The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact, not just on the health of billions of people around the world, but on nearly all aspects of life. It has led to an economic recession that has been described as the worst since the great depression of the 1930s. 

The fallout has included crashing the stock-market, to negatively affecting consumer behaviour and wreaking havoc on various industries, with the global economy expected to recover slowly—by 2021 or further. 

All of these mean that for fresh graduates seeking work in 2021, the prospects are not so good. Already, we have already seen a sharp increase in the numbers of our clients who have had offers permanently withdrawn due to the pandemic. Going forward, job hunting, which has always been a challenging task, will be more competitive than ever. 

4 Ways to Boost your Chances of Getting a Job Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic

That was the bad news. Now the good news – despite the challenges you’re likely to face, you can improve your chances of getting your dream job. Your new challenge will be to demonstrate that you genuinely have more to offer prospective employers, and to stand out from the crowd. Here are four tactics to help you achieve this:

1.      Take Online Courses to Learn New Skills

Take advantage of this time to acquire new skills or brush up on some that you already have. Whatever the topic may be, the internet offers you a myriad of courses, many of them free, to choose from. 

2.      Work on Your Social Media Presence

Now that you have more time on your hands, dedicate some of it to improving your online presence. According to the Manifest 2020 Recruitment Survey, 90% of employers now consider an applicant’s social media during the recruitment process. A few simple things you can do to improve your social media presence are: 

·         Optimize your profiles.

·         Go through your accounts and clean up any inappropriate content.

·         Follow people in the field that you are interested in and build up your network.

3.      Hone your CV and Prepare for Interviews

If you don’t have one, find out how to create a professional CV and do so now that you have some free time. If you do already have one, cast a critical eye upon it and find out if there are any ways that you can improve it. 

You can also start preparing yourself for interviews. At this time, and for a while to come, the predominant interview forms are video and phone interviews. Finding out how to impress recruiters during such interviews will give you a competitive advantage.

4.      Sign up for our premium package

One of the best ways to beat off the competition is by getting expert help from genuine industry professionals. If you had someone to hand you a precise formula to success, it probably wouldn’t matter how much competition you face. At Graduate Scheme Success this is exactly what we offer our clients. We are genuine industry insiders with years of experience of handling recruitment and we know precisely how to help you achieve the results you seek.

We strongly recommend that you sign up for our Gold Package which will provide you with detailed guidance to every stage of the recruitment process. The help we offer includes detailed guidance on preparing your application resources, insight into assessment centres, and example exercise, among others.

Surviving the COVID-19 Economic Downturn and Coming Out Stronger

The impact of COVID-19 might continue to be felt for a long time to come. And the changes it has influenced in the world of business might remain far into the future. In spite of this, many excellent job opportunities will continue to be available for the right candidates, and you can put yourself in an excellent position by following the tips we have shared in this article.

If you would like to find out more, please get in touch and we would love to walk you through the process.