1. EMPHATIZE AND DEFINE: SCHOOL TO WORK
TRANSITION IN COLOMBIA
The Perspective From a Student

2. SAY
• “It is a difficult transition, speacially because when you are about to
graduate, you don´t really know on which field of the economy you
would like to work in”
• “I had to change my resume three times to get more
inteviews, when you are looking for a job, you don´t know how to
make yours more attractive…”
• “Some friends got hired in the companies where they did their
internships, usually with a low pay”
• If you don´t stay where you did your intership it is gonna be a lot
harder to find a job afterwards.
• Some jobs seem to be really mechanical and you don´t have the
chance to create solutions or to grow or learn in the company

3. SAY
• The salary in many cases is really low, sometimes is because
first you will get hired by an outsourcing Human Resources
Company.
• It´s a lot harder to get a job when you live in the capital, in
some fields you have a better chance in other cities.
• You are supposed to have better chances if you studied at a
great university, but here they might tell you that you are
overqualified.
• If I could, I would start my own business, but I have to search
for a living right now and I intend to work on my projects in my
free time.

4. DO
• She takes about two hours, two or three times per week, to submit
resumes
• She takes advantages of internet websites, to search for jobs and
post her resume.
• She also uses the a platform from the counceling department of her
university, but there isn´t to many offers
• She has sent emails to her closest friends and teachers, in case
they get to know about a job offer that suits her profile
.
• She worked as a volunteer during her undergraduate studies hoping
to have some experience before going out from school
• She applies to jobs, even when she doesn´t has all of the
requirements for the position

5. THINK
• She thinks it´s difficult to get a job
• It takes a lot o time finding a job
• She doesn´t know how to sell her resume to the
companies
• She needs more experience
• Many companies already have their possitions filled
with promoted interns, as a consencuence she has
fewer chances to get a job.
• Trying to change your previous industry or field is
almost impossible

6. FEEL
• There´s a lot of people who can offer the same to a
company
• She feels school was mostly theoretical and not as
practical as she needed it to be
• She is anxious to get a job and learn more
practical stuff
• She feels she lacks “something”

7. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
A girl, who studied business and
finance, creative, eager to learn
and with leadership skills needs a
way to be challenged and learn
as much as she can because
she wants to have her own
business eventually.