Factors influencing early employment of students: A case study of a private college in Moscow

The quality of a student's entry into the labor market largely determines their subsequent professional strategy and significantly influences the future career of a young specialist. Therefore, mechanisms for stimulating student employment are crucial and relevant. The job market for young professionals expects graduates of educational institutions to have at least 2 years of experience in their field. This implies that students should start gaining work experience as early as their third year. However, it is observed that nearly half of college graduates end up working outside their field of study, and the unemployment rate among graduates increases annually. This study attempts to identify the motives driving students to combine work with their studies early on, as well as the barriers hindering student employment during their college education. The empirical basis for analysis consists of data collected from a survey of 600 students from a private college in Moscow in 2024 (February). A quantitative research approach was employed using the CAWI (Computer-Assisted Web Interviewing) method for data collection. The data were analyzed using RStudio, considering the socio-demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the target group, with the potential to inform managerial decisions aimed at fostering skill development and enhancing student motivation for early career development. Consistent with previous research on this topic, there is a trend of increasing proportions of students working as they progress through their courses. In addition to well-known barriers such as lack of relevant experience and competencies, career illiteracy, and time constraints, new barriers were identified, including requirements of state migration policy (prohibition of dual citizenship for job applicants) and students' lack of perceived need to work.