(opinion article)

Once upon a time, in freshly ironed shirts and with degrees still warm from the printer, a generation of young professionals—yuppies, if you will—marched boldly into the job market, resumes in hand, ambition in their eyes, and Wi-Fi passwords memorized. They had dreams. They had energy. They had at least three certificates from Coursera.

And then… reality set in.

Let’s talk about the tragicomic tale of young specialists today—a group of well-educated, highly motivated individuals who are somehow simultaneously overqualified and under-experienced for nearly every job they apply for.

The job market greets them like a grumpy barista: “You want an entry-level job? Sure. Just bring 5 years of experience, a Master’s degree, fluency in three languages, and a willingness to work for exposure and pizza.”

Exposure is nice. Pizza is better. But what about rent?

The modern young professional doesn’t lack skills. What they lack is an on-ramp. They’ve spent years collecting diplomas, watching TED Talks, and memorizing how to answer “Where do you see yourself in five years?” (Answer: Not here, Greg, but let’s play pretend.) Yet, employers often demand experience in areas only accessible by… already having the job.

It’s the classic chicken-and-egg situation. Except the chicken is unemployed and the egg has been outsourced.

Let’s not forget unpaid internships, the glamorous purgatory of modern employment. “You’ll gain experience!” they say. Sure—but at the cost of dignity, bus fare, and the last of your sanity. And don’t even mention “networking events,” where you wear uncomfortable shoes and nod politely at people who already have jobs and no intention of helping you get one.

Meanwhile, yuppies are pressured to “build their personal brand,” which is essentially a curated Instagram and a LinkedIn profile full of verbs like “spearheaded,” “facilitated,” and “disrupted”—none of which describe the emotional damage from sending out 57 applications and receiving 3 ghostings, 2 rejections, and 1 interview that ended with “We’ll be in touch” (they won’t).

And yet, these young specialists persist. They freelance, consult, hustle, code, TikTok, teach English online, build apps in basements, or start side gigs selling hand-knitted dog sweaters. They keep on hoping someone will see past the lack of job titles and recognize potential, creativity, and caffeine-fueled determination.

The truth? Yuppies aren’t lazy. They’re navigating a broken system with Wi-Fi, hope, and a very flexible relationship with sleep. They’re adapting to a work world that keeps shifting the goalposts—remote, hybrid, gig-based, AI-disrupted, LinkedIn-optimized madness.

So, what’s the solution?

Employers need to take real risks on young talent—not just the perfectly polished, but the passionate and trainable. The “junior” roles need to actually be junior, not “entry-level with 6 years of experience in niche software no one uses anymore.”

And as for the Ukrainian yuppies: keep going. Keep learning, growing, applying—even when the job descriptions feel written by robots for other robots.

Because one day, someone will see what you see in yourself. Until then, pour yourself another coffee and keep updating that resume.

After all, yuppies may not have it easy—but they do have grit, Google, and an irrational belief that next week might just be the week.