It’s a stressful time to be a college student. Halfway through the spring semester, most colleges transitioned to remote instruction and canceled major events such as graduation ceremonies. College seniors also have the added stress of finding their first full-time job in the middle of a global pandemic. Last month, RippleMatch conducted a survey of 2,210 college students across 367 universities to learn more about the biggest challenges that college students are facing in their job search during COVID-19. For most students, the biggest job search challenges are not knowing which companies are hiring and not hearing back from employers after submitting an application.
Most job seekers are familiar with the feeling of submitting an application into the void and never receiving a response. During COVID-19, students are still struggling with a lack of communication from prospective employers, with 74% of survey respondents noting that unresponsiveness is a challenge. However, 83% of student respondents believe that knowing which companies are hiring is the biggest challenge of searching for a job right now. If students don’t know which companies are hiring, they will miss out on opportunities for applying to jobs that could be a great fit – and employers will miss out on talented entry-level candidates.
Interestingly, the survey also revealed that most students don’t experience as many job search challenges after reaching the interview stage. Fewer than a third of respondents identified challenges related to communicating with recruiters, understanding company culture during remote interviews, or scheduling interviews.
Another key finding from the survey is that because students are not sure if their field is hiring, 72% have expanded their search to encompass jobs outside of their preferred role and 68% are applying for jobs outside of their preferred industries. More specifically, students in “generalist” fields such as consulting and HR are more likely to look for new roles and industries, rather than students with more technical backgrounds such as engineering.
With so many students unsure of which companies are actively hiring, and a significant majority expressing interest in new fields, companies that are recruiting for entry-level roles should ensure that the careers page of their website and any company profile on job search sites accurately reflect hiring status.
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.
