RESPONSIBLE ENTREPRENEURSHIP VISION DEVELOPMENT AND ETHICS

Mobility and youth employment in the EU. Addressing Romanian students’ perspectives… 419
Findings and discussion
Students’ perceived impact of the mobility experience
on their future employability and career opportunities
With regard to the link students perceive between international mobility and future career
development, main findings show that all the interviewees are convinced that their foreign
study sojourn will help improve job prospects and chances of employability. In this sense,
respondents indicated how and to what extent their study abroad experience might influence
their choice of professional field and future job activities, by pointing out some of the most
important academic and personal achievements they obtained abroad. In students’ view, these
skills and competences are all very useful and relevant for subsequent career decisions. Among
the most significant intercultural learning and living outcomes, most alumni have mentioned:
the increased self-confidence and faith in their own capacities to overcome challenging situations
(“I learned that I can have a full time job and study at the same time in a totally new
and different environment. By overcoming all the difficult situations, I proved to myself that
I am stronger than I really thought I was, and that I can start all over again at anytime …
no matter how hard it might be” – Iulian, UK); the increased respect for other people’s perspectives,
even when they oppose one’s own (I’ve learned to care more about other people’s
opinion and to pay a lot more attention to what teamwork activities in a multiethnic group
involve” – Cezara, Norway); a better understanding of academic and social issues (“I consolidated
my knowledge in international public relations and marketing” – Diana, Belgium);
and an increased ability to work in culturally different groups and teams (“I can say I’ve grown
a lot in what communicating and operating in a multicultural environment are concerned”
– Adrian, Italy).
Through the newly acquired/ improved competences and skills (e.g. problem-solving abilities,
open-mindedness, communication in foreign languages, critical thinking, teamwork skills,
etc.) students tend to think they will receive good-quality offers of employment to fulfil their
professional needs and expectations: “If the Erasmus exchange appears in my CV, I am sure
that the employers will look at me differently. I mean, Erasmus is indeed a positive and productive
experience for a jobseeker” (Marina, Spain). Others are confident that their international
experience is an important advantage for recruitment purposes, and that the employers
value more the employees with intercultural skills and global knowledge: “I am pretty optimistic
that I will be hired sooner than someone who has only studied in Romania” (Nichita,
Denmark). Finally, others underline the much better opportunities on the job market and fewer
career concerns as compared to those faced by non-mobile students: “You have many opportunities
in terms of career development and a brighter professional future after graduating
from a foreign university. For instance, if you graduate in UK, the US or Australia, then you
can get a job anywhere in the world. Instead, if you attend a university at home, in Romania,
the possibilities are quite scarce” (Andreea, UK).
As illustrated by our study, for most of the respondents, the educational qualifications (especially
those attained in international settings) are the best job guarantee at a time when youth
unemployment rates in both Romania and Europe reach alarming levels. In different terms,
education and skills are seen by the participants in this research as fundamental to their future
wellbeing. In this context, mobility during tertiary education remains a promising way to provide
job-related opportunities and facilitate the access to the international labor market: “When