#TheGraduateDiaries

And so #TheGraduateDiaries continues!

I have been writing lots about youth employment- and unemployment focusing on graduates and today- I am going to share some of what I learned while looking up all this.

On May 20th I talked of Aims of Schools and continued with All in Good Time on May 27th- so what next?

Well, the internet- that's what's next.

There is so much stuff on graduating from colleges or universities and of course the one question people ask is "what next?"

I came across a blog The Graduate Diaries and you can also follow her tweets on @graduatediaries. (PS: I am providing you with this information just so you know- both of us are interested in the same topic- have some things to say and learn from it, do share the same research topic but are from different continents and studied different courses)

So- you have graduated from high school...and want to continue studying, why?

My guess is given the social dynamics it is to secure a job!

Okay, you graduate from the university, and before you attend your graduation you hold the sign...

So, good news is you are not alone- there's you and about a hundred thousand people yes 100,000 !

 So what makes you special? What makes you secure a job faster and most of all one with good pay? The answer is "YOU."

In my research I found that in Kenya people believe "you cannot get a job anywhere unless you know someone." Most people believe this but do not make use of it. So, if you need to know someone- why don't you take the step and know someone? I am talking of connections.

There are lots of connections- those that see you through and those that do not. In Kenya, because of vices most connections do not see people through. I mean if you work in an organization where your HR department is sending out adverts calling for an Accountant and you know a good friend who might fill that role- why don't you give him /her a call, and ask for them to apply?

That is the most crucial step- tell them to apply and make sure their CV stands out, even though you cannot force your HR department to hire your friend, at least let you friend know that there's a vacancy.

A lady told me she tried this and her friend kept asking her to push things for her- and when she wasn't shortlisted the friend said that she did not push through for her. Well, I told her she was being a friend not a campaign manager! You will encounter people like these of course- but using connections is important.

You have a good education, the right kind of papers, and some personality- why is it just so hard to secure a paying job?

Well, next time I am looking into that- but first I would like to focus on #StudentLoans and why for some reason there's an increasing pressure for graduates to secure jobs a semester or two before graduating and what this means for the Kenyan economy.

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Hate less, Love more: Fear less, Hope more.