After acing her high school final papers, Jennifer got accepted into a premier university in South-Western Nigeria. “Don’t follow bad friends. Read your books and graduate with good grades so you can land a good-paying job,” Jennifer’s parents advised. Jennifer followed her parents’ advice. Four years later, Jennifer graduated with an Upper Second-Class Honours. Shortly after, she got countless job offers, finally choosing to work at the Nigerian Broadcast Corporation (NBC). Her career began, and she lived happily ever after. An enviable career progression, isn’t it? Unfortunately, Jennifer’s story happened in the 1970s. In 2021, the 7.96% unemployment rate in Nigeria and the 5.42% global unemployment rate hinder millions of youths from achieving feats similar to Jennifer’s. Not only is the job market more saturated, but the standards for landing a job have also become ridiculously high. Between the prerequisites of two years experience for entry-level roles and the notoriety of ATS in disqualifying candidates before a recruiter even gets to make a final decision, landing a job is now similar to flogging a dead horse. The need to find an alternative route is stronger than ever and students seek to insulate themselves from becoming victims of the labor market’s gory situation. This is where freelancing comes in. At its core, freelancing means working independently rather than for a company. Undergraduates can try out freelancing to build their skills and experience and increase their income before graduation. Why should you freelance as an undergraduate? Freelancing helps you acquire relevant work experience before graduation 91% of employers prefer job seekers with work experience, according to NACE’S Jo Outlook 2017 survey . This means that employers want job candidates who already possess the hard and soft skills required for success on a job. Fortunately, unlike academics that emphasizes theory, you acquire relevant skills and experience when freelancing. Freelancing serves as a complement to your studies Book smartness is great. However, the additional quality of street smartness will accelerate your career progression faster than only book smartness would. Freelancing as an undergraduate can help you develop that additional quality. As a student freelancer, you get to learn the fundamental principles of street smartness due to constant marketing, negotiation, and client management. It allows you to pursue what you love “Do what you love” is a piece of advice that mostly works for young people, not adults who are already hustling. Unlike a typical older adult with a mountain of bills to settle and not enough time due to several obligations, you’ve fewer responsibilities and more time as a young undergraduate. As a result, you can easily monetise your passion with little or no risk. If you love photography, you can quickly set up an online portfolio of your photos, get decent camera equipment, and start sourcing for clients. And if you love writing, all you need to do is set up an account on a freelance site and write away! Freelancing is a rare opportunity for you to earn and learn while […]
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