Why millennials can't land jobs

[pete6032]

It may be part of it that some millennials are just dumb/stupid/don't understand, but there is also more to it. The economy is really bad right now. I am an older millennial and I have my master's degree and lots of internship experience. It took me about 6 months to find a job. I went to many interviews and handled myself professionally (suit, resume copy, padfolio, took notes, sent thank you card, etc.) Unfortunately when there are over 200 applicants for many of the jobs you apply for, the odds just aren't in anyone's favor.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

If I was a hiring manager, I wouldn't ask you why you weren't wearing a suit, I just wouldn't hire you. Wearing a suit to the interview is proper etiquitte for any office job. If you can't follow basic rules of decorum for a job interview, why should I believe you can follow them while performing your job functions?

I haven't worn a suit to the last four interviews I've been on, but I received offers on all four. Khakis and a button-up shirt is sufficient 90% of the time.

What?
But what are we talking here... entry-level jobs, or department-head or higher positions? I'm still in the entry-level IT world.

I'd say to wear a suit if you're interviewing for a management job. If you're interviewing for a technical position, nice khakis and a button-up are fine. Now, with that being said, you should keep in mind that if everyone at a company wears suits on a daily basis, you should wear one to the interview regardless of level.

 

[BikeJunkie]

It may be part of it that some millennials are just dumb/stupid/don't understand, but there is also more to it. The economy is really bad right now. I am an older millennial and I have my master's degree and lots of internship experience. It took me about 6 months to find a job. I went to many interviews and handled myself professionally (suit, resume copy, padfolio, took notes, sent thank you card, etc.) Unfortunately when there are over 200 applicants for many of the jobs you apply for, the odds just aren't in anyone's favor.

Someone else in the thread hit the nail on the head, IMO. I don't think anyone believes it's an innate stupidity or anything like that; just a lack of proper upbringing/experience. For one reason or another, you don't see many youths working what were typical "youth jobs" in generations past. I'm sure it's some combination of lack of opportunity and parents not letting/making their kids work. So, their first real interview experience comes when they're trying to land their first career step fresh out of college.

I don't know about everyone else, but by the time that day came for me, I had already worked a paper route and numerous retail positions, two of which were lead/management positions. So by the time I interviewed for a "real" job at 21/22, I had been around that block (and on both sides of the table) plenty of times.

 

[Wonderful Pork]

In my experience you have many employers that believe the newbies start with the shittiest work until they've proven themselves, and the newbies were told that you avoid the shitty work by going to college.

You are correct, there is a disconnect there, likely on both sides. When we bring in a college hire they need about 3 to 6 months up to a year to learn the ropes without asking a lot of questions (asking pertinent questions is not a bad thing!). In my experience, most folks (of any age) who are annoyed they aren't "chief engineer" of something get frustrated and leave.

I don't give them extra crappy work to "prove themselves" though. That work does have to get done, sometimes I'll even do it myself (paperwork, etc). Usually during an interview, I can identify who'll stick through the crappy parts of the job and who wont.

Him trying to correct my grammar incorrectly caused me to face-palm enough it didn't justify a reply - thanks for doing so for me!

This struck me as apropos, normally I'd never do it. (see join date & post count).

I'm not usually a grammar Nazi, but if you're going to allege someone is ignorant, you might want to sanitize your attack first

 

[OutHouse]

100% true story: About 5 years ago my boss asked me and the unix guy to do the second interview on this kid that he really liked for an IT position we had open. The kid shows up he was shown to the conference room by the front desk and was told to wait we would be with him in a few minutes.

The Unix guy and I walk into the conference room a few minutes later and this kid was kicked back with his feet in another chair with his phone out most likely texting. he sees us and stays in his larry the lounge lizard position and does not move until we tell him that we are ready to start. so he puts his phone away and keeps his feet in the other chair..... we start the interview (why i dont know) and during our exchange his phone beeps and he pulls it out and stats to text...

me and the unix guy look at each other and we both knew what to do. we told the kid that the interview is over, we will not recommend you for hire. he acutally had the balls to ask why and actually could not believe that we were ending the interview and booting his ass out.

the pure arrogance this kid displayed was mind boggling. i guess since he got a second interview he thought he was hired....

we escorted the guy out and went to our bosses office to tell him what happened. he just shook his head and said that was a shame he was a smart kid.

 

[purbeast0]

the point about wearing a suit is that it's better to be overdressed than underdressed. wearing a suit is as professional as you can get attire wise.

if you interviewed 2 candidates who were theoretically identical with their skill set and personality, etc, but one came wearing jeans and a t-shirt and one came in a suit - 10/10 times the guy wearing the suit would be hired. if you say otherwise you are just lying.

 

[OutHouse]

If I was a hiring manager, I wouldn't ask you why you weren't wearing a suit, I just wouldn't hire you. Wearing a suit to the interview is proper etiquitte for any office job. If you can't follow basic rules of decorum for a job interview, why should I believe you can follow them while performing your job functions?

who made this stupid rule and why are you stuck in 1955? really you equate not wearing a suit to a job interview to not knowing your job? Bwhahahahahhahaha

Also, black suits are a no-no in professional settings.

since when?

 

[OutHouse]

the point about wearing a suit is that it's better to be overdressed than underdressed. wearing a suit is as professional as you can get attire wise.

if you interviewed 2 candidates who were theoretically identical with their skill set and personality, etc, but one came wearing jeans and a t-shirt and one came in a suit - 10/10 times the guy wearing the suit would be hired. if you say otherwise you are just lying.

i disagree. to me a suit is a costume, you are hiding something or trying to suckup or get me to overlook something.

but i am talking about positions at my level or lower. like indycolt said if its a management position or higher then yea a suit probably should be worn.

 

[Blackjack200]

What?

You'd seriously not hire someone for dressing up appropriately, minus a dress jacket?
And black suits are a no-no?

Are we talking fashion jobs here, or actual real, working jobs? Political jobs, or office work?

I don't own a suit, or a jacket.

Are you telling me, even if I was properly groomed otherwise, and at least seem like I respect the process and want the job, and have everything but a dress jacket, I could never get the job?

Something about that screams ridiculous.

But what are we talking here... entry-level jobs, or department-head or higher positions? I'm still in the entry-level IT world.

I've interviewed dozens of people for everything from internships to full blown FTE openings. I've never, ever seen someone not wear a suit.

But I'm beginning to think this is industry specific. I work in the financial industry. Maybe technology firms are different. (And I know that tech firms have more relaxed dress in general, but I'm still really surprised to see that suits are not being worn for interviews.)

A shirt, tie, smart trousers, and smart shoes is fine for an interview.

A black suit is fine for the office.

A black suit looks ridiculous in the office. Black suits are evening wear. You may be seeing charcoal suits and thinking they are black. They are not.

But just to repeat myself, I would not count it against someone if they wore a black suit to a job interview, that just means they got bad advice from someone.

I haven't worn a suit to the last four interviews I've been on, but I received offers on all four. Khakis and a button-up shirt is sufficient 90% of the time.

I'd say to wear a suit if you're interviewing for a management job. If you're interviewing for a technical position, nice khakis and a button-up are fine. Now, with that being said, you should keep in mind that if everyone at a company wears suits on a daily basis, you should wear one to the interview regardless of level.

Yeah, it's got to be an industry thing. No one wears khakis at my office. Wool slacks and oxford shirts. Ties and suits are rare, unless someone is presenting to a client or interviewing.

 

[Blackjack200]

who made this stupid rule and why are you stuck in 1955? really you equate not wearing a suit to a job interview to not knowing your job? Bwhahahahahhahaha

I work in the financial industry. Everyone "knows the job". The question is, are you organized and can you be effective?

It's honestly something I never really thought about, people are just always wearing suits when they come in for an interview.

since when?

Are you serious? Do your own research on this. Black suits look more ridiculous than bow ties. They're completely out of place in the office.

 

[Blackjack200]

i disagree. to me a suit is a costume, you are hiding something or trying to suckup or get me to overlook something.

Wearing a suit is a show of respect. For yourself, for the firm, and for the position you are hoping to land.

If you wear dockers and loafers and an oxford with no tie, it looks like you stopped off on the way the park or something.

 

[JM Aggie08]

This thread is laughable at best

 

[TheSlamma]

Um, expecting to make 50K or more coming out of college is completely reasonable depending on your degree.

Any engineering job should pay at least that much these days.

If you would turn off the black and white thinking you might realize he is probably talking about the people who come out with degrees in business or 4 year psychology degrees.

 

[Ns1]

Except that it is. Boomers/XGeners can't look past the immature personality traits of the younger generation because they were brought up differently. It doesn't change the skillset that these Mils have, and a lot of companies that focus on questions/traits that the OP is talking about are going to wind up losing the war for talent.

As a borderline millennial with old school traits, this is an interesting perspective.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

i disagree. to me a suit is a costume, you are hiding something or trying to suckup or get me to overlook something.

That's your opinion. It's not necessarily the norm among hiring managers.

True story (and one that illustrates my early career idiocy): After college, I worked in a law firm on the West Coast for a few months doing basic filing; hardly something one would need a college degree for, but it paid well enough and one of the partners was an old friend of the family. It was a typical Pacific Northwest work environment; business casual (emphasis on the casual), khakis and polos. People would look at you funny if you showed up in wool trousers, and ties or coats were right out unless you were a lawyer.

After a few months there, my girlfriend took a job in Massachusetts and I followed her. I interviewed at a local firm in the area and I went in the same clothes I was used to wearing in the Pacific Northwest; very casual. The bulk of the interview consisted of me getting the most confounded looks and asked point blank multiple times, "Is this really how you dress for work?" In my experience thus far, what I was wearing was fine; in that environment, I looked like an idiot. Lesson learned; don't assume that anyone has the same idea of "appropriate attire" as you and dress as professionally as you can until you get a sense of what is considered acceptable at a particular office.

As one boss was fond of telling me, don't dress for the job you have; dress for the job you want. Although he did stop telling me that when I started showing up to work dressed as Batman.

 

[SP33Demon]

Except that it is. Boomers/XGeners can't look past the immature personality traits of the younger generation because they were brought up differently. It doesn't change the skillset that these Mils have, and a lot of companies that focus on questions/traits that the OP is talking about are going to wind up losing the war for talent.

I used to think the same as the OP until about 2 years ago, and I'm technically a Mil.

It's quite possible that the "skillset" that some Mils possess isn't worth a dam without the social intelligence and work ethic to hone it. Employers aren't in the babysitting and coaching business, if someone isn't polished then better get some experience until they are.

 

[Ruptga]

It's quite possible that the "skillset" that some Mils possess isn't worth a dam without the social intelligence and work ethic to hone it. Employers aren't in the babysitting and coaching business, if someone isn't polished then better get some experience until they are.

It's also quite possible that the current generation's preferred way of doing things isn't any better or worse than what the old farts like, it's just different. I'm not downplaying the value of social intelligence or work ethic, but a lot of people justify their unthinking inflexibility by saying things like you just did. All I'm really saying is that incompetence and poor judgement know no age.

 

[purbeast0]

i blame it on smartphones. kids now a days can't focus on jack shit because they are always face down in their phones and have to be doing "something" on the phone. i go to the grocery store i grew up working in for 8 years through HS and college, and it's insane how lazy the fucking kids working there are now. most of them are leaning on the wall just playing with their phones instead of helping customers bag their groceries.

this is kind of serious and kind of in jest.

 

[preslove]

The job market has been terrible for recent college grads since the early 2000's. Blame the economy.

People who complain about millennials are idiots.

 

[BoberFett]

That anecdote says a lot more about the dad than the daughter. But go ahead and shake your head at millenials.

Not entirely. If she was an adult she wouldn't have brought her daddy to the interview to begin with.

 

[Ns1]

Not entirely. If she was an adult she wouldn't have brought her daddy to the interview to begin with.

truth.

 

[MongGrel]

As one boss was fond of telling me, don't dress for the job you have; dress for the job you want. Although he did stop telling me that when I started showing up to work dressed as Batman.

+1 for a big grin.

 

[ImpulsE69]

I notice many comments blaming the economy. I don't get it. That has no bearing on how someone acts and dresses for an interview. If anything it shows that people without any social work skills are applying for jobs, generally jobs they have no experience in. One would think they'd try their best to at least appear competent and professional to make up for their lack of experience.

 

[Ns1]

The job market has been terrible for recent college grads since the early 2000's. Blame the economy.

lolno.

 

[88keys]

I notice many comments blaming the economy. I don't get it. That has no bearing on how someone acts and dresses for an interview. If anything it shows that people without any social work skills are applying for jobs, generally jobs they have no experience in. One would think they'd try their best to at least appear competent and professional to make up for their lack of experience.

A few incidences of poor conduct during interviews is anecdotal and not representative of the whole.

Generation Y exists in greater numbers than Generation X, so you'll see an increase in poor conduct among younger candidates because there are more of them.