Worried about securing a decent job while you study abroad or after you complete your education? I’ll be honest, securing a job overseas has not remained the same for international students. As major hubs of global education face the burden of overcrowding, finding a job abroad is trickier than ever. Moreover, countries are introducing new curbs on international students making it even more complicated.
Needless to say, when a student decides on their study abroad journey, the goal is not limited to education. If you choose to undertake the hassle of overseas education, you will certainly seek a career too in that country. In the present dynamics, the sea of opportunities abroad seems to have shrunk.
Whether you choose to study in Canada or the US or the UK, the job market is brutal. International students are in excess while jobs are deficient. In such scenarios, only those who work on enhancing their competitive advantages will succeed.
I will simplify this for you both from the career counseling perspective and my experience of overseas education. I am going to elaborate on a few recommendations and tactics that can boost your employability prospects. So, let’s dive right in!
How To Enhance Your Employability As An International Student
Be Thoughtful in Your Course Selection
Gone are the days when you could enroll in any study abroad program and hope to find a job easily thereafter. The contemporary world works around relevance and specific demands across industries.
Having said that, make sure your choice of the program is based on critical thinking. You need to analyze which courses actually find purchase across industries and have bright prospects. For instance, a web development specialization may not be very helpful since AI is replacing coding jobs. However, going for a course in artificial intelligence or health informatics may give you a larger career scope.
Moreover, go for courses that offer industry exposure in the form of co-op programs or placement years. Such courses will not only give you effective professional exposure but also help you build strong connections in the industry. Needless to say, these connections can come in very handy later when you look to find a full time job.
Lastly, if you are planning to study in Canada, make sure you choose a course that is eligible for a Post Study Work Permit. You must know that as per the new regulations by Canada, not all courses are PGWP eligible.
So, you now have a lot of deliberation to do as you plan your overseas education and choice of courses.
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Keep Adding Value to Your Resume
I understand that an international student’s daily life can be very exhausting and annoying at times. The mandatory hustle international students have to go through leaves no time for personal growth.
However, if you have to ensure you remain more employable than others, you need to work on your resume. You can always do small courses available online or at least learn some new hard skills from YouTube over weekends. Needless to say, it has to be relevant to your education and the job you seek.
As you do that, by sparing 3-4 hours every weekend, you can keep adding more and more value to your resume. A more streamlined and well equipped resume will certainly give you an edge over your peers.
Network Smartly
We Indians love to leverage references and contacts that get the work done for us, isn’t it? You will realize the importance of these references and contacts the most when you’re abroad and looking for opportunities.
Having said that, while you study abroad, make sure you network smartly and are able to build strong connections. On any given day, you never know which contact or connection will help you find the best-fit job for you!
You should have a clear understanding of what kind of connections will facilitate your success. Further, you should work on nurturing these connections so that you can benefit from them later. The smarter your networking skills, the more worthwhile your network the higher the prospects of success.
Work on Enhancing Your Soft Skills
Soft skills hold the key to career success in contemporary times in the truest sense. Simply put, soft skills are your interpersonal skills that dictate how you communicate and work with others.
Further, these are the skills that are equally important in all kinds of jobs. Some common examples of soft skills include communication skills, adaptability, resilience, collaboration, critical thinking and so on. In fact, soft skills will also include problem solving skills, creativity and relationship-building skills.
You’ll be amazed to know that as per Harvard Business Review, 85 percent of career success depends on soft skills. This realization shall suffice for you to set realistic goals for soft skills development. The more you enrich your soft skills the higher the chances of getting a lucrative job.
Leverage Internship Opportunities
I mentioned this while talking about the choice of courses and I’ll say it again, professional experience is irreplaceable. It would be very hard for employers to overlook a candidate who has relevant professional experience in the field.
Having said that, during your semester breaks, please push yourself to find worthwhile internships. An internship experience or two will give a lot of merit to your application and also show a genuine interest in the job.
Even if it's an unpaid internship that you can do in semester breaks briefly, take it for the experience. That unpaid internship might fetch you big bucks later.
Imagine applying to an IT firm for a job when you have internships in AI and software development under your belt! Employers would certainly be interested!
Keep an Eye on Dynamic Job Trends
In the present day and age, job dynamics change quickly. With technology making a few jobs vulnerable and supply-demand shifts, it becomes very important to keep a close eye. Hence, make it a habit to read about careers, job trends and global economic opportunities on a consistent basis.
Follow some good publications that talk about job markets, industry trends and career success. Some good examples include Forbes, Bloomberg, Business Standard, The Financial Times and so on.
Write a Tailored Cover Letter
If you want to stand out from the crowd, you need to go the extra mile. In the context of finding a job, your cover letter will be the equivalent of that extra mile. Write a tailored cover letter to submit in addition to your resume.
The term ‘tailored’ here means that your cover letter is specific to the job role you are applying to. You can check out some cover letter templates and examples to get a better hang of it.
So, that is all from my side in this context! I am sure the above tips will help you in navigating a compact job market successfully. The key is to keep working on your personal growth, make the right choices of courses and build a strong network of essential contacts. If you can do that effectively, you will certainly have an edge over others.
I wish you all the very best in your career endeavors!
Also Read
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