Now that graduation season is coming, college seniors must be very nervous to dive into the next phase of their adulthood — job hunting!
Starting a career is crucial to every Filipino graduate. Whether it be rooted from your family’s expectations, or you just have a strong ambition to get your dream job — job hunting is quite a tough task to accomplish.
There are lots of questions that fresh grads might ask, and one of them will probably be something about how a company selects their employees.
Particularly, an applicant might ask, “Does school really matter when companies assess their applicants?” In the Philippines, it is a common notion that the most successful professionals come from top universities, or what Pinoys refer to as the ‘Big 4’.
According to the QS World University Rankings, the Philippines’ top 4 universities are as follows: the University of the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University, and the University of Santo Tomas.
Most Pinoys believe that company recruiters were more likely to accept graduates from ‘Big 4’ universities as compared to other schools. This might have discouraged or worried other applicants that they have lesser chances of landing the job because of their educational background.
Well — there is good news! Contrary to popular opinion, qualifying for a job is not as simple as that.
In fact, recruiters may think differently because there are many other factors to consider in recruiting employees. To elaborate on this, HR (Human Resources) TikTok is there to offer you experience-based opinions!
Tessa Mercado, more known on TikTok as ‘Millennial HR Manager’, shares her own thoughts and experience as an HR personnel.
In a minute-long video, she says, “Kung tatanungin niyo ako kung ‘yong school ba ay nagmamatter during the job interview, my answer is no.”
https://www.tiktok.com/@millennialhrmanager/video/6987477478143053057?
For Mercado, school alone is not the make or break factor for an applicant because she considers the applicants’ college education as equals — in other words, everyone equally studied college no matter the school.
“Sa totoo lang, pare-pareho din naman kasi tayong nag-aral. Naniniwala akong mas importante ‘yung attitude towards work, kaysa doon sa skill — kasi skills can be learned. Iyong attitude mo is hindi, dahil ikaw na ‘yan,” she added.
Although, she did note that human resources in every company might be different and so are their recruitment policies and standards. But in her experience, it is the soft skills that matter more.
Another content creator on TikTok named Jefrey Robles offered his thoughts on the matter. More known as ‘jefwid1f’, he shares his experiences as an HR staff that assesses their company’s applicants.
“A large portion of my job is actually to assess the applicant in terms of skill, experience, knowledge in terms of tools — and school actually does matter, but only in certain situations,” he said.
@jefwid1f #stitch with @kcrosario1 Hope you land that job! #HRAdvice #HR #HumanResources #firstjobtips #fyp #fypシ #Jobtok #employee #corporate #Advice #foryou
For Jefrey, what generally matters the most in an applicant is their credentials in line with the job they are applying for. This includes — as cited — work experience, exposure in seminars or workshops, or certifications in work-related tools.
He explains that an applicant with better credentials is more likely to be accepted regardless of their educational background — no matter if its competitors are from the country’s top universities.
On the other hand, he explains another scenario saying, “What if the applicants are all equally inexperienced and new to the workforce?”
“Let’s say both of them [applicants] are fresh grads; the first one would be from a prestigious school and the second one will come from a lesser known school. Since the both of them are on the same level — and after deliberation and assessment both of them are equal — then school, in this case, would be the make or break factor,” he explains.
Jefrey explains that this is because companies usually find top universities more reassuring because their students have typically undergone relevant practices, training and education instilled in the school’s curriculum.
He also adds that some HR personnels might consider the school in instances that the core values of an applicant’s alma mater is compatible with the values that the company is looking for.
Moreover, employee recruitment is not as simple as looking at an applicant’s educational background. It is a mix of work experiences, skills, attitude, and values. At the end of the day, it depends on the company’s rules, HR’s own standards, and pure luck that you land a job!
So, you must worry less about school now and start strategizing for a successful job application. Whether it be getting work experience through internships or developing your personal character — landing your dream job is totally up to your strategy and not your education alone.
While there are lots of horror stories from other people about their job interviews, do not forget to stay above all the odds and trust yourself no matter what.
In all sense, good luck on your next interview!
Source: https://www.topuniversities.com/where-to-study/asia/philippines/guide
https://www.facebook.com/millennialhrmanager/about/?ref=page_internal, https://www.facebook.com/jefpolorobles/about
