Going Undercover: Finding Out Which Employment Agency Can Help Fresh Grads Get A Job

Being a fresh graduate myself, I have been hearing about plenty of job placement portals which help you get a job but is not fully utilized. So we thought why not take this opportunity to go undercover and check out what these places can offer since, well, I was also the most eligible one amongst the team of Goody Feed writers.

Armed with my mock resume and a fake persona of a desperate fresh grad, I was determined to find out which employment agency would suit me best in helping me find a job – or even recommend me courses that will boost my resume.

After a series of “interviews” and “consultation services” with 2 headhunting agencies and 2 employment service centers – Robert Walters, Hudson, Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) and NTUC U PME Centre respectively, here are some of the key differences I discovered.

1.Booking an appointment

a) Robert Walters

A headhunting agency where you can submit your resumes online for a head-hunter to find a job that’s best suited for you.

The person whom I talked over the phone was very friendly. The lady told me to upload my resume and they will let me know if I have any suitable openings.

Update 15/9/2016: Have not reverted back with a job as of today. 

b) Hudson

Received an email reply on the same day stating that they only focus on middle to senior role recruitment, and did not cover the area which I was looking for employment – the role that suits a fresh graduate.

c) Employment and Employability Institute (e2i)

I set up a consultation date by filling in a form on the website. After which, a confirmation email will be sent. Do read on for more details of how the consultation went!

d) NTUC U PME Centre

Got a call from the direct person-in-charge himself and scheduled an appointment for the consultation. More details on the consultation below!

2.During the consultation

c) Employment and Employability Institute (e2i)

Jenny, the lady whom I was referred to during the consultation, looked through my resume and gave me advice on how I could have improved it. She then showed resume samples for me to follow and for me to take home to make revisions to it.

This was also when I realized my resume was a little too long for comfort. Can’t believe I’ve been sending that in for the past couple of months.

Jenny also recommended me an executive course to attend where a trainer will advise me on the exact changes to be made to my resume, give interview tips and prepare me for the next job search.

She also told me to send in my amended resume where she will key into the system. The system will then send me emails every week and notify me if there are jobs that suit me.

d) NTUC U PME Centre

I met with Herjeet, who was my adviser during the consultation. Herjeet saw that I tend to be nervous while speaking to new people, and also sounded me out that my interview skills weren’t that great.

At NTUC U PME Centre, Herjeet advised me on the job portals which I can seek employability with. He also recommended me the same course at e2i – because they share the same course and also offered interview roleplay sessions before my next job interview.

3. Friendliness of staff

In this case, since I went undercover as a “desperate” fresh grad, I had to play my part in making sure that I have applied for over 90 jobs after I graduated in May and none was suitable for me.

c) Employment and Employability Institute (e2i)

Jenny was incredibly encouraging and friendly amidst my faked ignorance about the entire job interview process.

Not sure if she saw right through that. 

d) U PME Centre

Herjeet was direct and straight to the point – a trait which I felt was extremely helpful to me. He didn’t beat about the bush and immediately went on to why I was not getting jobs and how he can assist me to the best of his means.

4. Courses they recommended

Both e2i and NTUC U PME Centre recommended the executive course, which is designed to equip Professionals, Managers and Executives (PMETs) with necessary skills to enhance their employability. PMETs will pick up skills which are highly useful to their job search.

The course lasts for 2 days and teaches skills like writing a persuasive cover letter & resume, acting an interview, job direction, and job search avenues and networking and positive communication.

Best part? You get paid a training allowance of S$4.50 per hour.

5. Location

c) Employment and Employability Institute (e2i)

Located at Jurong East at the Devan Nair Institute, in between IMM and Ng Teng Fong Hospital and was easily accessible from Jurong East MRT by J-Walk.

d) NTUC U PME Centre at One Marina Boulevard

Located in the basement of NTUC Centre, within walking distance of Raffles Place MRT.

There’s also a virtual PME Centre you can access in the convenience of your own home to get updates of courses, networking sessions and other interesting events.

For finance professionals, a specific advisory centre called the Financial Industry Career Advisory Centre has been set up within the U PME centre with training and expert events.

Update as of 12pm today: MOM just released its figures on unemployment and apparently, there are more job seekers than jobs for the first time since June 2012.

Since there are so many people looking for jobs, all the more we should find ways to make our resume stand out amongst 1,000 other job applicants.

This article was first published on Goodyfeed.com