A student reached out to me recently. He had applied to over 1,000 companies with no success. He studied at a top-ranked university and did everything he was told to do.
He was at a loss, and he felt it was unfair.
He’s right. It is unfair. He followed the map he was given, but the map is out of date.
Education no longer leads to jobs
For decades the deal was simple. Study hard, get a good degree, and a company will hire you and train you. That deal is breaking.
AI is taking over the entry-level tasks that graduates used to learn on. Companies want experience, but there are fewer places to get it. As I wrote in The Career Ladder is Gone, the first rung has been removed.
So there is now a gap between education and work, and both students and universities need to fill it.
Students think of universities as a pathway, but I think of it as more of a resource.
A student can’t rely on a university to solve their career goals, they need to take that into their own hands.
There is no longer a default path from graduation to employment, so you have to take your career into your own hands.
The degree used to be the proof.
Now the work is the proof.
Look for opportunities, not jobs
There are fewer jobs. But there are more opportunities than ever, if you know where to look.
Every problem in the world is an opportunity for someone who can fix it. Climate, health, ageing populations, broken processes inside companies, small businesses that haven’t worked out how to use AI. The list is endless.
So instead of asking “who is hiring?”, ask “what is broken, and can I help fix it?” A graduate sending a thousand applications is competing with everyone. A graduate who solves a real problem for a company, and sends them the solution before a job is even posted, is competing with no one.
Work for purpose, and become the best
Don’t work only for money. Work for purpose, become the best at something, and the money will follow.
Becoming the best in the world is easier than it sounds if you narrow your focus enough. I started my career by becoming the best in the world at recruiting law students to China, partly because nobody else was doing it. I had no competition, and I expanded outwards from there.
I know how “work for purpose” sounds to a graduate with student debt and rent due. It doesn’t mean working for free. It might mean taking a job that pays the bills while you build something on the side.
The question isn’t whether you get paid this month. It’s where you point your effort over the next five years.
What universities need to change
Yes, the education system needs to catch up.
Three changes would close much of the gap.
Flexible timing. A degree doesn’t have to be three or four continuous years starting at 18. Students should be able to pause, return, study part-time and stack qualifications over time.
Work that counts. Work shouldn’t just fit around a degree; it should count towards it. Co-op degrees in Canada and the US, and degree apprenticeships in the UK, already show this can work. It also makes “work for purpose” realistic, because students can earn while they learn.
Projects with leverage built in. Most coursework is graded and then forgotten. Projects should instead build the four levers that multiply effort in the AI age:
Code: a tool or app that keeps working after the course ends.
Content: articles, videos or case studies that keep reaching people.
Capital: a small business, paying customers or funding.
People: clients, mentors and collaborators who remember your work.
Imagine a student who solves a real problem for a local business as part of their course. They graduate with a client, a reference and a case study, not just a grade. That is proof of work.
A grade is fixed the moment it’s given. Leverage compounds.
Instead of application 1,001
Back to the student with over 1,000 applications. My advice would not be to send application 1,001.
It would be to pick a problem he cares about, get very good at solving it, and make the work public. Build a grappling hook, not a CV.
Graduate jobs may be ending. Graduate opportunities are just beginning.