'Welcome to the Real World'

‘Welcome to the Real World’ – The harsh reality facing the class of 2020

Growing up, the saying ‘welcome to the real world’ would often be used in jest as I stepped into various stages of my life. Now, having recently graduated from the University of Strathclyde, the saying has less of a humorous tone and instead creates a sense of dread when I think about the future. And I am sure I am not the only graduate feeling that way.

Graduating from University is a time well celebrated with classmates, reflecting on the years of hard work that contributed to achieving your degree and accepting that diploma as you walk off the stage, hearing your friends and family cheering you on. However, in the midst of COVID-19, graduation for the class of 2020 seems like wishful thinking as Universities change dates or move ceremonies online.

The class of 2020, Generation Z or ‘millennials’ have been ‘dealt a bad card’. We are reminded to look positively towards the future and ‘things won’t always be this way’, but with the threat of a recession looming over our heads, increasing unemployment rates, the possibility of lowering salaries and let’s not forget – BREXIT  – how can we be expected to nod our heads and agree that the future seems bright?

With countless companies slashing their graduate programmes, after having offered students what might have been ‘the opportunity of their lifetime’ and the threat of lifelong employment penalties, how can the class of 2020 be expected to enter the labour market hopefully, happily, confidently?

The government has failed to address the class of 2020 in detail, neglecting to recognise our hard work and achievements. They fail to recognise that we are the future workforce who may once again face the potential of a deadly virus in the future, force unemployment rates to increase once more, once again face a recession worse than the last, once again be told that ‘things won’t always be this way’ as we struggle to pay bills or stay in employment for long periods of time.

I am writing this blog post in hopes that employers read it. In hopes that they acknowledge the students who had to complete their degree during a pandemic, the students who were ripped away from the people they called family, who they spent ‘the best years of their life with’, the students who watched as the UK left the European Union and worried then about how it would affect their future, the students who thought their futures were set as they accepted the offer and signed the contract to your graduate programme.

The future is grey for us all as COVID-19 sinks its claws into every country, economy, sector, family. But it’s especially grey for the graduates who are scouring every corner, competing against graduates worldwide in the same situation, in hopes of finding a job that is no longer there in an industry that has been ripped apart by a deadly virus.

Please don’t ignore the e-mail in your inbox from the pleading graduate asking for an employment opportunity, an internship, work experience. Please don’t dull our already fading lights as we use the remaining motivation and hope when applying to the job we can’t believe is still there. Please recognise the perseverance, determination, will, spirit,  and motivation of the class of 2020 and classes to come when reviewing job applications. Because in a pandemic, motivation, determination, perseverance, will and spirit is what will keep your company alive in the future.

To the class of 2020 and to my fellow classmates, 
Welcome to the Real World.