Late graduate student chance of work?

Hi Abdulwahab,

Great question. It's great that you are in college and are pursuing a degree; there are many that do not and that fact that you are pursuing a degree definitely sets you apart. The fact that you will be graduating in your late 20's is not necessarily a bad thing. Upon graduation, you will likely be more mature, grounded, and settled than the 22 year olds who are also graduating. You likely are looking for long term employment and don't just want a 1-3 year job and then move off to something else. Employers hire many entry level workers knowing that many will move off to something else after a few years, that fact that you are older may in-fact increase your odds due to the belief that you intend to stay longer than most.

Furthermore, because you have lived longer than many who are also applying for jobs upon graduation, you likely have more life experiences and things to say during an interview. Many young people find interviews hard not because they aren't intelligent, but because they simply haven't had the life experience to answer interview question. Your additional time gives you more material to talk about and pull from.

Your ability to be hired depends on you, your work experience, your capabilities, your work ethic, and who you are; not only should your age not be a factor in your chance of being hired, but discriminating against people based on their age is actually illegal in the United States (I see you are from Spain and would hope that Spain has the same legal protections). Be confident in who you are and your expertise, your age does not define what you can do!!

I hope this helps and I wish you the best of luck!!

Best,

Austin

I agree with many of Austin's points, as many work environments are a collection of varied backgrounds (ages, skills, ethnicities, etc). When sitting down in an interview, discussing your background and what brought you to where you are today might be a good starting point. I've worked with colleagues who are in their late 20s/early 30s and either had a career switch, previously worked in the armed forces, or took a gap period prior to attending college. There is no "cookie-cutter" path for an applicant to take, and many companies push for diversity initiatives that support the varied paths that employees take as it adds value in the form of varied perspectives, talents, and capabilities.