School's out! Advice for Entering the Workforce
Anna Bjertsj? Rennermalm
Recruitment Consultant & Owner at Search4S Dustgoat AB
Have you just finished your education, or are you about to? Then you're probably wondering how to get into the labour market.
Here are some tips that you might not have gotten before, but that are important:
Put yourself in the employer's shoes: Imagine you are the one recruiting. What is important?
If you lack work experience: Employers look for work experience because it's safer. Someone who has worked, in pretty much anything, has shown what they can do. Before you’ve been employed, it’s hard to know if you will:
? Show up on time
? Do your tasks without complaining
? Collaborate well with colleagues
? Follow instructions and learn quickly
You need to demonstrate that you are reliable, loyal, and can put the team before yourself. Highlight any positions of trust or community activities. Ensure your CV clearly shows the knowledge and experience from your studies that match the job.
Grades: Not many people care about your grade levels. What matters is if you have courses missing for your degree. Employers can infer things about your character, and some positions require a complete degree.
Be long-term: Don’t say you just want to get a foot in the door. Recruiters invest time and resources to hire someone for a specific role. They want you to stay for several years to be trained and contribute.
Don't apply for every job. Find out what you actually want to do and where. People want to hire someone who genuinely wants to do the work. It’s easy to distinguish applications written for a specific position from “mass mailings.” Plus, you might end up in a job that doesn’t suit you.
A tip: If you have no idea, look at companies near you. See what they do and if it seems interesting. Consider what tasks you enjoy most. Google and ask around about what types of jobs might suit you. Check with interesting employers if they have any jobs coming up in your areas of interest. Here are some resources to locate employers in life science:
? https://www.allabolag.se (in Swedish)
? https://industrymap.ssci.se/ (Stockholm/Uppsala/S?dert?lje)
? https://www.swedishmedtech.se/vara-medlemmar (in Swedish)
Moving: Are you willing to move for a job? Have a relocation plan mention it in your application. In larger cities, it can be hard to find housing within a reasonable commuting distance.
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Be patient: A recruitment process can take up to three months. Sometimes more. There can be hundreds of applicants. You may need to apply for many jobs and be prepared to wait.
Stay active: Contact the employer before you submit an application to get useful information to tailor your application. Follow up a week or two after submission and express your continued interest.
Don’t have endless patience! If things aren’t going well, you might need to change something. Discuss with friends, employment services, networks. What support can you get?
Ask for help: Have someone review your application before submitting it. Simple mistakes can make you seem sloppy or lazy. Also, ask for help finding jobs. Ask people you know about their jobs and if that type of job would suit you.
LinkedIn: Review your LinkedIn profile. Write keywords that match the jobs you want. Make sure you list the city where you live or plan to move to.
Be honest: Don’t lie out of desperation. It will come out sooner or later.
Don’t tell everything: No one needs to know everything about you. Employers need to know how well you fit the position. Focus on your knowledge, experience, skills, and work style.
Don’t complain: No one wants to work with a complainer. If you’re upset about being rejected, talk to a friend instead of the recruiter. You gain nothing by coming across as desperate or uncontrolled.
Help others: Offer support to others in the same situation. Give second opinions on their applications, listen to their career concerns, and suggest jobs you’ve seen that might suit them. A good reputation counts. A bad one too…
Ignore the salary: Your starting salary is not important. Once you have work experience, you can move up. Employers in life sciences in Sweden are reasonable.
Accept inconvenient conditions: Night shifts, shifts, long commutes, employment through a consulting firm (NB: many consultancies are great employers), temporary positions—consider if you can handle a few years under such conditions to advance in your career path.
Are you worthless? Feeling alone, unsuccessful, unemployable? You’re probably not. If things are moving slowly, ask for help, don’t give up, and create a long-term plan to work in a field you believe suits you. Take comfort in the fact that you are not a psychopat (because then you would blame everyone except yourself).
Job searching seems tough? It can be, but in the end it is you who are responsible for your life. Your career is a big part of it. You should have a job that gives you energy and motivation, development, context, and a substantial amount of money and freedom! Getting the right job requires effort from you. Low unemployment in life sciences means you have a good chance of eventually finding a job.
Language: If you don′t know Swedish, make a substancial effort to learn it.
There’s more to write, there are whole books on this topic. I focused on things you might not have found elsewere. If you have more tips, please share them in the comments.
See you on the job market!
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