Millennials and the Job Market
There is a great article over at Mashable titled: Why Can’t Millennials Find Jobs? That as I read it I kept shaking my head and thinking about schools, education and where this is all going.What I want to do is add my own thoughts to the research the article points to.66% not ready for workplaceThis is what companies are thinking? That our universities are producing graduates that are not prepared for the modern workplace? Why doesn't this come as a surprise to me? It should...I should be, I don’t know, upset maybe? Kids going to school going 10s of thousands of dollars in debt for companies to say they are not prepared.You see the work force has changed.Of course many say it is this generation. That they feel entitled to having a job....yet
AÂ Pew Research Study shows Millennials are not entitled; rather, having a high-paying job is low on their list of priorities, underneath both helping others and being a good parent.
But the one to me that I think is the easiest fix that K-12 can help with is this:
84% have not created a professional website or other positive online content which would improve online search results for their name. If you're unaware how potential employers will perceive you online, try out Abine's Hireability Calculator.
Why is this? Why are students finished with 16+ years of education and this has slipped through the cracks? Simple....we never had to worry about it before. Before the Internet you were hired based on the resume you created and the interview you gave. There was no Google, Facebook, Twitter. You weren't expected to have a professional website. Times have changed and are we preparing students to go out into the work force whether it be after high school or after college and compete in a competitive market? This screams to me once again why Facebook should be open in schools, why a graduation requirement for every senior should be to have a digital portfolio that is public on the web and controlled by them. We have been creating portfolios for years in education. Flipping the switch, moving it online and making it public is not that difficult. It means looking at things differently. It means understanding that the paper resume I practiced writing in business class all those years ago should be replaced (please tell me it has been!). A resume is nothing compared to the power of the Internet. Let’s teach kids how to use it for good.My favorite part of this article is it ends with three openings on the Mashable Job Board.Social Media Specialist Social Media Producer Digital Markering InternshipHave a read of those jobs and others on the board and tell me the educational system we have in place today is preparing students for these jobs. Only 1 of the 3 jobs listed here requires a bachelor's degree, all of them required social-networking skills and all of them list skills that could easily be taught to high school students. The jobs of tomorrow are here how have our educational institutions changed to keep up with the new job market? What is your school doing to prepare students for anyone of these or the 144 other jobs currently open on the Mashable Job List.