Blog

For a fresh graduate, looking for your first job can be confusing. It’s hard to know what to search for, and even if you do find a job that looks interesting, it’s hard to tell if you have the required experience to actually land the job.

An entry-level job is a job that generally requires little skill and knowledge, and is generally of a low pay. These jobs may require physical strength or some on-site training. Many entry-level jobs are part-time, and do not include employee benefits. Recent graduates from high school or college usually take entry-level positions.

Entry-level jobs which are targeted at college graduates often offer a higher salary. These positions are more likely to require specific skills and knowledge. Most entry-level jobs offered to college graduates are full-time permanent positions.

Most of these positions are with a good deal of on-the-job training included. Some are also part-time or temporary. According to About.com, benefits are not always offered with these positions, but many companies do include them as part of the package. Entry-level positions are good opportunities for recent graduates or those hoping to break into a new career field. Employers benefit from these employees as well because the company has the chance to train the employee in a specific manner conducive to the company’s goals.

An entry level job may or may not require (or at least prefer) some level of work experience. Most often, this work experience may be gained through internship, which are most commonly offered for 10-12 weeks during the summer break from college) or cooperative education (i.e. coops), which are often offered concurrent to the semester or quarter of education and are therefore in place of (or in addition to) the student’s normal education schedule.

The generally accepted crossover point from entry level to experienced is when the candidate has gained some level of experience in the chosen field or profession beyond graduation. However, it is usually only after a year of experience that the new job seeker is competing at an experienced level rather than entry level. For example, if a new entry level hire were to be terminated after only 3-6 months of work after graduation, that person would likely still be competing at the entry level for the next role. While the one year experience level is arbitrary and depending on the experience gained, it is the standard for most corporate recruiters when reviewing the resume of candidates.

---

Read: Searching for an Entry-Level Job in Kenya? Here’s what you need to know…

As a college or university student, you’ll often come across opportunities that are targeted towards someone like you. Often you’ll read in job descriptions that such opportunity are best suited for students or recent graduates.

For some, you might be looking for something to keep you busy or gain you some experience. So, depending on what stage you are in your tertiary education, here are the options you might try to focus on.

Industrial Attachment

Industrial Attachment are on work opportunities meant for continuing students. Those undertaking industrial attachment program are referred to as attachés.

This program can be part-time if offered during a university semester and full-time if offered during the long holiday, when they typically last between two to three months.

Attachment programs rarely attract any compensation.

Internships

An internship on the other hand is a work opportunity offered to either continuing students on long holiday, students awaiting graduation or recent graduates. Such employees are called interns, and they work for a fixed, limited period of time.

Most internships last for any length of time between two months to 12 months. They are usually targeted on recent graduates who are yet to get any formal employment and the emphasis is usually on training on the corporate culture, rather than employment itself.

Internships offer students a period of a wider practical experience in the industry relating to their field of study.

Internships are mostly unpaid but some offer stipend to cover some expenses incurred during the internship period.

Why do an Internship?

An internship provides a great opportunity for prospective employees to gain experience in a particular field or industry, determine if they have an interest in a particular career, create a network of contacts, or gain university module credits. Interns may also have the possibility of putting themselves forward for forthcoming opportunities for paid work, during their internship.

Internships are supposed to be educational and teach interns hands-on skills that they won’t learn in a classroom.

Graduate Trainee Programs

Graduate Trainee opportunities which are meant for recent graduates and are usually full-time and mostly run for a year. Such opportunities usually lead to full-time employment being offered after completion.

Trainee programs put an emphasis on learning the ins and outs of the role you’ll be placed in after completion of the program. The learning experience is usually targeted on the core responsibilities involved in the chosen career path.

Trainee roles usually are paid below the market rates, just enough to cover the daily expenses and upkeep.

---

Now that you have an idea of what student jobs might look like, you’re better placed to pick what to apply for your current stage in life.

Any of these experiences can be added to your resume or CV.

Depending on your performance in any of the roles described above, employers usually use these opportunities to shortlist prospects for full-time employment.

The prospect of hiring ex-interns or attaches is appealing to employers because a candidate who has spent time working for a firm within a particular industry shows dedication to a particular career, enthusiasm for a particular job and importantly, has experience.

If you apply for a full-time employment in a company you interned/attached at, the chances of being shortlisted will be high as you’ll already have an understanding of the company and the job you will be doing and you’ll require little or no training.

The Higher Education Loans Board (Helb) has announced that it will phase out internship loans to undergraduate students within two years.

Chief executive Charles Ringera said the internship aid that ranges between Sh6,000 and Sh12,000 is being scaled down and would be phased out in two years.

The students’ loan agency has asked students to seek the support of National Industrial Training Authority, which is mandated to support industrial attachments.

Helb has been offering internship loans to meet students’ needs like accommodation during their internship that comes either in the middle or end of course work.

“We have asked the universities to advise their students that the practicum component has been discontinued,” he said.

The loans agency has been struggling to meet the needs of growing number of university students, forcing some to do without Helb’s assistance.

Most of the students come from poor backgrounds and require financial aid to meet their tuition fees and upkeep.

Mr Ringera said the scaling down of attachment loans was due to, among others things, the need to promote equity and fairness.

“Currently the students eligible for practicum or attachment loans are only the ones taking the traditional science and technology-based programmes like engineering, medicine, dental, pharmacy and nursing thus locking out other programmes which also incorporate field and teaching practice within their education programmes. This has led to inequity and unfairness,” he said.

Mr Ringera added that the growing number of universities and programmes requiring field practice support has put a serious dent on Helb’s ability to continue funding them hence the reason to discontinue.

He also said it is not sustainable in the long run as the internship support will affect the student loans budget which is already strained.

Tuskys Supermarket has signed a partnership with KCB to provide internships for 1,600 youths at its 50 outlets.

The supermarket chain will offer internship opportunities to beneficiaries of the KCB Foundation’s 2Jiariri scholarship scheme launched in March this year.

The bank’s Sh10 billion-a-year youth empowerment programme is meant to benefit 500,000 small-scale entrepreneurs over the next five years.

Tuskys, on the other hand, has been running an internship programme for fresh graduates and youth launched in October last year.

The programme is aimed at creating a pool of skilled staff for its outlets countrywide and tackling unemployment among the youth.

The partnership will also target 13,000 youths across 22 counties for contract farming opportunities in agribusiness.

KCB will provide the youths asset financing and working capital. Tuskys has committed to buy all the produce of programme beneficiaries. KCB Foundation Executive Director, Jane Mwangi, said the initiative will offer entrepreneurial youth a shot at economic empowerment.

“At KCB Foundation it is our belief that the youth hold the greatest sway in the pace and trajectory that the East African economy will take into the future.

‘‘We also acknowledge the great contribution agriculture makes to the national GDP and we are committed to supporting the sector,” Ms Mwangi said at the signing ceremony.

Tuskys Supermarket CEO Daniel Githua said the partnership will pool resources, skills and experiences to advance youth skills, self-employment and further hone entrepreneurship skills among the youth while at the same time providing employment opportunities for beneficiaries.

“We have noted a marked improvement in terms of productivity from youths who have gone through our internship programme,” said Mr Githua.

KCB Group, through its foundation, expects to generate 2.5 million new jobs by helping build skills among artisans and ease their access to capital.

Source: BusinessDailyAfrica

Getting a job interview let alone an internship opportunity in Kenya can be a daunting task in such tough economic times. With the increasing number of graduates annually and many businesses struggling, knowing where and how to search for internship opportunities can be key in you making the first step in your career development. This article is meant to give you some tips on how to find an internship opportunities in Kenya.

Before we get to the tips, it might be important to highlight what internship jobs are and why you should have one or two while still in college or soon after graduating.

Internships are very important as they give interns a chance to explore hands-on what they’ll be expected to do on a daily in the professional world and also understand the expectations from team leaders/managers once they are offered a permanent role in a department.

Now that you have a rough idea why you should go for that internship, here are tips on how to go about it.

1. Begin Your Searching Early

One of the biggest mistakes students/graduates make is assuming they have the time. Consider this, you get only four months for the long holidays, an internship/attachment are usually three months, if you wait until your holiday to apply, you’ll be betting on getting instant reply for the very first application you make.

As soon as you can, start making a shortlist of companies that you can apply for and those that you stand the higher chance of landing the role. By ensuring that you have a systematic way of searching for internship opportunities as well as targeting the right companies, your searching will be a lot easier.

Whether you are in your first or second year, start looking for a ground to gain experience early enough. Search as widely as you can by availing yourself to employers even if it means volunteering for free.

2. Start Networking as early as you can

The saying your network is your net-worth can never be further from the truth. Look at it this way, say you have an emergency and need some quick cash, how many people will have to call before you’re sorted out?

Same applies to career, if you want leads on a role, how many people can you think of who can guide you the right way?

Through connections, it becomes easier to know where you can begin when searching for an internship, if they can’t directly help, they might suggest companies you can apply for.

I know you’re confused how you can start networking as an 18-20 year old, here are tips: attend career fairs and exhibition where you will meet different employers, join student clubs that interest you, engage your lecturers outside the lecture halls, embrace small talks with people outside your age group, etc…

3. Leverage your online presence

The fact that you’re reading this means you have access to the internet. I’d bet you have accounts on more than one social media platforms. With that, you have access to all you might need to get yourself an internship.

Find sites or social media accounts that usually post internship opportunities, follow companies that you’d like to intern at, create alerts for roles that you are eyeing. If these sound too much, just google internships near me

With that, you’ll be always in the know of what companies are hiring and what they’ll be looking for in an intern.

4. Map your career interests

For any given course, you always have a number of different roles that you can be employed for. If you’re not sure, just google, “careers opportunities for *your course* graduate“.

Once you have the options, pick the top 5 that most excite you. Now find companies/organizations that are most likely to employ such individuals.

With that done, see what else can give you an edge. Can be a skill or experience. Start to find opportunities that can give you that.

---

With these four tips, you’ll be set to start and advance your career from as early as you like. Always remember, in life, never settle, never lack a plan.