An AB Legal Management graduating student from San Beda College, Kristel Joy Masangkay thinks the same way. She believes that coming from an “eligible” law school paves the way for a better job than that of the others.

“School is the next thing employers look at after the name in the application form,” Masangkay said. “Parang kapag galing ka sa kilalang school, mas madaling makahanap ng trabaho” (Apparently if you come from a reputable school, it’s easier to find a job), adds Masangkay.

But the optimism of students falters when asked if the government would be able to generate jobs for them after graduating.

“Kung y’ung mga graduates nga last year, until now, unemployed pa din, pa’no pa kami?” (If last year’s graduates are still unemployed, how will we fare?) quipped Jovy Agarma, a graduating BS Economics student from UP.

Agarma believes that the government is way too weak to produce jobs for them, most especially now that the government is still in debt for billions of dollars from foreign countries.

Job-Skill mismatch

IBON’s Media Department Head, Ms. Rhea Padilla, believes the name of the school doesn’t really matter, for in some cases, it produces a job-skill mismatch.

“The question is not what school you came from but whether you fit the job. But most importantly, we have to ask, what are the jobs available?” adds Padilla.

She also said that there is a trend in which graduates with good credentials end up as welders or domestic helpers, for instance, leading to underemployment. For example, a Business Administration magna cum laude could end up as a call center agent.

Not-so-absorbent

One question leaves us baffled, and searching for answers: why does it seem that the government is having a hard time providing graduates good, quality jobs?

According to Padilla, there are reasons why the government would not be able to provide jobs for new graduates. First, she said, the number of jobs produced by the government is less than the number of job seekers.

Second, the increasing number of migrants manifests the lack of job opportunities in the country, Padilla said, “If there’s work at home, hindi na lalabas ng bansa (there’s no need to go abroad).” Filipinos working abroad demonstrates the dreadful state of the economy in the Philippines.

Lastly, there is a lack of job security. Some companies hire based on contracts, which leaves the workers with not-so-stable jobs, since most contractual jobs are for six months only.

Even call centers are no longer the same lifesavers they used to be, as they are now laying off employees. Even big call centers cut cost, relocate and hire on a contractual basis. Emerging establishments are very much in danger, especially BPOs (Business Process Outsourcing) affected by the recession in the United States.

These leave the graduates in a state of uncertainty, more so now that there are indications that the economy is sliding. .

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