Being 22 can be an awkward age for many people. Some people by this age have just graduated college, which is a big step. Some others may still not know what they want to do in life. However, most people by this age are looking for a steady income which involves having to apply for jobs. This can be a hard time for individuals because not everyone is fully prepared to jump into the working world. So, if you are a 22-year-old looking for a job, here are some qualities that employers look for:
1. Commitment is important to new employers. You have to be committed to whatever job you decide to take. Be timely for an interview and do not change the date of an interview. Make sure when you are setting up an interview to be flexible, but that you can make the time and day it is scheduled. When you are 22, you may have other things going on in your life. Be sure that you can be committed to the hours and days of that employment opportunity. If you have other commitments, let your employer be aware of this. It is better to be honest about your availability then get a job and not be able to work days you are scheduled.
2. A GPA/Degree may be very important to an employer depending on what kind of job you are applying for. For recently graduated 22-year-olds, higher GPA’s may get you in the door, but it is often not the deciding factor for employers. Contrary to popular belief, not all professions are looking for students with a 4.0 GPA. Sometimes an imperfect GPA can say more to an employer. Some employers may look for 22-year-olds starting to attend Graduate classes. If you are not a 22-year-old student who graduated college, many employers will want to see previous work experience. If you do not have any of these qualifications, employers look at previous internships. If you have no prior work experience, consider applying for an internship in a field you are interested in before applying for a job.
3. Those skills. If you are 22 you are a digital native or people who grew up with computers and the Internet. There is multiple skill sets based around computers that digital natives have, that may seem to them as unimportant or irrelevant. Make sure to place all of your computer abilities on your resume. These computer skills are what employers are looking for from digital natives because many of your employers will be digital immigrants, people who did not grow up with computers and the Internet, but instead learned these skills in their older age. Also, incorporate the names of computer programs and language you are familiar with such as: Word, Photoshop, InDesign, Java, and HTML etc. Finally, include social medias you are familiar with, you would be surprised how many employers need help advertising on these platforms.
4. At 22, networking with people in your age bracket can be beneficial. You never know where you friends can end up in four years. They could be the employer looking to hire you or a reference because they already work in that job field. For example, an employer may require you to be able to get numerous amounts of people to follow a page they run. It is a lot easier to succeed in a project like this when you stay connected to multiple people you have met.