Students prepare for career prospects after COVID-19

Brittany Henderson
MC301 Contributor

The Covid-19 Coronavirus has taken much away from college students; parties, fully packed football stadiums, and even though less exciting, standing in line for registration. However, many students and professionals fear there is another thing COVID-19 has threatened students with, lack of job prospects after graduation.

According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, due to COVID-19, 13 percent of students have delayed graduation, while 40 percent lost a job, internship, or a job offer.

With fewer internships and networking opportunities, it could spell doom for students who are not prepared for what companies are looking for in a post-COVID work culture.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics, the unemployment rate was up 4.9 percent from February before the shutdowns caused by the Coronavirus; accounting for an additional 7.8 million people being without jobs in August. Though the United States has seen an increasing number of people returning to work, there is still the question of will students be able to obtain careers after graduation.

Aria Brent, a sophomore journalism and media studies major from Columbus, Ohio, is one of the students concerned about job prospects.

Brent explained that she plans on doing expose journalism once she graduates. While she is positive that her career path will not come to a halt entirely, she believes that performing her future job will be more difficult than before the pandemic.

“I am a little nervous (about job prospects) but thank God for Zoom. Even though, I prefer to interview someone in person, I’m more than willing to interview over social media,” said Brent

So what about work experience? Internships have always been a great way to obtain experience while in college. However, COVID-19 made many summer internships disappear. Some individuals were lucky enough to be working at companies that offered virtual internships.

Deja Davis, a senior journalism and media studies major from Atlanta, Ga., was one of those lucky individuals. Davis is in her second year of an internship with NBC Universal.

“I would say the hardest part would be actually securing a job! Some students have already secured a job before the pandemic which is amazing, while others possibly will have to struggle a bit,” said Davis.

What exactly can students do to stand out to potential employers during this time? Former associate director of Jackson State University’s Career Services Center, LaVenita Cottrell, had some advice to combat the challenges college students are now faced with.

“Students should not become discouraged during these uncertain times,” said Cottrell. “The number one thing is to be both flexible and adaptable, which might mean learning new skill-sets when hired by an organization.”

Cottrell also stated that even though workplaces look and feel different, there are still positions to be filled. She gave these tips for standing out above the rest.

• Keep resumes up-to-date and keep the updated version available on LinkedIn pages
•  Become technology savvy in communication skills both verbal and nonverbal
• If asked to work virtually, create a work environment where you can stay focused and connected in a professional manner.

Cottrell was very optimistic saying, “In the long run, working virtually provides an opportunity to learn new skills that can be transferred over when everything returns to ‘normal’.”

As advised by Cottrell, it is important to have a strong resume. Indeed.com published an article about how to have your resume stand out to hiring managers.