BizTech Talk #1: Standing Out!
According to Ms. Thuy Phuong, the pathway to success is not easy.
Graduated from Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT) with Chemical Engineering Degree and achieved success in Management – Service field, Ms. Tran Quang Thuy Phuong (Freelance ERP Project Manager & Change Consultant) and Ms. Tran Thi Cam Tu (Deputy Manager of Talentnet) have proved that engineers can totally apply their knowledge of technology field into other fields.
ENGINEERS AND JOBS OUT OF TECHNOLOGY FIELD
Technology field is considered to be tough for female students for its focusing on machinery and accuracy. The employers usually don’t highly appreciate capabilities of female engineers. Such thinking used to be Ms. Phuong’s obstacle when she was looking for a suitable job.
To her, Ms. Phuong, the pathway to success is not spread with flowers. Fresh graduates have to make great efforts to find a stand for their own.
“After graduating, students often looks for the positions having high salary, but they don’t consider if they can stand working there in a long term. Instead of that, fresh graduates should look for the jobs that suitable with their capabilities, interests first.” – Ms. Phuong frankly shared her thought with students attending the BizTech Talk #2.
Ms. Phuong also listed out 03 jobs requiring high sophistication, flexibility, which can fit female engineers’ characteristics:
1. Consultant in Technological field.
2. Lecturer for universities, institutions, colleges.
3. Business-woman
SHOULD FRESH ENGINEERS BE WORRIED?
“Fresh graduates, we have youth power and strong minds to prove that we deserve for being employed and even further promoted to higher positions”. – Tran Thi Cam Tu
A student wondered how he could persuade entrepreneurs to choose a fresh graduate but not an experienced one. With no hesitation, Ms. Tu immediately answered that we are the young who have enthusiasm and time to take risks and ready to rush into work and do the best of ours. Not only that, she also stressed that the word “fresh” means “new, not bind in shape and size and always be willing to learn”.
TIPS FOR IMPRESSIVE PROFILES
After talking with students about their experience, the two speakers had summarized some “pocket tips” for students to make the very first impression when applying for a job.
1.Good Academic Performance
Almost all of the company do require GPA at least 7.0 from applicants. However, GPA is not everything because there are many recruiters often give their candidates a case-study or presentation, of which confidence and flair make the most of the performance.
2.English fluency and soft skills
Deputy Manager of Talentnet didn’t forget to remind that Vietnamese students are very strong in specialized knowledge but weak in using English when comparing to students in the region. Besides that, having soft skill is one of the most prior criteria when screening for a potential candidate. Yet, soft skills are not seriously focused on most of the campuses.
Contributing to the experience of soft-skills self-training, a student named Nam has shared some of the ways he has applied so far. These are participating actively in team projects to improve team working skill; joining in social activities to broaden his knowledge; taking a part-time job to accumulate life skills and enhance communication skills.
From Nam’s opinion, soft skills can be accumulated via social and students activities.
3.Taking time to get known well of intend-to-apply company
Used to be one of the interviewers for Unilever Future Leader Program (UFLP), Ms. Tu told us a regretful case of an applicant. He had creative ideas, flexible reactions to certain situations, but he was out of the short-list for mistaking Unilever products with others’.
To not step in this mistake, the speaker advised us to get known well about not only the company, its products and services but also its policies and strategies before applying for a position in the company.
