Everyone may have heard the question once: “What is your dream?” Some people may be able to answer this question immediately, while others may not. As for me, I am the latter one. Since childhood, people have always   asked, “What do you want to do when you grow up?” or “What is your dream?” I had a clear dream in the past.   My childhood answer was, “I want to be a diplomat representing Korea!” However, as time went by, this answer became less certain.
  Many students now say they don’t have or don’t know their dreams. According to statistics from September 2019, 40 percent of middle-school students in Seoul answered they have no future hope in a career/occupation awareness survey. University students have similar attitudes, but university students have less time to choose a job and then strengthen their skills based on that job. If students are dealing with the prospect of getting a job and don’t have a desired career for their future, it’s a predicament. In the past, I have seen a lot of seniors getting jobs at companies that pay them a lot of money or that are located near their homes just because they didn’t have a clear career objective. Most of them regretted that the job was not suitable for their aptitudes. My dream was clear though, and I thought their situations wouldn’t happen to me. However, time has passed, and now I am a senior at university. I have a lot of worries these days. I realized that a future hope is ‘what I want to do’, not ‘what I can do.’ My dream of being a diplomat has fallen apart due to time-consuming and difficult diplomatic exams. My present dream has changed from a diplomat into an office worker working for a trading company. This path is not clear either because I’m not sure if it’s really what I want to do. It’s a big problem because I am not prepared for this sudden career path change. Moreover, I am also worried because the company I want to apply to is a major company that many people want to work for. I think the unemployment crisis is because young people want employment at large companies, not small or medium-sized companies. I also want to join a large company, and that’s why I am improving my English proficiency, gaining job-related experiences, and acquiring the necessary certificates. The fact that I realized while preparing for employment was that students who set clear goals in advance, steadily prepared for them, and gained relevant experience are better suited for finding a career than those who don’t, and they are the candidates that companies are looking for. Recently, companies are hiring people who can handle tasks professionally and who have a high understanding of their business functions. That’s why students who have aimed for one career, studied for it and gained the relevant job experience are more likely to get the job they want in a company they want. Many recruiters often say that students are negligent in their work experience. There are a variety of jobs available in many companies, and students who have real-world experience, such as internships or part-time jobs in their fields, understand what further studies are needed and what kinds of preparations should be made. Therefore, it is important to set a dream clearly and to actively seek various positions that can provide firsthand experience.
  I also felt that I needed to set my dream clearly, and I am seeking various practical experiences to achieve this. For example, I am currently participating in a trade-expert training program run by the Korea International Trade Association because I want to engage in trading in the future. Also, I started participating in various world fairs, which has helped me to realize which skills are needed to handle tasks more flexibly.
  I hope that students who read this article can achieve their dreams by setting clear dreams, experiencing real-world situations and strengthening their capabilities.