S’porean, 31, finds fulfilment in helping youths & jobseekers who are uncertain about their future

Job seeking is often seen as a lonely endeavour.

However, it doesn’t have to be with specialised professionals like Care Advisors from MENDAKI.

Speaking to Mothership, Nurul Jannah Bte Hafid, 31, shared with us what she does in her role as a Care Advisor to jobseekers and youths.

Jannah is a Care Advisor based at MENDAKI’s YouthSpace located in ITE College East.

Helping job seekers and youths

As a Care Advisor, Jannah provides last-mile service delivery to better meet the needs of the Malay/Muslim community, by embarking on a strategic client-centric initiative.

She helps by proactively reaching out to families to understand their needs, connecting them to the right resources by leveraging both national and community programmes and partnering with them in their journey of lifelong learning.

The Care Advisors also provide career guidance to youth and job seekers.

She helps job seekers by connecting them to organisations like the Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) and Workforce Singapore.

Apart from that, she also equips them with skills on how to organise their resume, how to prepare for a job interview and other career-related tips.

Occasionally, she organises activities to motivate youths to be future-ready.

“Sometimes the students are unmotivated to go to school. So we organise coffee-break sessions where they can interact with their friends and we can engage them to understand them better,” she said.

Last-mile service delivery

Jannah told us that help doesn’t just stop with the students, it extends to their families as well.

She said: “We have this concept called the ‘last-mile service delivery’. Through the youths in ITE, we seek to better understand their family background and how we can help uplift their family. If certain family members need employment opportunities or other forms of assistance, then I will be there to assist them in [providing] career advisory and guidance.”

Apart from providing career guidance, MENDAKI also helps families in need by connecting them to agencies that can help them with getting daily necessities like food, milk and diapers.

In 2022, MENDAKI organised six career fairs with NTUC’s e2i and Workforce Singapore, and assisted over 900 jobseekers.

The Care Advisors also assisted more than 5,300 cases, of which, 1,700 were related to employment.

She shared with us an experience that reminds her every day why her job is fulfilling.

Recounting the experience, Jannah said that a graduating ITE student reached out to her as she felt uncertain about her future.

“Her grade point average (GPA) did not meet the requirements to go in any career pathway. She felt very lost and was afraid of what was in store for her, so I tried to show her that there’s actually a light at the end of the tunnel,” she said.

After listening to the student’s worries, Jannah recommended the student to further her studies.

She said: “She told me that she feels more enlightened after knowing that there are other pathways for her after ITE so I feel that helping people has been very fulfilling.”

Making a difference

In her line of work, Jannah has met people who come from different walks of life.

What keeps her going is knowing that she is able to make a difference – no matter how small – in their lives.

“As much as we are a first-world country, there are still families that need our support. Sometimes it gets to me knowing that, for example, there are two-room rental flats with eight people living in the house [...] I’m very motivated to assist this group of students and help them to the best of my ability,” she said.

At the end of the day, being a Care Advisor is more than just a job to Jannah.

It has also brought her closer to the community and strengthened her drive to do more for them.

If you’re interested to find out more about the services provided by MENDAKI’s Care Advisors, you can make an appointment at any of the MENDAKI Satellite Centres across the island via the MyMENDAKI portal.

The five satellite Centres are located in:

• Jurong
• Pasir Ris
• Woodlands
• Choa Chu Kang and
• Wisma MENDAKI

You can also visit the joint-service centre at Wisma Geylang Serai.

This sponsored article is brought to you by MENDAKI.

Top image from MENDAKI.