What College Students Are Prioritizing When Searching For a Job During COVID-19

Over the past few years, RippleMatch research has consistently found that Gen Z college students prioritize professional development significantly more than other factors when choosing a job. However, the advent of COVID-19 has complicated the job search process for both candidates and employers. To learn if candidate priorities have changed over the past few months, RippleMatch surveyed 2,210 college students for the Navigating Entry-level Jobs & Internships During COVID-19 report. Despite the recent upheaval in the job market, candidate priorities have not changed as much as might be expected. 

The survey asked respondents to rank on a scale of 1 to 5 (Not Important to Extremely Important) how important four factors (Professional Development, Job Stability, Compensation, and Company Mission) were in their current job search. Among all respondents, professional development still came out on top with an overall score of 4.1, although job stability was a close second at 4.0. Compensation was scored at 3.8 and company mission at 3.5. Although economic factors are definitely playing a role in candidate priorities, the continued importance of professional development suggests that candidates are taking a long-term approach to their career goals.

Delving deeper into the data, demographics played a huge role in determining which of the four factors were most important to Gen Z candidates. For example, women ranked job stability and professional development as equally important (4.03), while men ranked professional development as much more important than job stability (4.25 and 3.91, respectively). Women were also more likely than men to prioritize company mission (3.53 vs. 3.37).

Furthermore, underrepresented minorities (URM) placed higher emphases on all four factors compared to respondents who did not self-identify as an underrepresented minority (non-URM). The most noticeable differences were in job stability (4.17 vs 3.93), compensation (3.9 vs. 3.72), and professional development (4.24 vs. 4.08). Underrepresented minorities were only slightly more likely than non-URMs to prioritize company mission. Interestingly, these findings during COVID-19 are consistent with previous RippleMatch data showing that women and URM candidates prioritize company mission and social impact more than their male and non-URM counterparts.

For employers who are still actively hiring, this suggests that it’s not enough for candidates to simply find a job. Candidates will want to learn more about professional development programs and how they will be able to grow at the company – and help the company grow, as well.

To find out more about how entry-level roles and internships were impacted at the onset of COVID-19, download our Navigating Entry-level Jobs & Internships During COVID-19 report.