Resilient Job Searching in a Confusing Time

  • May 24, 2021
  • Anchal Gupta

Welcome to 2021, the year we all hoped would be different and exciting and most importantly rid of the COVID-19. As we trudge along, now almost 1/3 of the way done, we can truly see how difficult this year has been, not for one, some, or many, but every single one of us.

I am Anchal Gupta, I am an articling student at Rogers Communications Inc., and am neck deep in the job hunt process. I worked hard to get into a Canadian law school hoping for some advantage one day, and then worked hard to do well and secure a good articling position, again in the same vain. I completed my Dual Degree from both the University of Windsor and Detroit Mercy; and here I am writing to you, with no job leads and no real hope of securing a permanent full-time position, in something I am even remotely interested in. Where is all the greatness we were promised when we busted our tails to get into law school, and dished out thousands of dollars?

The pandemic has taken expectations and norms and thrown them out the window. I have been looking for jobs and applying, but sadly there are really no jobs available for fresh calls. Every posting I see is asking for 3-10 years, I am going to be licensed in JUNE! Can I count my 5-6 different job experiences as experience? Is there value in applying? Is there hope?

Job hunting for a fresh call right now is impossible. I am either faced with the choice of endlessly applying and hoping something cracks, or taking a job that pays little to nothing in some remote little corner of the world. How is this fair? How can I justify being paid below minimum when I have debt over $100,000? How can I make ends meet; how am I to crawl out of this hole that I only crawled into with the promise that the process and expenses will make me valuable?