Danish career day trends: the pandemic effect and beyond
I have been attending career days for many years. It’s a great way to talk directly to students and find out what they are looking for from a job or employer. It is also a chance to show students some of the tools that they can use to improve their skills and stand out from the crowd, such as SAS Skill Builder for Students. The other aspect is that it is a way to meet future customers. After all, many data science students are likely to go and work for our customers, so it’s good to build relationships as early as possible.
There are therefore many benefits to attending career days. However, I’ve noticed some interesting trends this year, especially compared with the last few years, but also when you look pre-pandemic.
- There has been a backlash against online careers events
During the pandemic, we had lots of online careers fairs. These were actually great, because you could talk to even more students than is possible face-to-face. They were also cheaper to put on, and cheaper for employers to attend. I think we probably all thought, if not actively hoped, that those online events might outlast the pandemic. However, the opposite has turned out to be true. People who have organised online fairs have had a lot of trouble getting students to attend. It seems that students really want to meet potential employers face-to-face. I have certainly seen an increase in numbers attending onsite careers events.
- Employers are increasingly recognising the value of career days and fairs
I have noticed that several careers fairs and events have become really popular with employers since the pandemic. There is one particular event that we have been invited to attend several times in the past, but it never felt important enough. This year, when I tried to book onto it, there was a waiting list. This is a specialist IT event, so it gives some idea about the priority being placed by employers on attracting students with those skills. There is no question that these events have become much more popular with employers since the pandemic.
- The students who attend career days are not necessarily typical of students in Denmark
It is interesting to note that we tend to see a lot of foreign and exchange students attending career days and fairs. The numbers are definitely not representative of the overall student population in Denmark. We also see higher numbers of these students engaging with SAS Skill Builder. I believe that it is possible that these students expect to find it harder to get a job at the end of their studies. They therefore want ways to help them to stand out from the crowd. This may be by developing additional skills, or by putting in the effort to talk to employers.
- Career days and fairs are increasingly used as networking opportunities by businesses
At the career days and fairs that I have attended this year, we have chatted to a lot of students. However, we have also found that we were approached by customers and potential customers from other companies at the fair wanting to talk about possible collaborations on talent connection. We also talked to plenty of faculty members wanting to talk about using SAS in their teaching. These events are about so much more than jobs. This makes a lot of sense, because all those attending have a shared interest in closing the data science skills gap. It is natural that we should discuss ways of doing that when we are in the same place.
- More broadly, we are seeing a wider range of activities focused on careers
The other aspect to consider is the broadening of careers activities. Yes, career fairs and days are still being held by universities, and we are still attending them. However, we are also seeing a broader range of career-related events and initiatives. There is growing recognition that students need to be exposed to more ideas about careers at an earlier stage. For instance, I recently ran a SAS Masterclass in collaboration with a local business academy, attended by some students as young as 16—and a key part of the feedback from the school was that it was good to give these opportunities to younger students. I think we will see much more of these events for younger students in future years.
Your turn
What have you been seeing in your country? We’d love to hear from you.
