With a faculty diploma, but they earn money from craft

By Nikolina Atanasova

The number of young people with higher education increases constantly. According to the State Statistical Office, the number of university students in 2012/2013 was increased for 25%, compared with the number of university students in 2002/2003. Many of the graduated students can’t find a job accordingly to what they have studied, so after they finish their studies, most of them are forced to do anything in order to earn money.

A young girl, aged 23, graduated civil engineer at the State’s University „Goce Delcev” in Stip, is earning from a craft that she have learned since her young age, because she faced a difficult situation since she was 14.

-I’m not that type of person who only sits at home and waits for a call for job. I would very much like to work as a civil engineer and I’m registered as a person who actively search for a job in the State’s employment agency, but, temporary I work as a head of a tailoring department in a confection factory, says this 23-years old girl who asked to remain anonymous.

She started searching for job even before her graduation, but she faced with a big problem.  

-Companies need workers from my profession, but the candidates need to have at least two to three years of working experience. Where can I gain that experience when I don’t get chances for that? You can be intern only during the studies. But everyone refuses you after graduation, she says.

She requested to remain anonymous because she has no job agreement for work in the company she works at the moment. She explains her reasons for that:

-This way of working allows me to have a financial stability. I work without social and health insurance just because I would very much like to work in my profession. Not having an employment agreement will allow me to leave my current job very easily, she explains.

Marina Jonoska from the other hand had graduated Russian language and literature at the Faculty of Philology „Blaze Koneski” in Skopje. At the moment she has her own workshop for handmade jewelry in Struga. She spoke openly about the problems she has faced with after her graduation.

-We begin with studies at the age when we are still not formed as complete persons, although it’s never too late to learn and to work what you really want to learn and work. Maybe, for someone the connection between Russian language and literature is incompatible with the craft, but I incorporate in my crafts my gained knowledge for the Russian culture and the Russian stories, said Jonoska.

Marina explained us how she „met” with the craft.

-The love towards the handmade crafts is something that I have since my childhood. Every week I was buying jewelry and I dismantled it so I can build something completely new. That was my hobby which I started to develop it and upgrade it with new knowledge from various courses and training, which were highly motivating for me. That was the starting point for me to have my own workshop. My desire for craft is tremendous. If I could find a job accordingly to my education, the craft will surely remain as my hobby, commented Marina.

According to the data by the State Statistical Office, there are 297.986 unemployed people in Macedonia out of the general population in the country, out of which 136.982 are with higher education.