5 things a Nigerian undergraduate should do to escape unemployment
Why are Nigerian graduates jobless?!are there any remedies to reduce rate of unemployment in Nigeria?!!
it is no doubt that degree or diploma holders now in Nigeria are Lamenting due to the high rate of unemployment.
I have heard people say things like “school nah scam”, “if you go school no handwork ..u go know the reason why so help me God finish national anthem”and so on. Others think acquiring a degree or diploma in Nigeria is not even worth it as those that have done it still ended up without jobs Or nothing successful to show for it, as a result in this article I will be discussing things to do that could guarantee you success even before you graduate college/university.
1)work experience:
this one might be a bit tricky but let me explain, if you have plans to work in your field ie what you studied in school and it isn’t a professional course (medicine,nursing,or pharmacy,med lab sci,law etc)My advise to you is to gain work experience by voluntarily working for free during holiday periods. Let’s say you are studying Chemistry and would like to work as a quality assurance officer or a quality control officer the best place to voluntarily work for free are in pharmaceuticals or production companies,where you could learn about drugs manufactured at different stages.How does this help? Well the work experience gathered during these periods would be added to your CV and the knowledge acquired would make you look professional even with the fact that you haven’t earned a dime from it.So by the time you go for job hunting, you will stand out from others due to the knowledge you have been able to acquire.
2)Develop a strong LinkedIn profile:
I know lots of people that opposes the fact that LinkedIn can be very helpful when you are hunting for jobs. I disagree strongly with this because I have also come across people who claimed to have gotten even more than a six digit paying job from LinkedIn, now instead of you to start doubting due to what you might have heard from one or two persons I encourage you to at least have a LinkedIn account while in your second year in college/university.
3)Socialize:
this was the part I wished I had known earlier. The kind of environment I grew up in made me became a chronic introvert as a teenager so when I got to college/university I couldn’t socialize/interact better with people around the academic environment,this can be a huge blow on life after schooling!.During the hunt for a job in Nigeria especially if you are from a middle/lower Class family with no sure connect for a job(lol nah Naija we Dey )I would strongly advise you make hay while the sun shines ie make use of your time while in school. Socialize better, interact with different people in the academic environment, Connect with people from different ethnicity, class and culture who knows?! one from these different people you connected with might just be of help to you in the future.
4)Have an idea/Find your passion:
It can be proven that about 80%of university students in Nigerian are studying courses that were given to them by either the university or were forced to change due to them not being able to meet up with the jamb score required to study a particular course.Well, I will strongly advise you discover yourself first ,discover your passion what you really like doing and then conclude which career part you want to face.During my undergrad years I had an hostelmate who was studying food science and technology but she wanted to be a professional fashion designer regardless of what she was studying.Now don’t get this point wrong ,many people in Nigeria would choose a business ,learn a trade or handwork due to situations surrounding employment in the country. However if you don’t have the passion of owning a business or learning a trade I would strongly advise you try not to venture into it as it might take you years to learn what would have taken another person who really had passion for it months to learn.This is part of the reason why you must discover yourself during your undergraduate years so you don’t make a huge mistake venturing into the wrong career path.
5)Make good grades:
Do grades really matter? Have heard some say .Well with the dichotomy between first class, second class and third class now in Nigeria It’s best you finish your tertiary education with the best grades possibly. This also helps in your hunt for a career job. Only an estimation of 20% Nigerian university graduates makes first class in a decade. As a result employers are forced to employ eligible persons from other countries who they think will be more befitting for the job, this is sad but we cannot necessarily blame them for such decisions .
still don’t know how to work towards achieving your goal as a six digit earner even before graduating college in Nigeria?
why not start from the second step on this article!!!
