can be used to your advantage.  

Sibusiso Mbhele

The growing trends in unemployment and lack of skills among job seekers have made it tough to get a job. Whether you are a graduate or just an ordinary job seeker finding a job is very competitive. ‘Entry level career seekers need to understand the job market’, says Kris Jarzebowski, MD of online recruitment agency Career Junction. ‘It isn’t just about gaining the skills, but gaining the right skill set for the market.’

Jarzebowski says that getting a job is about much more that just having a certificate. ‘People need to be active career –seekers and work on finding opportunities.’ The key to finding the right job, it appears, is to arm yourself with knowledge and to be persistent.  However, while the skills shortage may be dire, graduates who are willing to do some research into where the skills gap lies and act on that information can benefit greatly.

Fundamentally, it helps if you know the area in which you’d like to work and the kind of company that appeals to you. Focus on the companies that are appropriate for your qualifications and career goals but retain some flexibility as first jobs are notoriously difficult to find even if you have a degree as most employers are looking for workers with experience. Therefore, being at the fore front of your career will ensure that you are relevant to the market.

Due to economic transformation, the need for skills changes with the demand of the market. Consequently, that is why for the job seeker it’s very crucial to be updated with the demands of the market. One will say, but what about the argument that it’s difficult to find work in South Africa? Schaffer has an interesting answer; ‘South Africa is undergoing a severe skills shortage at the moment. We desperately need people who can perform in areas like engineering, construction, ICT, healthcare, education , financial services , management and hospitality.’  However, it remains a challenge to the ‘previously disadvantaged groups to find themselves in such fields due to past imbalances. At the same time it’s the matter of argument because even those who are from universities are finding it hard to get jobs. Only the strong survives the competition! Work out your unique abilities beforehand.

So even though the job market for graduates is tighter than ever before, graduates in specific areas may not find themselves struggling as much as they may have expected. However, more emphasis than ever before is being placed on not just having the right degree but having the right attitude as well. Verily, the market demands that you show unique elements than just an ordinary job seeker.  Joanna Preston, head of recruitment and development at First National Bank listed four top characteristics as self-management, interpersonal skills, self-motivation and self-insight as crucial for recruitment. Preparing yourself before finding yourself in the edge of growing percentage will do you a favour and be few steps ahead.

Two masters students jump over the counter

Author	:David MacGregor
Originally Published by	:Daily Despatch
Published	:Aug 30, 2010

GETTING good grades and spending hours in the pub are two things every student dreams of mastering. Although most invariably fall short one way or the other, two Rhodes University masters students are living the life – studying and successfully running their own campus residence pub.

“This is the perfect student job,” super-sized Tafadzwa “Beef” Mutengwa chuckled – between sips on an ice cold beer. Nodding in agreement, petite 27-year-old Zambian Chishala “Chish” Lukwesa says the odd couple got the plum job after clocking up “many hours” propping up the pub as customers. “Last year we spent all our time on the other side of the counter buying drinks, now we sell them.”

And, if you think running a student pub is one big party, think again. When they are not hitting the books themselves or pouring shots for fellow students, Chish and Beef still find time to do other part-time work – like tutoring second year students – to earn extra money. “My mom had to take a R120 000 loan to pay for me and my sister to both stay and study at Rhodes, and there was no money left for us to live on every month,” mathematical statistics student Beef explained. Instead of sitting around waiting for handouts, Mutengwa took any extra work he could find so he could support himself and his third year pharmacy sister Tendai. “I also give her some money every month so she can survive,” he explained.

Although Chish is on a scholarship, she could also do with extra cash. Standing behind the dark wood bar counter at the Flare Path Pub in the Gavin Relly Postgraduate Village on the outskirts of Settler City, the duo joked they got the year-long pub concession based on their track record there.
When Rhodes University bought the Settlers Motel several years ago, the popular pub was part of the deal. Instead of closing it down, a year-long concession was given to post graduate students – based on written submissions to the warden.

Chish and Beef won the rights to operate the pub on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights based on their written submission and undying support of the pub the year before. “Running the pub, we are assured of getting some bread – and a bit of bacon now and again as a treat.” With the pub open from “7.30pm ’til the last patron drops”, the duo – who both know how it feels to be “financially broke” – often dish out free drinks to patrons, like the previous “owner” did for them last year. “We can’t forget that we are also students and we live here,” Chish explained.

A melting pot of nationalities, the 80- plus students in the post-grad village can unwind with a few cut-price drinks, some intellectual debate and a game or two of pool or darts. They also do not have to run the risk of drinking and driving – considering home is a short stagger from the pub.
Besides making much-needed money, the duo is also learning valuable life skills. “I want to work in investment banking … but I think I also want to own my own bar one day,” Mutengwa explained.

Tertiary education: A means to an end

Recent research offers some welcome news for final-year students. There will be more jobs available next year in most sectors, provided you can show recruiters what makes you special. While you’re sending out your CV be careful not to ignore the new companies on campus. Also remember that your degree doesn’t define your destiny, so keep an open mind while you’re doing your homework on where you want to work. - Fay Humphries

Sibusiso Mbhele

It is time tertiary students/graduates come to understand the nature of the environment they are in. Being in the university is not just a privilege but a learning curve that our students should discover.  The university requires someone’s transformation of mind, to understand why it’s essential to go through it? 

Their lives are not in relation to what the working environment expects from the graduates. However, the shortage of skills has been on top of the agenda. Graduates rarely expose themselves to programmes that provide them with skills. What happens is students are involved in activities that are not of benefit to their careers. This results with a lack of information on the changes that takes place in their respective fields. A month ago we had a 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup, and then if you could research the students/graduates that took place in the voluntary programme are not from the hospitality industry. At the end of the day you ask yourself, do these students/graduates have career development plans? Why is it that they allow opportunities slip in their own hands like that?

Tertiary institutions do have structures that provide assistants to such issues but students/graduates are not involved. The point is you build experience while you at tertiary, you make yourself relevant to the working world. “Prevention is better than cure”. While still at tertiary you should mold yourself to fit in the company or department that you want to be. You should be able to spot opportunities while at a distance. Regarding fitting to the right spot Fay says “Apart from investigating the more non-traditional employers and organisations, students should also be aware that sometimes their degrees can lead to jobs they may not have initially considered. For an example, many believe that an engineering degree is required to build a successful career in the motoring sector-but that’s simply not true”.

It should be highlighted to students/graduates that employers are definitely looking for the right people that will be the future of their companies. Therefore, it takes a well equipped personality to grasp such chances because recruiters are more in terms of soft skills than degrees hence qualifications also play a major role.  “We’d like to see more South African-based students take advantage of our International exchange programme. There is no upper limit to the numbers here and we focus on selecting the best students for the internships that best match their needs” Says Nyaladzi Putecho from AIESEC.

Therefore, it is all about recognizing programmes that are in place to enhance the skills that are needed at a workplace. Students who put the necessary time and effort into becoming employable and get serious about the recruitment process will secure themselves a position anywhere. Make it a point that you develop in you skills that are essential for the market. 

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