Vietnam IT graduates face unreasonable job experience requirements

Many companies demand prior experience from their recruits but fail to provide opportunities for newcomers to gain it—creating a vicious cycle that exacerbates recruitment challenges.

Vietnam produces a significant number of IT graduates annually, along with professionals from other fields transitioning into IT through short-term courses or training centers. Despite this, tech companies often face manpower shortages because they prioritize hiring experienced professionals and dismiss fresh graduates who fail to meet stringent requirements.

Highlighting this paradox, a reader named Hanuan commented: “Every company demands employees with experience, expertise, and compatibility with their work culture, yet they offer very low salaries. Where does that leave fresh graduates? For someone to gain experience, companies must provide opportunities. Without offering jobs, how do they expect these graduates to acquire the required experience?

“This approach complicates recruitment as the high standards are nearly impossible to meet. Meanwhile, the experienced professionals they prefer often pursue their own career paths, leaving businesses passively reliant on a limited talent pool.”

Another reader, Hai Nam Trinh, described the situation as increasingly unreasonable: “How do employers define ‘skilled workers’? Do they expect candidates to master all programming languages, networks, and systems? How many people in Vietnam actually fit that description? Such expectations are unrealistic for fresh graduates. If someone does meet these demands, companies then brand them as overconfident for asking for higher salaries.

“This year, with fewer job openings and employers holding all the cards, workers have little choice but to accept unfair conditions.”

Similarly, reader Thainv said: “The truth is that companies today set the bar too high. My company only hires senior or mid-level staff. Applicants must demonstrate strong English proficiency, evidenced by a TOEIC score of at least 700 or being able to hold basic English conversations. They also need solid technical expertise, a strong foundation, and advanced skills. For senior roles, candidates must additionally be equipped with management and operational skills, akin to a project manager. Realistically, how many people with 3-4 years of experience meet all these criteria?”

Reader Minhtrungpham echoed these concerns: “Companies now mainly seek technical staff with at least one year of experience. How can fresh graduates meet this requirement? IT is a field that relies heavily on self-learning and mentorship from senior colleagues when challenges arise. Businesses could assign senior staff to guide newcomers. Implementing such a system could partially alleviate the shortage of IT professionals while also creating more job opportunities. However, if companies insist on requiring specific years of experience, this issue will persist indefinitely.”