It is only after graduation that one begins to realise how honey-coated student life was. Smacked by the hurdles of real life, you start wishing you could age backwards. Sadly, the time machine has yet to be invented -- and thus begins the struggles of finding employment.
It starts off with a frenetic hunt for job circulars. With the Internet integrated into our very lives, the job search has extended from print media to web portals, making it a fairly easy endeavour.Social networks have also had a positive impact, by opening up dedicated groups in which job circulars are regularly posted. Universities also often host interactive sessions, competitions, and seminars as part of their career development programs.
Yet, finding a desirable job with decent pay is a tough job in itself for many. With the number of graduates being so much higher than the number of jobs available, and the widespread favouritism and nepotism prevalent in the job market, it quickly becomes an exercise in futility.
In addition to that, fresh graduates also have to undergo some rather unnecessary difficulties. Such difficulties include companies which post jobs without even stating the company’s name, instead, posting circulars as “a reputed multi-national company.” This is quite common in Bangladesh job portals and social media job circulars.
New graduates are always eager to find jobs, and many end up applying willy-nilly. With the inadequate company information made available, it often turns out to be a useless exercise because of the mismatch between the vacancy and what the applicant was actually looking for. This anonymity is said to be the company’s “compliance policy of non-disclosure” -- whatever that may be, this rule is certainly misleading many new graduates, wasting their time and effort.
Furthermore, the process of getting a job in Bangladesh is painstakingly lengthy. Upon application, the interviewee is called for assessment within a time-frame of two weeks to two months on an average! The assessment process is usually of five tiers -- the first three including a written examination, group discussion, and presentation.
After successful completion of the aforementioned phases, there is the HR interview and then the final interview -- all this for an entry-level job. The same process is generally repeated for each job a freshly graduated student applies to. Such thorough and time-consuming screening processes leads one to question employers’ trust in the credibility of the four-year graduate certificates in our country.
Then again, due to a high number of candidates, it is perhaps less of a matter of trust, meaning only to sort out the most deserving candidates.
One would imagine that employing the best of the best through such thorough screening systems will ensure a good payment. However, to much disappointment, the salary of a fresh graduate is hardly ever adequate. After subtracting expenditures like daily conveyance, meals, and other basic expenses, there is little left.
Numerous companies have employment contracts that bind an employee legally for a certain time period, and breach of the contract imposes monetary compensation. While this has little to no value in the court of law, there are cases where the employee had to pay monetary compensation to join elsewhere.
Another problem new graduates face is that of employers preferring experienced individuals even for entry-level posts. Even though their job circular clearly aims for, and encourages, fresh graduates, experienced candidates have more of a competitive edge.
In most domestic companies, and even some multi-nationals, there is a lack of clarity, respect, and proper maintenance of working hours. Concepts like workplace ethics, harassment laws, good corporate culture, and maintaining employee morale still are issues which are not adequately sorted out in Bangladeshi companies -- the lack of a good working environment adversely impacts the motivation and self-esteem of recently graduated employees.
Given the state of individual security in Bangladesh, bogus interview calls are dime a dozen. Prior to attending an assessment or interview at a firm, it is imperative that you inform your family members about the location of the office.
Forming alumni groups in social media or career development services in universities which are actually effective can provide meritorious students with opportunities to land the job they want.Given the thorough screening processes, the long waiting hours for interviews, the four years of studying in expensive universities, and the costs of daily living, one cannot help but wonder if a job which pays peanuts is actually worth all that trouble.
