JOBS in human resources and marketing appeared to be the most sought-after at the Barisan Nasional Youth Job Fair, according to company representatives manning booths.

They told The Malaysian Insight that most of the fresh graduates who turned up at the event were seeking job opportunities in these two areas.

Arvie Basa, who managed the Loob Holding booth, said the response has been great.

“We are offering two categories of job for our brand Tealive: one is at the outlets and the other is in the office.

“Most applied for the office job as they wanted to be part of the human resource team.

“If it is not human resources, the other demand was for marketing,” Arvie, an area manager for Tealive, said.

He added that there had been some senior applicants too, most of which had been retrenched due to Covid-19.

The three-day fair at the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur ends today, and has attracted more than 300 government agencies and private companies, including Boustead, DRB Hicom, Tenaga Nasional (TNB), Open University Malaysia, Mara, McDonald’s and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.

The aim is to provide job opportunities to school leavers and graduates.

Meanwhile, Khairul Adila Zainal, the talent branding officer for TNB, confirmed the demand for human resources and marketing positions.

“However, we are also urging the applicants to try for other roles. We were also surprised that there were quite a number who showed up looking for internships to complete their degree,” she said.

She added the event also made it easier for recruiters.

“For two years, everything was done virtually, from application to interviews, but now with events like this we can finally do it all physically, which makes things easier,” Adila said, adding that most of the fresh graduates applying had not been able to find a job during the pandemic.

Jobseekers remain positive

Nor Mannah Shahirah, 23, from Shah Alam, was seeking a job in human resources.

She said more such events should be held to help fresh graduates look for jobs.

“Whenever we apply for jobs online, the requirements include a few years of experience, hence it’s always hard for fresh graduates to secure a job.

“Although I expected a lot more options here, I guess I’ll make do with what is available.

“I am a graduate of human resource studies so I was hoping to see more of those positions but I hope there will be some positive outcome for me from this event,” she said.

She added that the salary being offered by most of the booths were very reasonable and was above the minimum wage.

Meanwhile, Jason Tan, 32, said he had been looking for a new job since he was retrenched from his previous company.

“I got retrenched in March as the company was not doing too well due to Covid-19, and I have been unemployed ever since.

“I hope to secure a job here in order to provide for my family and it would be great to find something related to the marketing industry.

“I would prefer marketing because during the pandemic it was still one of those industries that managed to survive very well as they were still getting clients consistently,” Tan, who was previously in the advertising business, said.

Another jobseeker, Lutfi Hakim, 22, also agreed this was a great opportunity for fresh graduates but he wished more publicity was given for the event.

“I only found out about this event this morning from a friend and I got here immediately.

“Events like this should be advertised a lot on social media as that’s where people tend to seek for jobs nowadays,” he said.

Lutfi said he had applied for a few jobs and hoped to get an offer very soon in the coming days.

“I am an engineering student but during times like this where the economy is not doing so well, I’m happy with whatever job that pays good,” he said. – June 26, 2022.