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Job application training in Egypt: Noha`s first steps into the labour market

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Job application training in Egypt: Noha`s first steps into the labour market

Noha wanted to make a fresh start in Cairo. But the big city, far away from her family, overwhelmed her. She couldn't find a job and felt lost. A further education programme enabled her to find new self-confidence and prepare for a job: With job application training but also with opportunities to get to know herself better. Today, Noha is happy - and proud.

My name is Noha. I am 24 years old and studied Business Administration at Delta University in Northern Egypt. After graduating, I felt I needed some distance from my family. I wanted to live independently, develop personally and at the same time find a job that I enjoy. I decided to move to Cairo.

But living alone without my family in such a big city was a challenge. I looked for a job but couldn't find one. I searched tirelessly, trying to find out how I could improve myself and wanted to explore all the possibilities. I applied for internships to gain experience and took various courses to improve my professional skills. But despite all the courses and internships, I still felt like I wasn't finding what I really wanted.

Practising for job interviews, creating a CV

Then I joined the "She Works Wonders" programme, which was funded by PepsiCo and included a special programme for us at the Egyptian-German Center for Jobs, Migration and Reintegration (EGC).

The programme was very helpful as it started with the first steps and taught us to first discover ourselves, our personality, our skills and what we need to work on. We also had one-to-one meetings with mentors who supported us, for example, in creating a CV and a LinkedIn profile and helped us to prepare for the interview and for dealing with an HR department.

The sessions helped me to gain more confidence, understand the questions and answer professionally. As part of the programme we also learned how we can search for successful companies and start-ups that could help us learn and succeed. We had to search for a certain number of start-ups and then solve a task related to this. One of the start-ups was the company I work for today.

 A young woman with headscarf beams into the camera.
Noha is proud and happy about her first job.

After submitting the assignment, I was invited to an interview for which I had prepared with the help of my mentor. I felt confident and was able to answer all the questions the interviewers asked me. I was proud of myself. The interview was successful and I was hired.

I had mixed feelings on my first day at work. I was very excited, a bit like the first day at school. I now work as a customer experience representative and I really enjoy my work.

My dream is to start my own business. I'm doing a lot to gain experience in different areas. I want to develop as many skills as possible in order to be successful soon.
 

As of: 11/2023

On my first day of work, I had mixed feelings. I was scared like on the first day of school.
Noha

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