Was my friend discriminated against?

My friend from Germany recently got an administrative assistant certificate from a local business college & she told me that no one would hire her when she applied for admin jobs because she had not had previous business office experience. She had experience working as a waitress only. Was she discriminated against for being a foreigner?
41 minutes ago - 4 days left to answer.

what's the point of getting a Administrative assistant certificate
if you're going to be told you can't work here because you don't have the work experience?

Your friend is just unlucky because she seems to be finding job openings that require experience. Trust me, there are places that hire with no experience. A couple of years ago I got hired as a receptionist for a medium-sized company but my work background was mostly food services/retail and I was in school (not administrative related) part time. I don't work there anymore, but I was grateful that they were nice enough to give me a chance. Some places would prefer to have actual experience as oppose to having educational background with no related work experience. Your friend just needs to look harder and she'll find one eventually. I don't think it has anything to do with discrimination.

It may be a good idea to go to a local employment centre and inquire about sessions regarding interview skills, building effective resumes and cover letter, and other things related to finding jobs.

no, the job market is just **** right now. no one can get a job with out connections.it's counter productive because if you can't get a job, with out experience where are you ever gonna find a job.

well thats the thing...before you can get your first job you need to have experience...but how can you have experience when its our first job?!?...i know its rough, i hear you! but thats just how it goes...alot of the times when you are getting hired its about who you know not what you know!...so maybe try and hook your friend up with some people you might already know to get hired until she has enough experience to get a better job on her own. unfortunately, thats how things work when it comes to business, so NO your friend wasnt discriminated against.

good luck to you and your friend!

As a business owner, I would never hire anyone with no previous experience in that job, for two reasons. 1. No reliable reference to talk to. When I hire someone, I want to know how good of work they do, if they are reliable, and if I need to worry about them stealing/ starting unneeded drama in the work place. 2. I have Absolutely no time to train someone. I am extremely busy. Heck, sometimes I go days without a nights sleep. Training a new graduate takes time and patience, two things that I am currently running very low on. With the economy like it is now, I am having to work very hard to advertise, and make sure I keep updated on the finances of multiple locations of my business. And when other businesses are closing down, their workers are coming to me looking for jobs. I currently have about 100 different resumes laying in a file on my desk, and no open jobs.

business owner

How exactly is that discrimination!? That is the working world! NO degree or certification demands that you can get a job afterward. You still need JOB experience. Work is more important than school. And who the hell gets certified in an easy job like that? it is not discrimination. that is the working world. EVERYONE going into a job needs past job experience. she only has waitress jobs. that is NOT admin.