A recent university graduate looks at job postings in Pyi Myanmar department store at Hledan Junction. Pic: Hein Latt Aung

THREE young people in their early 20s are gathered near the lift in Pyi Myanmar department store at Hledan Junction, staring at a board on which notices advertising job vacancies have been posted.

It is a common scene in the Hledan area, where many young adults live in hostels and attend classes, and where businesses looking for workers post job notices in crowded areas.

One of the three job seekers, a recent English graduate from Dagon University named Zaw Zaw, sighs as he read through the job postings.

“I don’t see anything that suits my educational background,” he says, “but I want to find a good job.”

Kaythi, another recent Dagon University graduate with a degree in English who has also taken private computer and secretarial courses, says she is tired of trying to survive in Yangon without a job.

“In addition to job boards, I also read job vacancy ads in journals and newspapers regularly,” she says. “When I see a job I like I apply for it, but so far it seems like I’m just wasting money buying forms to apply at job agencies because I haven’t been hired anywhere yet.”

“Some jobs offer salaries that are too low, like K20,000, but my monthly expenses in Yangon are at least K50,000,” she says with a hint of frustration in her voice. “If I can’t find a job in the next six months, my family wants me to go back to Bago where they live and help with the retail shop we opened in our home.”

Recent university graduates say that finding a good job with a high salary is difficult nowadays, especially with employers demanding increased proficiency in computer, foreign language and communication skills.

“The demand for good employees is rising and most companies want qualified and experienced staff members,” says a human resources consultant in Yangon. “Most qualified workers are already employed in good positions, so young people who want to start working need to pad their qualifications by taking professional courses like business, sales and marketing.”

“But the number of certificates they have won’t guarantee a good job if they don’t have much work experience,” he adds. “Balance is essential.”

The increasing need to take professional courses poses additional difficulties, as many young people who are not employed or are not from wealthy families have trouble affording the course fees.

Kyaw Zeya is one recent graduate who found that having a university degree alone wasn’t enough to secure a job.

“I just got a degree in mathematics from East University Yangon and I’m working as sales promoter at the pharmaceutical company, but my aim is to be a sales and marketing professional,” he says.

To achieve that goal, he says he has to take professional courses in sales and marketing to supplement his education.

“When I asked about the fees for a diploma course I was upset to find that a six-month course costs more than six months of my salary, and my family can’t afford to pay either,” he says. “For now, I’m gaining sales experience at my current job and saving money to take the courses. I’m sure I’ll be able to take them someday, but the question is, when?”

According to the human resources consultant, Kyaw Zeya is smart to start with a basic-level job in his field of choice to gain work experience before applying for a higher-level job.

“Most young people are too choosy about their job titles – they all want to start in high positions instead of at the basic level,” the consultant says. “But work experience is a very important criterion for employers, so it should be for young people as well.”

Some young adults are so desperate to find a good job that they end up getting cheated in the process of looking for work.

Yangon resident Ye Win, now a star employee at a local company, recalls a time shortly after he graduated from university when he was applying to every job he could find that suited his qualifications.

During his job search, a fellow student at an English class told Ye Win that he could help him get a job at a company where he knew the manager. However, the classmate suggested that Ye Win buy the manager gifts to ensure that he got the job.

“So, I gave my classmate K50,000 to buy a gift basket for the manager, and after that I never saw him in class again,” Ye Win says. “Then I realised I had been cheated.”