Studying engineering is not a joke considering the academic works and training you have undergone. Hence, seeking for a good-paying work wouldn’t be bad for your career. This post will focus on how to find engineering jobs in Nigeria after graduation.
Though getting employment in the country is not an easy one, the fresh graduates of major engineering courses seem to have better advantage over other professions. For instance, out of all the job vacancies flowing into the internet in Nigeria about 50% are basically for engineers or its related professions.
These job vacancies have requirements which always favor the fresh graduates in most cases. Some of the requirements you will find in engineering job vacancies are: age limit, Grade of certificate obtained, course of study in engineering, and few other requirements.
Despite the above requirements, there are still job vacancies that favors only the old and experienced candidates in engineering. Such jobs require experience and matured mind and is mostly on the managerial/supervisory aspects of engineering works.
However, field works in production, construction, and manufacturing industries seem to have mixing of young age and experienced candidates. In that case, getting experience in engineering works with young age can increase your employability chances in engineering works.
There are different approach to finding job as a graduate of any engineering disciple in the country though, there is no way that can be guaranteed hundred percent for automatic job, some of the ways in this post will at least provide fifty percent chances for you.
Please note that before deciding to look for work ensure that you have completed your NYSC program or have your exemption letter because most firms/employers would ask for it. Assuming you have got your NYSC certificate ready. The starting point of looking for employment is via the internet.
First of all, search for top engineering companies in Nigeria relating to the course of engineering you studied. For example, if you studied chemical engineering, you can start by search for plastic industries, chemical industries, foam-making industries, Paint-making industries, and lots more. The more industries you are able to get on your list the more chances of getting the employment you are looking.
Note that industries do not like paying high salary to fresh graduates so bring down your expectations when making your search for the first job after graduation because such job is to acquire experience that can help to propel you to the next line of your career.
Having secured about twenty to fifty companies names in your list. Visit the companies’ official websites and use the “Contact us” page to reach out to the companies. If there is email address provided for contact, use the email address to send personalized email and possibly attach your CV to the email.
Some companies’ website equally have the “Career” page or “Vacancy” page while some may give it another name. the sole purpose of such page in the company website is to advertise any vacancy in the company and allow external applicants to submit their credentials if you come across website pages like that, it is advisable to click off the page and see if any vacancy exists and if it does, does it related to your profession, if the answer is “Yes” then go ahead and apply directly from the company’s website.
Besides the strategy specified above, you can also use the internet to get your dream job by creating account on popular job hunting websites and social media such as LinkedIn, Jobberman, seek, and many others.
Companies equally use such platforms to advertise their vacancies and sometime may recruit directly from those platforms without the need of visiting their own website. Besides, not all companies have website.
So, such companies will depend on the job hunting platforms to get the professionals they are looking for. Visit the at least top twenty job hunting websites, create a job-seeker account, highlight all your qualifications, experience, and the type of jobs you can fit into in any organization and upload your CV on the website. Majority of people that do this can been testifying of its incredible result.
If you can do the above for about 20 popular job hunting websites, our popularity will grow and more companies in need of your service are more likely to contact you.
The next step and probably last step is the physical contact approach. This method is stressful, expensive, time-consuming, and sometime leads to abuse or insult. It is the ancient method for job seekers. Meanwhile, the internet will still play a role in it.
First, you need to visit the websites of all the companies or most of the companies deemed necessary for your profession, copy out their various head office address in Nigeria or branch office closer to your location.
Then visit the address with your CV and photocopy of your credentials. Sometimes urgent vacancy may come up in a company especially minor positions and you are lucky to be visiting the company at that hour.
Not only that, in physical application you stand the chance of seeing who is receiving your application, you can even exchange phone contacts with someone especially in organizations that have friendly staff.
Though some my not even allow you to get into the company and the CV you dropped with the security may not get to the management hand, it happens to be one of the disadvantage of the physical contact method.
If given the opportunity in physical contact method, you have the chance of expressing yourself properly.
There is another method which gradually becoming popular though not accepted by everyone and that is the use of public institutions. There churches that have between one thousand to five thousand congregations.
As a member of such church, dropping your credentials and CV with the welfare committee for regular announcement of members seeking for job anonymously wouldn’t be a bad idea. In such congregation, there are employers as well as employees.
Someone in need of your service/profession can contact the church welfare committee to invite you for a job interview. Besides church, you can still try other public institutions such as Mosque, etc.
Another method is the use of friends, family members, town committee, and others. You can notify them that you have finished your education and NYSC and in need of a job. Sometimes, help use to come from this approach through the “IM” method.
Now that you have known the various ways you can use to get your first job as a fresh graduate of any engineering job, you need to apply every strategy mentioned in the post for efficiency in getting your dream job.
