Career Reflection and Possibilities after the Crisis

The coronavirus not only has an impact on the different sectors but also has an impact on our job opportunities. The ILO ( international labor organization) predicted that there would be almost 25 million jobs lost on a high scenario worldwide because of the coronavirus. We are very happy that we are in the sectors where almost everything is digital, but that does not mean that there are no risks for our sectors. That only gives us an advantage over the other sectors.

On Sunday, 24 May, we will make a study trip to Italy for the course Business Mobility. Unfortunately, It was canceled due to the coronavirus. This crisis not only affected our study trip but also caused many other issues. One of those things that we are most concerned about is our first step towards building our careers.

In September 2020, we would start working if everything went well, but we do not have much certainty about that at the moment. We do not currently know how long this entire corona-crisis will last. But in the meantime, it has already done enormous damage to our economy.

We are students of the department Accountancy & Taxation and students of the department Finance & Insurance. These specializations depend on the economy, so we will also have to deal with the corona-crisis if we are looking for a job. It will be easier for the accounting sector to find a job because there was already a shortage of employees before the corona-crisis. Companies are currently being declared bankrupt, and there are certain companies that will follow. The companies that will survive have to work very hard to become stable in the market.

Most companies are teleworking, and the question is whether they will manage to work efficiently from home. It is also very hard to work from home and take care of the children. The chance that all companies will survive is very small. The companies that will survive are mainly those that do e-commerce, the food sector, and the healthcare sector. This crisis already has visible disadvantages, but there may also be advantages. Perhaps this crisis will overturn our economy and create new opportunities. We, as economists, can list and measure the disadvantages of the corona-crisis, but the opportunities and chances that will be created will certainly be there, and we are trying to focus on that.
The VDAB and various recruiting offices guarantee us that there will be enough vacancies by then. But most people look at it all in the short term and are very optimistic about this. Companies cannot yet estimate 100% what the consequences will be for their company. Virologists are already predicting that it will take 40 years before we can speak of a stable economy. It will take time and patience to recover our economy, but accountants and insurers play an important role in this recovery. Before the corona-crisis, employers competed with each other to recruit employees. There were many vacancies but few job seekers. Now it will all be the opposite. Now the workers will have to compete to get a job offer.

Of course, we do not want to worry too much and let it all come to us, but this makes us think about whether it is wise to enter the labor market during the corona-crisis or to increase our general knowledge by taking additional training. We can perhaps continue to study at the university for a master’s degree in the hope that after these years, there will be no more problems regarding job opportunities due to the coronavirus. We will also have a higher diploma that will give us even more chances in the job market. We can do the latter to emerge stronger from this corona-crisis that we all suffer from.

Cite this page