Entering the world of work worries a majority of students

Students do not see life through rose-tinted glasses when asked about the world of work. They project themselves into a tough, stressful and competitive environment, but without rejecting it.

Ambivalent feelings before the big leap into the unknown. This is what emerges from a study by the Association pour l’emploi des cadres (APEC) which surveyed 600 third-year post-baccalaureate students at the beginning of the year.

These young people, who have sometimes brushed against the world of work through internships or work-study programs, have a rather austere and anxiety-provoking vision of what awaits them. A majority of them describe the professional world as “ruthless, unfair, procedural and stressful”, but also as “competitive, serious or demanding”. In short, a world without much freedom, not very fun where individuals disappear behind hierarchies, rules and processes.

When they plan their first job, students fear being poorly paid, while the majority want to work in order to be financially independent. They also express their apprehension of being subjected to too much pressure, too much work, and having a poor work-life balance. An apprehension that does not surprise Isabelle Olry, professor of career psychology at the Faculty of Nanterre: “For several years, young people have been expressing the need to preserve their living space; they are keen to flourish. This perhaps concerns them more than the previous generation, even if this need is widely expressed today by many working people, whatever their age.”

In some cases, these bac+3 students were also able to observe their parents working at home during the Covid period. “Perhaps it was a moment of quite direct confrontation with the reality of work?” the researcher asks herself.

Despite these fears, more than 6 out of 10 students perceive the professional world as a stimulating, innovative and cooperative universe. Particularly among those who have already had experiences, in particular through work-study contracts. The study also highlights that half of the young people surveyed admit to having a partial, or even biased, vision of it. 4 out of 10 say they have little knowledge of the business world, despite the internships they did during their studies.

“Young people should be better informed before this great leap into the unknownunderlines Isabelle Olry. To protect them from the excesses they might encounter, and also to allow them to develop more nuanced or more precise representations of the reality of work.”