Jarmila O’Neal


Career development 3d
I’m really confused about how to answer the salary question in interviews. After reading a bunch of “tips” online, I said that “a comfortable range for me is from … to ….”. But they told me I wasn’t a good fit because I’m not a straightforward person and give vague answers instead of being clear.
So what’s the right way, should I state an expected salary?

1   

  • Apreal 28

    3h

    I have been in Dubai 7months now with hospitality and sales experience and I'm currently looking for a job. I need someone to assist me get a job as... we are all family here in Gainrep. It's a month now without a job and accommodation. more

  • Cyndy Robinson

    18h

    I turn it back on them and ask them what is the position budgeted for if it’s an in-person interview. If they ask during the application process, I... write negotiable. If the application requires a number, I put my current salary or no more than 10% less than my current hourly rate.  more

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Career development

 5h

7 Career Advancement Strategies for Employees: How To Implement Them


Effective career advancement strategies lower churn, strengthen engagement, and help develop the vital skills needed to deliver on business objectives. However, 46% of employees say their managers don't know how to support their career advancement. Additionally, 47% of Gen Z workers say AI gives them better career advice than their managers do.

These stats highlight a dire need for organizations... to rethink their approach to employee career growth, in order to minimize turnover and boost the employee experience. This article explores what career advancement means in today's workplace and why it matters for both employee and employer, as well as seven career advancement strategies you can implement.

Contents

What is career advancement?

Types of career growth

Career ladder, career lattice, and career path: What's the difference?

Why is career advancement important?

7 useful career advancement strategies for employees

Career advancement frameworks: The 5 Ps, 4 Cs, and 3 Cs explained

How to develop a career advancement program: Checklist

Career advancement is the process where an employee progresses in their working life, moving into roles with greater responsibility, higher pay, broader influence, or deeper expertise. It has evolved to include vertical promotion, lateral moves, stretch assignments, and skill-based development, and can happen within a single organization or across multiple employers.

It's worth distinguishing career advancement from career development. Advancement is movement, such as a change in role, level, scope, or status. Development, on the other hand, is the capability-building that makes advancement possible. Development without advancement often causes frustration, while advancement without development can lead to performance gaps.

In fact, 41% of employees cite a lack of career development and advancement as the top reason they quit their previous jobs. Investment in a solid employee career progression framework lowers turnover and hiring costs, strengthens your internal talent pipeline, and supports more strategic workforce planning.

Career growth opportunities don't all look the same. Helping employees, as well as their managers, understand the available options sets the foundation for a strong career growth strategy.

These three terms are often used interchangeably, but they describe different things. Here's how to differentiate among them:

Career advancement matters, since employees who lack clear growth paths are more likely to seek better prospects elsewhere. Clear growth pathways help retain talent, reduce hiring costs, and improve performance.

But that's only half the story. Disengaged employees who don't leave simply stay and underperform. This widens skills gaps, while competitors poach high performers who deliver clearer growth trajectories.

Below are seven career advancement strategies that can benefit your workforce, help you build a practical playbook, and change the way your company grows.

Broad ambitions like 'more responsibility' or 'a better role' aren't enough. Employees need specific career advancement goals linked to target roles, skills, and realistic timelines. HR can build the tools that help to make goal-setting concrete.

Employees may focus on what they're good at today rather than what they'll need tomorrow. However, career advancement skills (i.e., technical capabilities, leadership competencies, and interpersonal strengths) are often what they need to open pathways to new roles.

Training is one of the most direct investments your company can make in employee advancement. However, some organizations may design training around their business requirements without linking it to their employees' individual career goals. The result is compliance courses, instead of development that employees actually value.

Career pathing defines possible routes an employee can take to reach their goals. Career mapping plots the skills, experiences, and milestones they need to get there. Both give employees something concrete to work toward, and provide managers with structured frameworks that drive career conversations.

Employees with access to mentors, coaches, or sponsors advance faster and more confidently. Good mentors share their experience, and effective coaches build self-awareness to benefit employees. Sponsors advocate for employees, which can transform potential into progress and promotion.

Internal mobility moves employees into new roles or projects within your organization, and stretch assignments push them beyond their current capability level. A combination of the two can drive career advancement more consistently than either on its own.

Even companies that say they support internal mobility may make it harder in practice than external hiring, with slower and more rigorous internal hiring processes. Managers who hoard their talent also compound the situation. This is why it's important to fix the system, not just the messaging.

Career advancement doesn't happen after a single annual review. It requires consistent, constant dialogue about what employees want professionally and how they're working toward their goals. 54% of employees report feeling completely isolated at work in terms of career development, and it's within your power to prevent the same at your company.

While these frameworks can't replace a solid advancement plan, they're useful conversation structures HR professionals and managers can use to support a wider career advancement plan for employees.

The 5 Ps structure career development around five dimensions, and provide HR with a ready-made structure for career coaching sessions. They are:

Employees may start feeling stuck in their career path, or uncertain about their next move. Drawn from career construction theory, the 4 Cs can help them navigate career transitions:

When an employee isn't advancing, the gap is usually in one of the following three areas. Identifying which one it is makes it much easier to design focused employee support:

A career advancement program gives your company a structured, repeatable approach to employee growth. Without one, advancement becomes ad hoc, dependent on individual manager effort, and uneven across the business. The checklist below can help get you started:

Career advancement strategies only work if you have the skills to execute them. This means knowing how to design clear career paths, align employee and business needs, use data to spot gaps, and build succession pipelines early. Employees are often already thinking about their professional futures. The question is whether you can show them a credible path forward within the business.

This is why you should build career frameworks managers can use, strengthen coaching and internal mobility practices, and track relevant metrics. AIHR's can teach you how to create talent pipelines, develop future leaders, and use talent data to improve career decisions. more

AJ Rosso


Career development 2d
Did I do something wrong by asking my boss for a raise? I’ve been doing the whole project alone for two months since my coworker left. But instead of answering, my boss said I should just be grateful to work in such a nice team. He even said my questions could hurt trust in the company. Should I tell him I might quit so he’ll think about raising my salary?

3   

  • Virginia Maina

    1d

    I believe there are so many opportunities out there, do not resign but also look for another job and leave to where you will be appreciated.
    You have... build your CV and experience through that project. This may be the reason why your colleagues also left the company  more

    1

  • Uma Aggarwal

    1d

    It appears that the project is still a work in progress. Once it is finished and gets accolades, you become more marketable and your boss will have to... promote you or give you a raise if he wants to be able to keep you. If you mention now that you might quit, be prepared to be fired. It is generally best to have an offer in hand, share it with your boss and, if you like the company and would rather stay, let him know that you are not keen on leaving. Then the ball is in his court and , even if you quit, you would still have amicable relations. more

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Anonymous member


Career development 5d
I’m in a difficult situation at work. We broke up with a guy from another department, we dated and even lived together for a year. Now it feels uncomfortable to see him at the office and in the kitchen. It’s also hard to deal with coworkers asking questions and showing sympathy about our breakup. I don’t want to change jobs, and I don’t have anywhere else to go.
How can I get coworkers to ask... fewer questions and make work feel more comfortable? Thank you

 more
4   

  • Nacita Moore

    10h

    Sorry to hear about your breakup. Just ask for privacy during this time. This is why a lot of employers discourage dating between employees. For this... very reason and many others aside from this. In all honesty it might be best to change jobs at this point. more

  • Phire Shines

    4d

    Let them know it’s a difficult or uncomfortable situation that you would like privacy to deal with.

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Career development

 11h

How Stay-at-Home Parents Can Confidently Go Back to School and Work by Michelle Hartman


Stay-at-home parents and other adult learners often reach a moment when returning to education and work feels necessary but also intimidating. Career re-entry challenges can bring real doubts: outdated skills, résumé gaps, fear of not belonging alongside younger classmates, and worries about how workforce reintegration will affect the family routine. For nontraditional students, the hardest part... is often figuring out where to start and what "ready" even means. With the right expectations and a clear direction, returning to education can feel manageable again.

Quick Summary: Returning to School and Work

● Clarify your goals so school and work choices fit your family and long-term plans.

● Choose affordable degree programs that build career-relevant skills you can use quickly.

● Balance education and entrepreneurship by aligning coursework with the business you want to start.

● Use simple time management routines to protect study time and keep daily responsibilities steady.

● Take practical steps toward a business startup while progressing through school with confidence.

Understanding a Career-Aligned, Flexible Program

To make school fit real life, start by matching your goal to a program that builds clear, marketable skills. A business administration path can strengthen budgeting, operations, and people skills, while tech-leaning options add data and digital fluency that many roles now expect. For faster momentum, look for competency-based education, an outcomes-based approach that focuses on what you can do, not just time spent in class.

Think of it like packing for a trip: you choose items for the weather and schedule, not random extras. You can also stack shorter credentials first, then build toward an information technology bachelor's degree without starting over. With your target skills clear, comparing affordable options becomes much simpler.

Affordable Education Options Side by Side

This quick comparison helps you weigh common, budget-aware ways to return to school while parenting. Focus on the tradeoffs that shape your day-to-day life: scheduling flexibility, total cost, and how easily each way connects to a job search.

Cost expectations matter, and many families feel online learning should be priced below in-person options. Pick the way that fits your childcare reality first, then confirm it supports your target role. Knowing which path fits best makes your next move clear.

Habits That Keep School, Work, and Home Steady.

Confidence grows when your plan survives real life: meals, naps, sick days, and surprise errands. These small habits reduce decision fatigue, protect your energy, and help you keep moving toward school and paid work without burning out.

Two-List Weekly Focus

● What it is: Pick three priorities, then list everything else as "later" using knowledge of what's important.

● How often: Weekly, plus a quick midweek refresh.

● Why it helps: It keeps your effort aimed at what moves you forward.

Minimum-Viable Study Session

● What it is: Do a 20-minute study sprint with one clear outcome.

● How often: Daily on weekdays, or four times weekly.

● Why it helps: Small wins build momentum even on chaotic parenting days.

Household Time-Block Swap

● What it is: Trade one protected block with a partner, friend, or sitter.

● How often: Weekly.

● Why it helps: Reliable time reduces last-minute stress and missed deadlines.

Weekly Career Micro-Step

● What it is: Complete one job action: resume bullet, application, or networking message.

● How often: Weekly.

● Why it helps: You connect learning to income and keep opportunities warm.

Non-Negotiable Recovery Ritual

● What it is: Schedule sleep, movement, or quiet time because self-care is necessary.

● How often: Daily.

● Why it helps: Recovery protects focus and patience for studying and parenting.

Turn School Plans Into a Clear Return-to-Work Path

Balancing caregiving with the pull to earn, learn, and stay present at home can make going back to school feel risky and overwhelming. A steady, community-first approach, grounded in motivational strategies, realistic goal setting for returners, and simple career planning for parents, keeps the decision practical instead of pressured. With that mindset, education becomes a career investment that fits real life, and progress starts to feel measurable, not mysterious. Small steps, taken consistently, build a confident return. This month, you can pick your next three moves: name one goal, do a brief career-and-schedule review, and take one concrete enrollment action. That send motion matters because it builds stability, resilience, and more choices for your family over time. 🔅 more

Gloria Turbo
Career development 1d
Hello
So i have been applying for jobs rigorously for a year nie and have not got anything
I had applied for graduate studies in Sweden in Jan. Results are back and i got the admission
problem is, no funding is provided. Would appreciate any recommendations for funding please

  • Lucas Mwago

    2
    6h

    Serach for these institutions 9both local and international) that offer funding support for masters students and throw in your applications. Also... examine whether the Sweden Institution has any scholarship programmes and what are their eligibility criteria. more

  • Jen Tao

    9h

    Hi

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Career development

 16h

The Résumé Is Dead: What AI Startup CEOs Actually Want When They Hire


Forget your Ivy League diploma. Forget your perfectly formatted LinkedIn profile. And definitely forget the cover letter you had ChatGPT write for you -- they can tell.

A new generation of AI startup founders is rewriting the rules of hiring, and the criteria they care about would make a traditional HR department uncomfortable. Degrees? Optional. Years of experience? Largely irrelevant. The... ability to build something from nothing on a Saturday afternoon because you were curious? Now we're talking.

Business Insider recently surveyed a group of AI startup CEOs about what they actually look for when bringing someone onto their teams, and the answers reveal a hiring philosophy that has drifted far from the corporate mainstream. The consensus among these founders isn't just that traditional credentials are overrated -- it's that they can be actively misleading.

The shift is structural, not cosmetic. These companies are small, fast, and capital-constrained. A bad hire at a 15-person startup doesn't just cost money; it can derail a product cycle or poison a team's culture in weeks. So the founders have gotten ruthless about identifying what actually predicts performance. And what predicts performance, according to them, has almost nothing to do with where someone went to school.

Curiosity tops nearly every list. Not the polite, interview-answer version of curiosity -- the obsessive, borderline-annoying kind. The kind that leads someone to reverse-engineer a competitor's API on a weekend or teach themselves a new programming language because a problem they encountered demanded it. Several CEOs told Business Insider they specifically look for candidates who've built projects outside of work or school, things nobody asked them to build. Side projects. Open-source contributions. A weird app that solves a problem only twelve people have. These artifacts of genuine interest tell founders more than any résumé bullet point ever could.

Speed matters enormously. Not recklessness -- velocity with direction. One CEO described it as the ability to "ship things that work, fast, and then make them better." In AI, where the underlying models and capabilities shift every few months, the candidate who spends six weeks perfecting an architecture may find the ground has moved beneath them. The founders want people who can produce a working version quickly, gather feedback, and iterate. This bias toward speed over perfection is a philosophical stance, not just a practical one. It signals a belief that in the current moment, learning by doing beats learning by planning.

But raw technical skill, while necessary, isn't sufficient. Multiple founders emphasized what might be called taste -- an intuitive sense of what matters and what doesn't. In a field flooded with new tools, frameworks, and model releases every week, the ability to filter signal from noise is itself a core competency. One CEO compared it to being a great editor: knowing what to cut is as valuable as knowing what to write.

Communication keeps coming up, too. Not the polished presentation-skills kind. The clear-thinking kind. Founders want people who can explain a complex technical tradeoff in two sentences, who can write a concise Slack message that moves a decision forward, who don't hide behind jargon. At a small company, everyone is essentially selling -- to investors, to customers, to each other. The engineer who can't articulate why a particular approach is better than the alternatives becomes a bottleneck, no matter how talented they are at writing code.

Adaptability. That word surfaces constantly. The AI field's rate of change is genuinely unprecedented in recent tech history. A technique that was state-of-the-art eighteen months ago can be obsolete today. Founders are looking for people who don't just tolerate that instability but thrive in it. Candidates who've worked across multiple domains, picked up new stacks quickly, or pivoted careers entirely tend to score well here. The signal isn't expertise in any single technology -- it's a demonstrated pattern of learning fast and applying what you've learned.

There's also a pronounced bias toward builders over theorists. Several founders drew a sharp line between people who talk about AI and people who make things with it. The former group is large and growing; conference circuits are packed with them. The latter group is smaller and far more valuable. One telling hiring tactic: some startups now ask candidates to show them something they've built in the last 90 days. Not a portfolio piece from two years ago. Something recent. The request filters ruthlessly for people who are actively engaged with the technology as it exists right now, not as it existed when they last updated their résumé.

This hiring philosophy creates obvious tensions. It favors the young, the unencumbered, and the obsessive. Someone with family obligations and a stable job may not have weekends free to build side projects. Someone from a non-traditional background may not have the network to even learn that these startups exist, let alone apply. The meritocratic framing -- "we just want the best people" -- can obscure real structural advantages that accrue to those who already have time, money, and proximity to the tech industry's inner circles.

Some founders are aware of this. A few mentioned deliberately recruiting from non-obvious talent pools: bootcamp graduates, self-taught developers, career changers from fields like biology or finance who bring domain expertise that pure computer science graduates lack. The argument is pragmatic, not just ethical. Diverse cognitive backgrounds produce better products, especially in AI, where the applications span nearly every industry.

The interview process itself has changed at many of these companies. Traditional whiteboard coding exercises are falling out of favor. So are brain teasers and hypothetical system design questions. Instead, founders are gravitating toward paid trial projects -- short engagements, typically a few days to a week, where the candidate works on a real problem alongside the existing team. The trial reveals things no interview can: how someone communicates under ambiguity, how they handle feedback, whether they ask good questions, whether they actually enjoy the work or just enjoy talking about it.

Not everyone can afford to do a multi-day trial, of course. Candidates with other job offers or financial constraints may balk. But the founders who use this approach swear by it. One described traditional interviews as "theater" and trial projects as "reality." The hit rate, they claim, is dramatically higher.

Compensation structures at these startups reflect the same unconventional thinking. Equity-heavy packages are common, with the implicit message: we're betting on you, and we want you to bet on us. Base salaries at early-stage companies often trail what a candidate could earn at Google or Meta. The pitch is upside -- the chance that the equity will be worth multiples of the salary differential if the company succeeds. It's a self-selecting mechanism. Candidates who optimize for guaranteed cash tend to go to big tech. Candidates who optimize for ownership and impact tend to stay.

The broader labor market context matters here. Despite waves of layoffs at large tech companies over the past two years, demand for AI talent remains fierce. The supply of people who can genuinely build production-grade AI systems -- not just fine-tune a model in a Jupyter notebook but architect, deploy, and maintain something at scale -- is still small relative to the demand. This scarcity gives candidates leverage and forces startups to compete on dimensions beyond salary: mission, team quality, speed of learning, autonomy.

Autonomy is a big one. Multiple founders described their organizations as places where new hires are given real responsibility from day one. No six-month onboarding. No shadow period. You're shipping code to production in your first week, sometimes your first day. For the right kind of person, this is intoxicating. For the wrong kind, it's terrifying. And that's precisely the point -- the structure itself acts as a filter.

There's an irony embedded in all of this. AI companies, whose products are increasingly used to screen and evaluate job candidates at other organizations, are themselves rejecting the algorithmic, credential-based approach to hiring. They don't want to see your keyword-optimized résumé. They want to see your GitHub. They don't care about your GPA. They care about your taste, your speed, and your obsession.

Whether this hiring philosophy scales is an open question. What works at a 10-person startup may not work at a 500-person company. The trial-project approach becomes logistically complex at volume. The emphasis on side projects and weekend hacking can calcify into its own form of credentialism, just as exclusionary as the Ivy League pipeline it claims to replace. And the cult-of-the-builder mentality can undervalue essential functions -- sales, operations, legal -- that don't produce a demo-able artifact.

But for now, in the companies building the most consequential technology of this decade, the old playbook is being tossed. The founders running these teams have a clear, almost uniform message for candidates: show us what you've made. Tell us what you're obsessed with. Prove you can learn faster than the field is moving. Everything else is noise. more

Career development

 18h

The Quiet Death of the Résumé: Why Hiring Managers Are Drowning in AI-Generated Applications They Can't Trust


Something broke in hiring. Not gradually, not with warning -- it just stopped working. The traditional job application process, built on the assumption that a human being sat down and wrote a cover letter, tailored a résumé, and clicked submit, has been overwhelmed by a flood of AI-generated applications so vast and so polished that recruiters can no longer tell who's real.

The problem surfaced... in a Hacker News discussion this week that quickly drew hundreds of comments from hiring managers, recruiters, and job seekers alike. The thread centered on a growing crisis: applicants are using large language models to mass-produce tailored applications, and the people on the receiving end are buckling under the volume. One commenter described receiving over 900 applications for a single mid-level engineering role, with the vast majority appearing to be AI-generated. Another reported that candidates who submitted eloquent, technically detailed cover letters couldn't string together a coherent sentence in a phone screen.

This isn't a fringe complaint. It's an industry-wide reckoning.

The mechanics are straightforward. Tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and a growing number of purpose-built job application bots can take a job listing, parse its requirements, and generate a customized résumé and cover letter in seconds. Some applicants are going further, using browser automation tools to apply to hundreds of positions per day without reading a single job description. The cost of applying has dropped to nearly zero. And when the cost of applying drops to zero, the number of applications explodes -- a textbook economic externality that's now crushing the people responsible for sorting through the pile.

Hiring managers in the Hacker News thread described a new daily reality that feels almost adversarial. "I used to read every cover letter," one wrote. "Now I skim for tells that a human wrote it, and I'm wrong half the time." Several commenters noted that they've started ignoring cover letters entirely, which perversely punishes the applicants who actually took the time to write one. The signal-to-noise ratio has collapsed.

The downstream effects are significant. Companies are responding with more screening layers -- take-home assignments, timed coding challenges, video introductions, even requests for handwritten application components. Each additional hurdle is designed to filter out low-effort AI-generated submissions. But each one also raises the cost for legitimate applicants, particularly those who are employed full-time while searching for new roles. The arms race is making the process worse for everyone.

And it's not just tech. Recruiters across industries -- finance, marketing, consulting, healthcare administration -- are reporting the same pattern. A Reuters report on AI's impact on labor markets noted earlier this year that HR departments are investing in AI detection tools, only to find them unreliable. The detectors produce false positives on genuine human writing and miss sophisticated AI output that's been lightly edited. It's a cat-and-mouse game with no clear winner.

Some companies have tried radical solutions. A few startups mentioned in the Hacker News thread have abandoned résumés altogether, replacing them with structured application forms that ask specific, hard-to-fake questions about past work. Others are leaning heavily on referrals, effectively closing the front door to anyone who doesn't already know someone inside. That approach works for well-connected candidates. For everyone else, it's a wall.

The referral-heavy model has obvious equity implications. Candidates from underrepresented backgrounds, career changers, immigrants, and people without elite professional networks are disproportionately harmed when companies retreat behind closed doors. The open application -- for all its current dysfunction -- was at least theoretically meritocratic. Replacing it with a who-you-know system doesn't solve the problem. It relocates it.

There's a philosophical tension here that the tech industry hasn't fully confronted. The same companies building and promoting large language models are the ones struggling to hire because of them. OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, Meta -- they've created tools that are now being used to game the very processes they rely on to find talent. Several Hacker News commenters pointed out the irony with varying degrees of bitterness.

One particularly sharp observation in the thread came from a commenter who noted that the hiring process was already broken before AI. "We had keyword-matching ATS systems that rejected qualified candidates for years," they wrote. "AI applicants are just the mirror image of AI screeners. The whole thing was dehumanized long ago." There's truth in that. Applicant tracking systems have been filtering out résumés based on keyword density and formatting for over a decade. Candidates learned to game those systems by stuffing keywords into white text. Now they're gaming them with generative AI. The tools changed. The incentives didn't.

So where does this go?

Some observers believe the résumé is effectively dead as a useful hiring document. If anyone can generate a perfect one in seconds, it conveys no information about the candidate's actual abilities, communication skills, or work ethic. It becomes a formality -- a ticket to the next round, nothing more. The real evaluation shifts entirely to interviews, work samples, and trial periods. That's not necessarily bad, but it's expensive. Small companies and startups, which already struggle to compete for talent against large employers, may find the increased cost of thorough screening prohibitive.

Others think the answer lies in verified credentials and portable reputation systems. Platforms like LinkedIn have experimented with skill assessments and endorsements, but these have been widely gamed as well. GitHub profiles offer some signal for software engineers, but they favor those with time for open-source contributions -- again, a biased proxy. A few blockchain-based credential verification startups have emerged, but none has achieved meaningful adoption.

The most pragmatic voices in the Hacker News discussion suggested that companies simply need to accept the new reality and redesign their processes from scratch. Stop asking for cover letters. Stop pretending résumés are meaningful differentiators. Instead, invest in structured interviews with standardized scoring rubrics. Use paid trial projects. Ask candidates to walk through real work they've done, in real time, with follow-up questions that can't be pre-scripted. These methods are harder to fake and more predictive of job performance. They're also more expensive and time-consuming, which is why most companies haven't adopted them.

There's a labor market asymmetry at play too. In a tight market where employers are desperate for talent, they'll tolerate the noise. In a soft market -- like the one many tech workers are experiencing right now -- the power shifts to employers, and candidates bear the full cost of a broken system. The current moment is particularly brutal for job seekers. Layoffs across the tech sector have flooded the market with experienced professionals competing for fewer openings. Add AI-generated application spam to the mix, and individual candidates feel invisible.

"I spent three hours on a custom application for a role I was genuinely excited about," one Hacker News commenter wrote. "I didn't even get an automated rejection. Just silence. Meanwhile, someone probably submitted 200 AI-generated apps that day and got five callbacks." The frustration is palpable. And rational. If the system rewards volume over quality, quality applicants will either adopt the same tactics or drop out.

That's the real danger. Not that AI makes applications easier to write, but that it destroys the information content of the application itself. When every candidate looks perfect on paper, paper stops mattering. The question is what replaces it.

Right now, nobody has a good answer. The tools are ahead of the institutions. Companies are improvising, candidates are adapting, and the whole apparatus of matching people to jobs -- one of the most consequential functions in any economy -- is operating on assumptions that no longer hold. The résumé, that sturdy artifact of 20th-century professionalism, may have finally outlived its usefulness. What comes next will be messier, more expensive, and possibly more honest. But the transition is going to hurt. more

Career development

 22h

AI Placement Readiness Platform


I need an AI developer to build a full-stack platform that helps college students, job seekers gauge and improve their placement readiness in the software industry. The engine has to ingest a student's résumé, skills inventory, and mock-interview recordings, then surface clear, actionable feedback. Core feature set * Résumé quality analysis that benchmarks ATS ranking, highlights formatting... issues, pinpoints weak content or grammar, and suggests exact wording or structure changes to lift the score. * Skill-alignment module that runs gap analysis against chosen job roles, generates personalized learning paths, blends in expert recommendations, and overlays current industry outlook so students know which competencies to prioritize. * Interview-performance evaluation -- video or audio -- using NLP, sentiment, and facial-cue detection to score confidence, clarity, and technical depth, followed by improvement tips. Tech expectations I am open to your preferred stack, but you should be comfortable with modern LLMs (OpenAI or similar), résumé-parsing libraries, standard ATS keyword taxonomies, and basic computer-vision / audio-analysis frameworks. A modular microservice design with clean APIs will make future expansion easier. Deliverables 1. Working web application (responsive) with student and admin dashboards 2. Model pipelines for résumé, skills, and interview analysis, each exposed via REST or GraphQL 3. Clear documentation and a hand-off session Acceptance criteria * Résumé module returns an ATS-style score and at least three concrete fixes per upload * Skill module maps current profile to target role within 10 seconds and outputs a learning path * Interview module processes a five-minute video in under two minutes and produces a scored report If you have shipped ed-tech or HR-tech AI products before, please share a link or brief description. I am ready to start as soon as we finalize milestones and timeline. more

Career development

 1d

Revamp My LinkedIn Experience


I'm refreshing my LinkedIn presence and want the Experience section to read like an engaging story -- not a dry résumé. My background spans several corporate roles; the raw facts are there, but the copy needs tightening, reorganising and infusing with a conversational, approachable voice while still sounding credible to senior‐level audiences. Here's what I need from you: * A rewritten Experience... section for each role (currently five positions, 100-150 words per role) that highlights key achievements, impact, and metrics where I provide them. * Concise, keyword-aware phrasing that aligns with LinkedIn's search algorithm yet feels natural to human readers. * A short headline sentence for every position to hook visitors immediately. * Two rounds of revisions after the first draft so we can fine-tune tone and clarity. I'll supply my current profile text, dates, responsibilities, and any measurable results. You transform that information into compelling, on-brand copy ready to paste straight into LinkedIn. If you've crafted standout corporate profiles before, especially using a friendly storytelling style, I'd love to see samples when you respond. more

Career development

 1d

What 3 AI startup CEOs say they look for when hiring a candidate


Business Insider tells the global tech, finance, stock market, media, economy, lifestyle, real estate, AI and innovative stories you want to know.

For some AI startup CEOs, hiring is about finding people who can evolve alongside rapidly changing technology moreso than pedigree.Amid an increasingly brutal job market for white-collar workers across sectors, three CEOs and cofounders of... AI startups in San Francisco recently shared with Business Insider what they're looking for in candidates and how AI is reshaping those expectations.

Rather than focusing solely on the résumé or job description, these companies say that they most value genuine excitement about AI and often screen candidates based on how well they can embrace new tools.From testing whether applicants instinctively use AI to solve complex problems to seeking out those energized by startup intensity, here's what it would take to get hired in these three AI companies.Arvind Jain, cofounder and CEO of Glean, an AI-powered enterprise search and workplace productivity platform, told Business Insider that he rarely hires people to do a very specific task and always asks whether AI could fill that role first before adding to the head count."For example, we are looking to hire an engineer, a product manager, or a human resources person, and they have a very large range of tasks that they're going to be doing," said Jain, adding that their exact roles will keep changing over time, so adaptability is key."So the hiring is done at a bit higher level," said Jain. "And one of the key things that we look at is, are we hiring a person who's curious and who has started to use AI in their personal lives or in their previous job?"To differentiate those who are proficient in using AI from those who aren't, Jain said that during the interview process, candidates are given a task so hard and time-consuming that they couldn't complete it within the one hour they had, without being told whether they could use AI.Daniel Yanisse, the cofounder and CEO of Checkr, which uses AI to conduct background checks, told Business Insider that he is looking for people who would thrive in startup culture."We're over 900 people, so we're not a small startup, but I'm a startup guy," said Yanisse. "People who come here -- they need to be OK with uncertainty, be self-driven, adaptable, flexible, willing to do new things, and solve new problems without too much guidance or structure.""Some people might be reticent and say, 'I don't want it to change,'" Yanisse added. "Or you can say, 'Hey, this is the future. These are the technologies available. Let's work together to reimagine what a product manager and a designer can do with all of these AI tools and assistance.'"Yanisse said the company is "hiring across the board" in San Francisco, Denver, and San Diego. The company has a hybrid schedule that requires three days in the office, and people often bring their dogs to work.Vipul Ved Prakash, the cofounder and CEO of Together AI, which enables developers to train generative AI models, told Business Insider that, when it comes to candidates, passion comes before the technical demands of each role."We look for excellence -- and it doesn't have to be a specific kind of excellence," said Prakash. "It's just like folks who are really interested in what they're doing.""We look for folks who are excited by AI because it's who we are, and some people are more excited about the possibilities of AI than others," Prakash added. "We look for folks who are startup intense, who are excited about working hard and building something consequential, and then at last we look at what the role is and what the fit is for that role."

Hiring Careers

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Career development

 1d

Academic Resume & Achievement Analysis


I am preparing to apply for an entry-level academic post (Research Assistant or Lecturer) and I need a focused, professional résumé that showcases my potential in a concise, compelling way. My publications are the strongest proof of my capability, so they must take centre stage; research projects or teaching experience can be mentioned only where they reinforce that narrative. Here is what I... expect from you: * A clean, ATS-friendly academic résumé delivered in both editable Word and PDF formats. * A short analytic memo (1-2 pages) explaining why each highlighted achievement was selected, how it aligns with typical hiring criteria for entry-level academic roles, and suggestions on presenting those achievements in cover letters or interviews. Please structure the résumé to meet standard academic conventions -- clear sections for education, publications (with proper citation style), skills and relevant honours -- yet keep it succinct enough to resonate with hiring committees that skim quickly. If you have insights on layout best practices or citation managers (e.g., LaTeX, EndNote, Zotero), feel free to weave them in. I will supply raw career data and publication details once we start. Drafts are welcome; final files are expected within one week of acceptance so I can start sending out applications promptly. more

Career development

 1d

Custom Recruitment Agency Website


I need a complete, production-ready website tailored for my recruitment agency. The build must revolve around core functions: a searchable job board that lets applicants submit applications directly through the site, and a secure section where they can upload or update their résumé/CV for our internal database. Smooth, professional candidate flow is critical, so the job listing module should... support keyword search, category filters, and an easy-to-use application form that ties every submission to the résumé on file. A simple back-end dashboard where I can post, edit, and archive roles is a must. The site also has to talk to LinkedIn for automated role sharing and, where possible, simple one-click LinkedIn apply. In parallel, connect the site to my preferred email marketing service so that every new candidate or newsletter opt-in lands straight into the mailing list without manual export/import hassles. Modern, mobile-first design, quick page loads, and clean code are non-negotiable. I'm flexible on the tech stack -- WordPress with a custom theme, Laravel, or a headless approach are all fine as long as you outline why it's the right fit and keep future feature additions in mind. Deliverables: * Fully functional website with static pages about the services we provide, each service page, home, contact, FAQs, Why we, etc. job listings, application workflow, and résumé upload * Admin dashboard for vacancy management * LinkedIn integration for job sharing and one-click apply * Seamless hook-up to my email marketing platform (e.g., Mailchimp, Sendinblue, etc.) * Responsive UI, basic SEO setup, and launch support Hand-over includes all source files, documented setup instructions, and a short run-through so I can manage posts myself once we go live. more

Career development

 1d

How Fashion Shapes Student Identity & Confidence


Walk into any college cafeteria at noon and you'll see it immediately. The engineering students clustering near the windows in their hoodies and sneakers. The art majors scattered by the coffee bar, dressed in thrift store finds and vintage band tees. The business students sitting upright in their pressed shirts, already practicing for job interviews that are still two years away.

Fashion isn't... just about looking good. For students navigating the messy transition between who they were in high school and who they're becoming as adults, clothing becomes a language. It's how they signal belonging, reject norms, or test out different versions of themselves before committing to any particular identity.

The connection between fashion and personality students develop during their college years is more deliberate than it appears. According to research from the Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 68% of undergraduate students report consciously using clothing to project specific aspects of their personality to peers. This isn't vanity. It's strategy.

Dr. Karen Pine, a psychologist at the University of Hertfordshire, found that students who wore clothing aligned with their self-perception performed better academically and reported higher confidence levels. The research showed measurable differences in cognitive performance based on what participants wore during testing sessions. Jeans and a t-shirt produced different results than business casual. The clothing literally changed how students thought about themselves and their capabilities.

But here's where it gets complicated. Students are simultaneously trying to fit in and stand out. They're joining communities while asserting individuality. A sophomore at NYU might adopt the all-black uniform common in downtown Manhattan not because she lacks creativity, but because that shared aesthetic grants her entry into a specific social world. Within that framework, she'll find smaller ways to differentiate: a particular vintage jacket, unconventional jewelry, or how she styles her hair.

Students face constant evaluation. Papers, exams, group projects, internship applications. Much of their lives exists under someone else's judgment. Self-expression through clothing offers one arena where they maintain complete control.

When deadlines pile up and a student is struggling with a challenging dissertation or research paper, sometimes the only decision they can make freely that day is what to wear. WriteAnyPapers provides dissertation writing support that helps students manage their academic workload, but fashion remains the most immediate form of self-determination available. It requires no approval, no rubric, no grade.

This explains why college student style tips proliferate online, but students rarely follow them exactly. They're not looking for instructions. They're looking for permission to experiment. The rise of platforms like TikTok and Instagram has made fashion more accessible but also more performative. Students curate outfits for their daily lives the way previous generations only dressed up for special occasions.

The same outfit produces different psychological effects depending on context. Research published in Social Psychological and Personality Science demonstrated what students already know intuitively: clothing that makes them feel confident in one setting can feel completely wrong in another.

The disconnect between these contexts creates real stress. Students who excel at one presentation of self struggle when forced into another. The art student who feels confident in paint-splattered jeans faces anxiety when required to dress conservatively for a corporate internship. The finance major who's perfected business casual might feel like an imposter at a creative industry networking event. In moments of pressure, some students may even consider shortcuts, such as deciding to pay for a research paper at KingEssays.com to keep up with expectations. This is a practical solution and it can help with performance.

Here's what nobody mentions in glossy fashion articles aimed at students: most of them are broke. Federal student loan data shows the average undergraduate has roughly $1,000 in discretionary spending per month, and that's before factoring in food, transportation, and textbooks.

Yet fashion remains a priority. A 2023 survey by the National Retail Federation found that college students spend an average of $976 annually on clothing and accessories. They're making sacrifices elsewhere to fund their self-expression through clothing.

This creates interesting patterns:

Note: Percentages exceed 100% because students use multiple strategies

The rise of secondhand shopping among Gen Z isn't purely environmental consciousness, though that factors in. It's economic necessity merged with desire for individuality. At schools like Brown University or Oberlin College, thrifting has become the dominant fashion culture. Students compete to find the most unique vintage pieces, turning financial constraint into creative opportunity.

Watch a student's fashion choices evolve across four years and you're watching them figure out who they are. Freshman year often brings either dramatic reinvention or tentative continuation of high school patterns. By sophomore year, after some experimentation and social feedback, students usually settle into more defined style territories.

The relationship between fashion and personality students develop isn't static. A student who arrives on campus dressing like everyone from her high school might spend sophomore year in vintage dresses and doc martens, junior year in minimalist basics, and senior year in some hybrid that finally feels authentic.

This evolution isn't random. It maps onto identity development theories psychologists have studied for decades. Erik Erikson's stages of psychosocial development place identity formation squarely in the late teens and early twenties, exactly when students are making daily decisions about self-presentation through clothing.

Some students approach fashion as serious identity work. They follow specific influencers, develop coherent aesthetic visions, and think deeply about what their choices communicate. Others treat it more casually, grabbing whatever's clean and comfortable. But even the most fashion-indifferent student is making a statement. Choosing not to care about appearance is still a choice that projects identity.

Not all students experience fashion as liberating self-expression. For some, it becomes another source of anxiety and inadequacy. Social comparison runs rampant on campuses where economic diversity means some students show up in designer labels while others are stretching their limited budgets.

At elite institutions, the pressure intensifies. A student at Stanford or Georgetown might feel compelled to maintain appearances that match their peers' financial resources even when they're on significant financial aid. The psychological toll of this performance rarely appears in discussions about how fashion affects confidence.

There's also the issue of cultural and religious dress navigating predominantly Western fashion norms. Muslim students wearing hijab, Sikh students maintaining their articles of faith, or students from cultures with different beauty standards often face pressure to conform that goes beyond typical fashion choices. Their clothing carries meanings that extend past personal style into identity, faith, and cultural heritage.

Student fashion identity serves as a rehearsal space for adult life. The experimentation happening in dorm rooms and campus quads is how young people learn to use clothing as communication. They're developing a skill set they'll use throughout their lives: reading social contexts, making strategic self-presentation choices, and using external appearance to support internal identity.

But it's worth questioning whether we've made fashion too important in these years. When students feel their worth is tied to their appearance, when they're spending limited resources on clothing instead of experiences or savings, when they're more focused on curating Instagram outfits than actual learning, something's off balance.

The healthiest relationship with student fashion identity probably lies somewhere between complete indifference and total preoccupation. Fashion can be a tool for self-discovery and confidence without becoming a source of stress or debt. Students who figure out that balance, who use clothing to support their goals rather than define their worth, seem to navigate the college years with more ease.

They're the ones who dress well for the presentation because it helps them perform better, not because they need external validation. They're the ones who experiment with style because it's fun and interesting, not because they're desperate to fit in. They're the ones who eventually graduate with a sense of personal style that actually reflects who they are rather than who they thought they should be. more

Career development

 3d

Turning Online Internship Into Job Offer: Step-by-Step Guide


How to Turn Your Internship Into a Full-Time Job Offer: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide

The future of career development is being shaped by a revolution in online internships and digital workplace experiences. Gone are the days when internships were simply a way to pass the summer or pad a résumé. Today, internships are often the golden ticket -- your direct pathway to a full-time job offer and... permanent position within the company. It's not just about learning the ins and outs of the business; it's about demonstrating your value to influence hiring decisions and turning an internship into a full-time role in a competitive job market.

Internship programs have become a transformative bridge between education and employment. In many industries, digital internships and remote work experiences are as valuable as traditional programs -- sometimes even more so, thanks to artificial intelligence and advanced educational technology tools. Whether you're a student, a recent graduate, or an early-career job seeker, your internship experience can help you achieve meaningful career goals, develop a strong skill set, and significantly boost your chances of landing a full-time job. In this actionable guide, you'll learn the academic evidence, insider strategies, and step-by-step process to turn your internship into a job offer -- before, during, and after your assignment ends.

Let's explore how you can go above and beyond to turn the internship into your next big opportunity.

A proactive attitude and planning are critical if you want to turn your internship into a full-time job. Many employers use internship programs not just as on-the-job training, but as an "extended interview" to identify candidates for full-time positions. By starting strong and treating your internship like the first chapter of your career path -- not just a temporary job -- you stand out to your supervisor and the whole team.

Start by treating every day during your internship like it directly influences hiring decisions. Arrive punctual, dress appropriately for the company culture, and display a strong work ethic. Consistent professionalism signals to the hiring manager and colleagues that you would be easy to work with as a full-time employee -- someone who will fit seamlessly into permanent teams.

Interns who actively network within the company frequently land a job. Take the initiative to introduce yourself to coworkers from other departments, attend team meetings, and don't be afraid to ask thoughtful questions about available positions or the team's long-term goals. Networking within the company can lead to critical job referrals or insider information about openings you might not otherwise find. Interns who genuinely connect are remembered long after the internship ends.

Research shows interns who request and act on feedback during performance reviews are more likely to get hired. Use every opportunity, from a one-on-one meeting with your supervisor to group conversations in team meetings, to ask for actionable feedback on your skills and performance. Demonstrate your eagerness to contribute and willingness to learn -- the very qualities that increase your chances of turning the internship into a job offer.

You've proven you can do the work -- now, show that you can add long-term value to the company. Action is what transforms temporary positions into permanent ones. This stage is about more than just completing assignments; it's about becoming indispensable to your organization through proactive learning, visible contributions, and strategic communication.

Don't settle for simply meeting deadlines or checking boxes. Successful interns deliver work that exceeds expectations and positively impacts the team's results. For example, if you see an inefficient process, propose a new technology tool or method drawing on your educational technology knowledge. If you master a project, ask for more responsibility. Companies offer full-time opportunities to interns who demonstrate initiative and problem-solving skills that make them stand out.

Internship can help you build a résumé loaded with measurable accomplishments. Document your contributions, results, and learning outcomes. During performance reviews or in email updates, highlight how your work ethic, attention to detail, and professional experience improved team performance. Visibility, when done respectfully, helps hiring managers remember you when it's time to make hiring decisions.

Before the end of your internship, don't be afraid to ask for endorsements, references, or specific performance feedback for your LinkedIn profile or future résumé. These genuine testimonials increase your chances in the job market and keep you top-of-mind for job referrals or "alumni" hiring. Staying in touch via LinkedIn or occasional email signals your ongoing interest in a full-time position and keeps the relationship alive.

The data is clear: over 70% of companies offer full-time positions to their top interns. But companies can't read your mind -- if you want to turn your internship into a full-time job offer, you need to be clear about your intentions, even if it feels a little uncomfortable.

When the internship nears completion, request a meeting with your supervisor or the hiring manager. Express your enthusiasm for the team and communicate directly that you want to be considered for a full-time role within the company. Share why the company culture, projects, and ongoing mentorship align with your career development goals.

Don't be afraid to ask specific questions about available positions, expectations for full-time employees, and the next steps in the hiring process. Sometimes, the simple act of expressing interest and asking actionable questions at the end of your internship gives you a leg up. Clarify any uncertainties and show your willingness to continue learning in the role.

If offered a job interview, approach it like you already know the ins and outs of the business. Use portfolio examples, data from your internship, and feedback from your supervisor to explain your fit for the role. Your internship experience gives you a unique advantage in the hiring process, since you can demonstrate your value, cultural fit, and growth trajectory better than external job seekers.

Turning an internship into a full-time job doesn't always happen immediately. Sometimes, companies offer roles months after the original program ends, especially as new projects develop or budgets allow. Staying proactive, building relationships, and maintaining ongoing communication can significantly increase your chances of landing a full-time job offer -- even after the internship is over.

Use tools like email, LinkedIn, and company alumni networks to maintain relationships with supervisors and peers. Share occasional updates on your professional development or educational milestones. Interns who stay in touch are top candidates when new full-time roles appear.

If a full-time position isn't available right away, use volunteering, additional online learning, or professional certifications to show continued growth. Advanced digital skills, artificial intelligence knowledge, or project management certifications can significantly boost your chances when new opportunities arise. Leverage industry trends and learning platforms to stay competitive.

Many industries have fluctuating hiring cycles. A single internship can help you build the reputation, résumé, and professional network that give you a leg up well after the official program ends. Stay in the loop, remain willing to learn, and build strong relationships to increase your chances of getting that long-awaited job offer.

Transforming your internship into a full-time job offer is no longer just a hopeful possibility -- it's a proven career pathway in today's education and employment ecosystem. The academic evidence, industry data, and practical experience all agree: internships have become much more than a checkbox on your résumé. They're a springboard to professional achievement, a bridge to permanent positions, and a showcase for your work ethic and eagerness to contribute.

By being proactive, demonstrating value, building relationships, and leveraging every opportunity, you can significantly boost your chances of turning an internship into a job offer. The future of accessible, merit-based career advancement is being shaped by motivated interns like you. Treat your internship as more than a temporary assignment -- it's your launchpad for landing a full-time job and achieving your career goals.

Let's keep pushing the boundaries of what online education and internships can deliver. Stay inspired, keep learning, and explore more career development resources to give yourself every advantage in the evolving job market. more

  • George W. K. Yarngo

    1d

    I will be seeking employment in the US at the age of 70. I have served in the capacity of Chief Executive Officer for a public entity responsible for... regulating the delivery of drinking water services to all classes of clients in Liberia. What chances do I have for permanent employment? more

Career development

 1d

WE NEED BIASES


WE NEED BIASES

Hiring Bias: The reason why you are not hired yet.

"Every hiring decision is made twice, once by the brain in the first ninety seconds, and once on paper for HR records."

Jerry: Since we are talking about biases, I would like to share on the biases that are present in the corporate world.

Antonella: That's nice. I just remembered that you are the hiring manager of a new... construction outfit.

Jerry: Before I got to the level I am currently, I was always wondering why I was always getting rejection emails even after seeming to ace the aptitude tests and interviews.

Antonella: Ok. In hindsight, what did you think you did wrong?

Jerry: Firstly, the room reads you before you speak.

Every hiring decision is made twice, once by the brain in the first ninety seconds, and once on paper for HR records. The second decision is largely a rationalisation of the first.

Antonella: Wow. So many things are happening in hiring rooms that an average man is unaware of. There are strong biases in the corporate world. These biases are stubbornly persistent but they sometimes turn out to be accurate predictions.

Jerry: Consider this hypothetical situation: Two men walk into the same building for the same job interview on the same morning. They hold identical degrees from the same university with the same GPA. They are, on paper, the same candidate. One walks out with an offer. The other gets a polite rejection email three days later. Neither man knows exactly why.

Now the background of the story is that the one hired comes from a well educated and comfortable family while the rejected candidate comes from barely educated parents that are just scraping by.

Antonella: I think I have heard this story on a TikTok video.

Jerry: I think that video went viral on TikTok. That video that circulated on TikTok captured something that career coaches rarely say plainly: the child of educated, financially comfortable parents enters an interview with invisible advantages that no résumé can list. They know how to dress not just formally, but correctly. They know that a pointed Oxford shoe signals a certain cultural literacy; that an oval-toed loafer from the wrong shelf at the wrong store sends a different message entirely to a trained eye. The other candidate whose parents never sat in a boardroom, never coached him on how to navigate small talk with a hiring panel, never told him which fork to use at a business lunch buys what looks formal to him. He arrives dressed, but not coded. And in the first ninety seconds, before he has answered a single question, the panel's System has already filed him under a category.

This is not about shoes. It is about the fact that every professional environment has a costume, a script, and a set of unwritten social rules and access to that knowledge is itself a product of class. The bias that punishes him is real, it is widespread, and this is the uncomfortable part. It frequently predicts something true about cultural fit, even when it shouldn't.

Antonella: This is eye opening. It is intriguing to realise that even your family background follows you to places you wouldn't expect.

Jerry, can you break this concept piece by piece?

Jerry: Sure. There is something we call the Halo effect. It shows up in impressive attributes - an elite university, a confident handshake, a prestigious former employer and so on. All these cause the employer's brain to assume competence in every other area. The candidate is subconsciously granted the benefit of every doubt from that moment forward.

Antonella: Guess what? It is often self-fulfilling.

Jerry: There is also the affinity or similarity bias.

Antonella: Ok...I don't think I have heard of this before.

Jerry: Now wait for it. People hire people who remind them of themselves. It could be a shared university, similar accent, same golf reference, same cultural touchpoints. This is the most common and least acknowledged bias in professional hiring and it is the primary engine of class reproduction in the workplace.

This is extremely common.

Antonella: This means that people love to form tribes wherever they are. This still depicts the primordial nature of man that creates tribes to foster cooperation, emotional warmth and security. This is sociological evolution.

Jerry: Yes. Bosses take note of these things because they affect boardroom conversations.

Then we have the appearance and grooming bias. Studies consistently show that candidates judged physically attractive, well-groomed, and appropriately dressed receive higher competence ratings before they have said anything. The brain reads appearance as a signal of self-discipline, social awareness, and professional seriousness and is frequently right, because appearance at an interview is a form of deliberate communication.

Antonella: I think that has been emphasized a lot.

Jerry: There is the confidence or presence bias. Candidates who speak with assurance, maintain eye contact, take up space physically, and pause before answering are rated more capable than those who speak tentatively, even when their answers are identical in content. Confidence is read as competence. This rewards those raised in environments where speaking to authority was normalised.

Antonella: This is where family upbringing really plays a role. If you had abusive or over controlling parents, you might fall victim to this. However, it is often inaccurate.

Jerry: You are right. There is the name or accent bias. Audit studies across the US, UK, and Europe consistently find that CVs with "white-sounding" names receive significantly more callbacks than identical CVs with foreign or ethnic names. Accents trigger class and origin assumptions within the first fifteen seconds of a call screen. These biases predict perceived cultural fit, not actual job performance.

Antonella: Damn! This is why Blacks in this country just want to sound White.

Jerry: It makes things easy, Antonella.

Antonella: What about the names? Bearing names like Clay, Bill, Harvey just to fit in the society to make a living. This is clearly identity erasure. Anyways, let's move to the next, like you said, it does not measure actual job performance.

Jerry: We also have the address or postcode bias. Where you live tells the hiring manager what neighbourhood you belong to, what school you likely attended, and what your network probably looks like. Candidates from prestigious postcodes are unconsciously granted higher social capital.

Antonella: This is class bias operating through geography.

Jerry: Yes. There is also the communication style bias. Vocabulary range, sentence structure, the ability to code-switch between formal and casual registers, knowing when to be brief and when to elaborate. These are read as intelligence proxies. They are actually proxies for educational exposure and class background.

Antonella: That's fair enough.

Jerry: The inference is often wrong. Ok, on to the next which is the last and very controversial of them all.

Antonella: And what is it?

Jerry: It is the Cultural fit bias. It is the most elastic and therefore most dangerous phrase in hiring. It means: does this person feel like us? It allows interviewers to reject candidates for reasons they cannot and legally should not articulate. It is the container into which almost all other biases pour themselves.

Antonella: This explains the reason why you are sent with a rejection mail with no accompanying reason whatsoever even though you must have been told by the interviewer that you performed well at the interview stage.

Jerry: Immediately you enter an organisation, you are starting to get judged already. There are biases that are already speaking against you.

Antonella: With all you have said, for a young Black adult coming from the hood who had to struggle all his life to get to his present station or a young adult from a third world country, the odds are stacked way too high against him.

Jerry: It is the sad truth. However, you can beat the system.

Antonella: How?

Jerry: Since you cannot remove bias from the hiring room, you must enter the hiring room as the answer to the questions the bias is already asking. That is how to make hiring bias work for you.

Antonella: Are there tips or rules that can help?

Jerry: Sure. I would start with this: decode the costume before you dress.

Research the specific company and sector, not just "formal." A startup interview and a banking interview are different costumes. Look at the LinkedIn profiles and Instagram of people who work there. What are they wearing in professional photos? What grooming signals do you see? Match the culture, not a generic idea of professionalism. For instance, in tech and creative industries, the over-dressed candidate loses points, not gains them.

Secondly, engineer the halo in the first ninety seconds.

Antonella: How?

Jerry: The halo effect means that one early impressive signal colours everything that follows. Identify your strongest credential and lead with it not in a boastful way, but by ensuring it is visible before the formal interview begins. The walk from reception to the room, the greeting, the small talk, these are not preamble. They are the interview. Use them.

Next, manufacture shared ground deliberately. Affinity bias rewards similarity. Before the interview, research your interviewer on LinkedIn. What is their background? What university? What are their interests? You are not looking to fake a connection, you are looking to surface genuine common ground that you might not otherwise have mentioned. Mentioning a shared interest naturally in small talk activates the affinity response before the formal evaluation begins.

Antonella: I think this helps when you are being asked your hobbies, your favourite restaurant, your favourite slangs and the rest.

Jerry: As an interviewee once it seems that you and your interviewer are steering in a direction, it is best to take the cruise as far as it can go. Interviewers cannot forget people they shared ideas with or sensitive memories. Remember, the goal is to be too obvious to be forgotten.

Next on the list is to practice confidence as a skill. Confidence in an interview is not about how you feel. It is a set of behaviours: measured pace of speech, deliberate pausing before answering (which reads as thoughtfulness, not hesitation), sustained but not aggressive eye contact, controlled hand gestures, and taking up the appropriate amount of physical space. These can be practised. Record yourself. Watch it without sound first. What does the body language say before you hear the words?

Antonella: This is not taught in colleges. You have to step up and work yourself. Emotional IQ plays an integral part in all of this, you have to be able to read the room. Study the room to observe reactions when certain remarks or jokes are being made.

Jerry: Also, expand your vocabulary without losing your voice. Read widely in your field not just technical knowledge, but the essays, opinion pieces, and books that senior people in your industry reference.

I would also say this: neutralise name and accent bias at the screening stage.

Antonella: I don't like this.

Jerry: This is the bluntest reality: audit studies show that non-Western names receive fewer callbacks. Anglicising a name for applications is a personal decision that nobody should be required to make but it is a documented strategy that some candidates choose for pragmatic reasons. Separately, if your accent is a barrier in phone screenings, push for video or in-person meetings where full context is visible. Your presence will override the phone-voice assumption.

The last tip I would give is to understand cultural fit and answer it provocatively.

Cultural fit means: will you make us comfortable, will you understand our unspoken norms, will you represent us well in rooms we are not in? Answer this by demonstrating situational awareness about the company's culture, referencing specifics from their public communications and stated values, and showing through the way you conduct yourself in the interview that you already operate at the social register they expect. This is not flattery. It is fluency.

Antonella: That was a whole lot to take in.

Jerry: Yeah. Like they say job application is a full time job.

Antonella: Jerry, there are some people who don't even get to reach the interview stage. They just submit CV and they don't get any reply. It is just radio silence.

Jerry: There is a proven strategy to handle that.

Antonella: Which is?

Jerry: Get into the room through a side door.

Antonella: Hmm...interesting. I haven't heard anything like this before.

Jerry: The strongest counter to CV-stage bias is bypassing it entirely. A referral from inside the organisation means your name arrives with a pre-existing endorsement which is the affinity bias of the person who referred you now works in your favour before you have been seen. Industry events, informational interviews, LinkedIn engagement with people at your target company, volunteering in professional associations, these are the side doors. The front door is the application portal. It has the longest queue and the highest bias exposure.

Antonella: Isn't that nepotism?

Jerry: Not really. This is using social media platforms and leveraging on networking to put your name out into the public so that you need no introduction when you finally step in to seek the role.

Life rewards visibility.

Antonella: I really had a nice time talking to you. I have to release you. I really enjoyed this conversation. Next time we meet, we will talk on the promotion aspect. As a new employee, the battle might have been won but the war has just begun. more

Career development

 1d

She Went On A Date With A Guy Who Stared At Her Chest And Asked Her If She Could Be Consistent If She Had The Opportunity To Be With A Man Like Him


Last month, TikToker Jacki (@asdfghjacki) went out to get drinks with a guy she matched with on a dating app. He seemed a little nerdy since he had glasses, wore clear aligners, and was growing a beard that didn't connect. He wasn't really her type, but she was willing to give him a chance.

He had picked an elevated cocktail bar to go to for their date, so she thought that was a good sign. When... she walked up to the bar, he was waiting for her outside.

He was super excited to the point where he was shouting, and she never got to clarify exactly what he was so enthusiastic about.

Once they got inside and sat down, he couldn't stop looking at her chest. He was also talking very loudly. He ended up ordering a beer, even though the bar served cocktails almost exclusively.

"I order my own cocktail, and he serves up the question: if you got the opportunity to be with a man like me, would you be able to remain consistent?" Jacki recalled.

She told him that the question made her feel like she was at a job interview. He retorted that a job interview question would be something more like, "What's your favorite color?"

It was ironic because that was actually the type of question to ask on a first date. Obviously, he had never been to a job interview before. He continued speaking at a very high volume for the rest of the date.

After having drinks, they decided to go for a walk. Jacki suggested that he walk her home. Throughout the walk, she could tell that he thought they were going to hang out at her place, which made her a little uncomfortable. So, she wanted to set the record straight.

About halfway through the walk, she asked him how far away he had parked because she wanted him to be able to walk back to his car easily. He was visibly confused as to why he would need to return to his car.

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She told him that he was not invited over to her house, so he said that they could go to his place. She stated that she was not going home with him, and he was not going home with her. This clearly upset him, and he was silent for the first time that night.

When he finished sulking, he started playing a song on his phone. He sang at the top of his lungs as they walked down the street. Jacki felt embarrassed by him.

By the time they reached her house, he was wrapping up a political tangent. He even had the audacity to try to kiss her, which she successfully dodged.

She proceeded to have a lovely night alone with her Taco Bell food delivery and has vowed to stay off the dating apps. more

Career development

 2d

More Americans Are "Unretiring" -- And It's Not Always by Choice


Retirement used to be a well-deserved and earned achievement. Work hard, save money, clock out for good, and finally enjoy the freedom that decades of effort earned. That idea still sounds great, but reality has started to rewrite the script in a big way. A growing number of Americans now find themselves dusting off résumés, relearning workplace software, and stepping back into jobs they thought... they left behind for good. That shift isn't a quirky trend or a niche lifestyle choice -- it's a major economic signal that deserves attention.

This rise in "unretiring" doesn't come from one single cause. It pulls together inflation, longer lifespans, shifting job markets, and sometimes plain old boredom. Some people choose to go back because they want structure and purpose, while others feel forced into it by rising costs and shrinking savings. The result creates a complicated, deeply human story about money, identity, and survival in a changing world.

The Retirement Dream Is Getting Expensive -- Fast

Retirement plans built even ten years ago didn't account for the kind of price increases people see today. Groceries cost more, healthcare expenses climb steadily, and housing refuses to stay predictable. A fixed income struggles to stretch far enough when everyday essentials start eating up larger portions of the budget. That pressure pushes many retirees to reconsider what "living comfortably" actually means in the current economy.

Social Security helps, but it rarely covers everything on its own. Many retirees depend on savings, pensions, or investments to fill the gaps, and those sources don't always perform as expected. Market downturns can shrink portfolios quickly, and once withdrawals begin, rebuilding those funds becomes much harder. That financial squeeze doesn't always hit immediately after retirement, which makes it even trickier. Someone might feel secure for a few years, then suddenly realize the numbers no longer add up.

That moment often sparks the decision to return to work. Not everyone jumps back into a full-time job, but even part-time work can help stabilize finances. Some retirees pick up consulting roles, while others move into retail, customer service, or gig-based work. The goal usually stays simple: bring in enough income to reduce stress and protect long-term savings. That shift turns retirement from a permanent state into something more flexible -- and sometimes more fragile than expected.

Work Isn't Just About Money Anymore

Money plays a huge role, but it doesn't tell the whole story. Retirement removes structure from daily life, and that change can feel unsettling. A career often provides routine, social interaction, and a sense of purpose that doesn't automatically replace itself. Without those elements, days can start to blur together in ways that feel less relaxing and more disorienting.

Many retirees discover that they miss the rhythm of working. They miss conversations with coworkers, the satisfaction of completing tasks, and the feeling of contributing to something larger than themselves. That emotional pull can drive people back into the workforce even when finances remain stable. In those cases, "unretirement" becomes less about survival and more about rediscovery.

That doesn't mean jumping back into the exact same career path. Plenty of retirees choose roles that offer flexibility, lower stress, or entirely new experiences. Someone who spent decades in a corporate office might take on a part-time role at a local shop or explore freelance opportunities online. That shift allows people to reshape their relationship with work instead of simply returning to old habits. It also opens the door to finding enjoyment in ways that traditional careers didn't always allow.

Employers Are Suddenly Paying Attention

This wave of returning retirees hasn't gone unnoticed by employers. Companies across various industries face labor shortages, and experienced workers bring immediate value. Older employees often show strong reliability, communication skills, and problem-solving abilities that take years to develop. That combination makes them incredibly appealing in a tight job market.

Some businesses now actively recruit retirees, offering flexible schedules, part-time positions, and remote work options. These adjustments make it easier for older workers to re-enter the workforce without sacrificing the balance they hoped retirement would provide. In many cases, employers benefit from lower training costs and higher retention rates among these workers. That dynamic creates a win-win situation when handled thoughtfully.

Still, challenges remain. Not every workplace adapts well to older employees, and age bias continues to exist in hiring practices. Technology also presents a hurdle for some, especially in roles that require constant adaptation to new tools and platforms. Those obstacles don't stop the trend, but they do shape how easily individuals can transition back into work. Anyone considering unretirement benefits from brushing up on digital skills and exploring industries that value experience as much as speed.

The Emotional Side of "Starting Over"

Returning to work after retirement doesn't always feel smooth or exciting. It can stir up complicated emotions, especially for people who expected retirement to last permanently. Pride can take a hit when financial pressures drive the decision, and adjusting to a new routine can feel overwhelming at first. That emotional layer deserves just as much attention as the financial one.

Confidence plays a big role too. Someone who hasn't worked in years might question their abilities or worry about fitting into a modern workplace. Those concerns make sense, but they don't reflect reality for many returning workers. Experience carries weight, and the ability to adapt often matters more than knowing every new tool right away. Building confidence again takes time, but it happens through action rather than waiting for perfect readiness.

Support systems help tremendously during this transition. Family members, friends, and professional networks can provide encouragement and practical guidance. Job search platforms, local community programs, and training courses also offer valuable resources for re-entering the workforce. Anyone considering this step benefits from treating it as a new chapter instead of a setback. That mindset shift makes the process feel less like going backward and more like moving forward in a different direction.

Smart Moves for Anyone Thinking About Unretiring

Jumping back into work works best with a clear plan. Start by identifying what kind of role actually fits current needs and energy levels. A high-stress, full-time position might not make sense, but a flexible, part-time job could provide both income and enjoyment. Setting realistic expectations helps avoid burnout and keeps the experience positive.

Updating skills can make a huge difference. Even basic familiarity with modern tools like email platforms, scheduling software, or online communication apps can boost confidence and open more opportunities. Free or low-cost courses online offer an easy way to refresh those skills without a major time commitment. That preparation turns the job search into a more empowering process.

Networking also plays a powerful role. Reconnecting with former colleagues, joining community groups, or exploring industry events can uncover opportunities that don't always appear in job listings. Many positions get filled through connections rather than formal applications. Staying open to different types of work increases the chances of finding something that fits both financial and personal goals. Flexibility becomes a major advantage in this stage of life.

Retirement Isn't What It Used to Be

The idea of retirement as a permanent escape from work continues to evolve, and "unretiring" sits right at the center of that shift. Some people embrace the chance to stay active and engaged, while others feel pushed into it by circumstances they didn't anticipate. Both experiences reflect a broader reality: financial planning, health, and personal fulfillment all shape what retirement actually looks like.

What do you think? Should retirement focus on freedom, financial stability, or personal growth -- or a mix of all three? Share your thoughts, experiences, or strategies in the comments. more

Career development

 5d

Woman refused job at Midland estate agents because car 'too old'


An 18 year old woman was left furious after being denied a job interview at an estate agency - because her CAR was too old.

Alanah Thompson French applied for the position of trainee lettings negotiator but was rejected because she drove a 2014 Citroen C1.

The industrious teenager spent over a year juggling two cafe positions to fund the £2,800 vehicle which she believed would boost her... employment prospects.

However, when she put herself forward for a £20,000 position at haart Estate and Lettings Agents in Nottingham, her aspirations quickly stalled.

She was astonished upon receiving an email from the firm stating she would not be invited for interview.

Alanah was informed: "We regret to inform you that you have not been shortlisted for interview on this occasion as it is a requirement to have access to a vehicle under 10 years old."

The peculiar requirement meant Alanah's cherished Citroen exceeded the age limit by two years despite having clocked merely 33,000 miles, alongside a complete service history and MoT.

Alanah, from Burton Joyce, Notts., said: "I was really shocked when I received the rejection letter saying it was down to my car.

"I worked really hard whilst doing my A-Levels to pay for the car myself and pay the £700 insurance.

"My reason for getting a car was because I wanted to be able to drive for work but now it seems it was the reason I didn't get the job."

Alanah, who resides at home with her mum and dad, submitted her application for the trainee role last December. Despite nailing the application form, it seems she hit a snag when asked "is your car under 10 years old" and she marked "no".

Alanah commented: "If I hadn't got onto the shortlist because I didn't have the skills then fine but to be told it's because of the car I drive is a kick in the teeth.

"It's hardly an old banger and I keep it really clean inside and out.

"I'm only young so an older car was all I could afford. Obviously if I got the job I could save for a newer model but I need the job first.

"I finished my A-Levels and just didn't want to go to university and saddle myself with tens of thousands of pounds of debt.

"I wanted to get out into the world and really want to have a career in property but I've literally crashed at the first turning.

"It's really frustrating."

Danielle Parsons, employment partner at law firm Irwin Mitchell, stated that the car policy highlighted the obstacles young people encounter in the job market.

She expressed: "I'm concerned that this policy may disproportionately exclude younger less affluent applicants from applying for this job, particularly as this is an entry level position and job vacancies are currently few and far between.

"The response from haart doesn't point to any alternatives to this sort of blanket ban."

A spokesperson for haart responded: "It's extremely important that people who work for us use reliable vehicles for their own personal safety particularly where they travel many miles each day and often work alone.

"Evidence from motoring organisations shows that the likelihood of mechanical problems increases as vehicles get older.

"For that reason, and in line with many organisations that require staff to use their own cars for work purposes, our policy is that vehicles should normally be under 10 years old." more

  • Pro essay

    2
    2d

    It's crazy storyline... Worth listening

  • Steward Tony Pacheco

    68
    4d

    The reputation of firm is number one, the vehicle insurance terms is number two, the ability to negotiate an alternative if hired is number three....

    Ask for the position, offer to upgrade vehicle if the position is in line with a positive interview.

    Do this with confidence and commitment. The Boo Hoo story does not resonate well with movers & shakers!

    It never does and it never will!

    The other mistake was to post this drama online, already posing negative views towards a prospective employer (which you named) for all eyes to see.

    THINK! This is business, not a personal attack on you!

    Leave the emotion at home!     more

Career development

 2d

CUNY adds career work to classrooms


When I had the chance to hire a student to work in my research lab at Hunter College, I noticed a trend. While all were prepared to do the work, fewer were prepared to land the job. It wasn't that the students lacked accomplishments. It was that success in the classroom wasn't translating in the interview process.

Our students needed help presenting their skills, communicating what they had... learned on their résumés and identifying careers they would be qualified for.

To do that, our human biology program received city funding through the CUNY Inclusive Economy initiative to recruit new staff to work closely with our students to improve their career-readiness.

Under the initiative, Hunter's human biology program was assigned two dedicated staff members. The integrated academic and career adviser works with students to determine what skills they're missing -- whether it's interview prep or resume format -- and what they might need in their careers. The industry specialist was tasked with keeping a pulse on the needs of employers.

Almost two years later, and the program has been a gamechanger, one that offers important lessons at a time when higher education is grappling with public skepticism about the value of a college degree. For instance, employers said our students weren't leveraging Microsoft Office software to their full potential so we incorporated use of these tools in class assignments.

Our integrated adviser was able to arrange one-on-one interventions to help students practice their sector-specific interviewing skills and craft their résumés.

The next chance I had to hire a student, it was clear which of them had worked with our integrated career adviser. They could better explain their experience. Since July, our team has connected more than 120 students to jobs and internships, out of a cohort of 200.

My fellow professors appreciate what this work can do for our students. We want to see them succeed, but our roles typically focus on the academics. This can leave a gap between what we teach and preparing students for the workforce.

We have 200 spots in the CUNY Inclusive Economy initiative and more than 600 additional students in our human biology program are interested in being part of it. Demand will only grow as more students hear about how successful this has been. In fact, we've received inquiries from high school students who plan to choose our major at Hunter College because of what we offer.

I was excited when CUNY announced that it will make this kind of support more broadly available across the university system.

CUNY Beyond, as it's called, will integrate career preparation and work experience supports -- much like what we've been able to offer through CUNY Inclusive Economy -- into every undergraduate degree program.

With this new effort, that conversation will start with students as early as high school and leading into freshman orientation. Advisers will be empowered to walk students through the non-academic steps they need to take to be prepared for different jobs in their fields, all the while making sure that they are up to date on their skills.

Expanding access to paid internships and apprenticeships early in students' academic journeys will further set them up for success.

As educators, if we want to make sure that we can continue to meet that demand for talent, initiatives like CUNY Beyond have potential to achieve just that.

Rothman is a professor of anthropology and director of the human biology program at Hunter College. more