Navigating the Unexpected: Finding Work in the Pandemic

It was a cold November morning when Jocelynn Proulx, '20 BA, logged into her computer to start the work day. She expected her weekly check-in meeting to proceed as normal, with some updates about what she'd been working on recently and feedback from her boss, but the last 15 minutes of that meeting did not go as she'd expected. Her boss had bad news. They had to let her go due to funding issues related to the pandemic.

"It was a really hard time," she said. "It was an emotional rollercoaster. Felt like going through a breakup." This wasn't something she could've planned for.

"I knew I did everything right," Jocelynn said. She had diversified her education, had two co-op positions through Arts Work Experience gaining 16-months of full-time work experience and she participated in career education programming to further her professional skills. "I put a lot of work into it. I was still unemployed."

Jocelynn is not the only one. Data from Statistics Canada has shown that young Canadians aged 15 to 24 years old accounted for 45 per cent of employment losses since the onset of the pandemic.

With so much uncertainty surrounding the job market, new grads were faced with unprecedented challenges.

Pictured: Jocelynn Proulx, '20 BA, Criminology major, Certificate in Sustainability

“Looking for my first job at the beginning of the pandemic, I didn’t know what to expect,” said Idara Effiom, ‘20 BA.

In the early months of 2020, Idara was busy applying to jobs, trying to secure a position ahead of her upcoming graduation. She had even received some promising responses! But the pandemic had other plans.

“When we went into lockdown, a lot of the jobs themselves got canceled,” she said. “It was tough. Really disheartening.”

Where could new grads turn to for career advice in these uncertain times? No one had experienced a job market quite like this before. “Nobody knew the answers to what we were facing and that made me really nervous,” Idara explained.

New grads, like Idara, had to figure it out for themselves.

Pictured: Idara Effiom, '20 BA, Psychology major, Anthropology minor

"The most important thing for me was not to dwell on all the rejections or cancellations I was getting,” Idara said. Despite her disappointment, she continued to submit applications and forge ahead with the job search.

For Idara, having people in her network to connect with was a big help. She let them know she was looking for work and asked them to send her any job opportunities they knew of. “That worked really well,” she said.

In fact, she ended up landing a position that someone in her network shared with her. “Despite all the anxiety, nervousness and general insecurity, you really just have to persevere and keep trying!”

Resilience is key. Idara mentioned, that in times of uncertainty it is important to “take time for yourself as needed, but don’t forget about your goals. It doesn’t matter how tiny the steps are, as long as you’re doing something to work towards your goals.”

After Jocelynn was let go, she kept her career goals in mind and connected with an employment agency in Edmonton where she was able to learn some new job search strategies and feel supported throughout the process.

Jocelynn encourages students to take advantage of the resources that are available to them: connect with the Career Centre, attend workshops on job search strategies and practice your interview skills. “If you do all these things and still end up unemployed, that’s okay. Some things are out of our control and we need to treat ourselves with kindness,” Jocelynn said.

If we’ve learned anything from these uncertain times, regardless of where you’re at in your job search or career, it’s that it’s hard to plan for the unexpected. But know that you can be resilient throughout the process and there are supports available to assist you and get you back on track.

Despite the challenges and hardship, there is a positive side to it all: this generation is acquiring a unique skill set that will serve them well throughout their careers. “Being flexible, resilient, having to adapt quickly and find ways to stay motivated, even interpersonal skills,” said Idara. “We know how to build strong working relationships through a computer screen! And that is unique to our age group.”

This article was written by Claire Wasel, the 2021-22 Arts Work Experience Communications and Program Support Intern. Claire is in her fourth year of a Bachelor of Arts (Honors) degree in Psychology with a co-operative education designation and certificates in Applied Social Sciences Research and Psychology Research. Claire is looking forward to graduating in 2023 and attending graduate school in the future.

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