So many young people in our country are now unemployed. Even the rate is rising among educated youth at an alarming rate. At least, different stats say so. According to a report by Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), 66 per cent or two-thirds of the students who have passed from the colleges affiliated to the National University are unemployed at the moment. Meanwhile, according to another study titled ‘Employment and unemployment amongst educated youth in Bangladesh’ conducted by BIDS, unemployment rate among Bachelor’s degree holders is 36.6% whereas the rate among Master’s degree holders stands at 34.3%.

Why so many young educated people don’t have jobs? The very first reason is the fact that the curriculum the universities (including National University) are following is not appropriate if we consider the market trends of this era. One serious problem with our curriculum is that it’s not changed or modified on a regular basis taking the academic necessities of the age into account. As a result, students keep reading the same old things, many of which are already obsolete in our present context.

The most significant reason is that graduates are not well-equipped for the job market. Two things are contributing to this problem – a serious mismatch between what the educational institutions are teaching and what the employers are looking for among the job aspirants, and lack of future-fit or job-oriented skills.

Job aspirants also lack future-fit skills or expertise someone needs to thrive in the present-day job context. This is an age that is largely driven by digital trends. Meanwhile, as the pandemic has forced many to adopt new techniques to carry on their works, modern workplaces are heavily reliant on digital activities. Digital transformation is catalyzing changes in the modern-day workplaces, meaning that the employees require a whole new set of skills to adopt to these workplaces. If the candidates do not possess those qualities and skills, their possibility of getting a job diminishes to a great extent. Candidates not willing to develop those market-oriented skills or unaware of those demands ultimately lag behind in the race.

Moreover, personal branding has turned out to be a deciding factor in this age. There are many companies and employers who hire people following different business and employment-oriented online services like LinkedIn. That’s why, personal branding has become vital for the job aspirants.

(The writer is a columnist.)