What happens when a young woman graduates from university? I remember my own experience. That Friday, I graduated, and by Monday I had already found myself at the National Employment Service.
The process begins. Optimism. My first “real” job awaits me.
I am assigned a number and wait in line to be called. I meet a pleasant employment counsellor with whom I have an introductory interview. We discuss my qualifications and previous work experience, and I receive information about employment opportunities.
Then the counsellor asks me, “Have you considered starting your own business?” It sounds appealing. “I have thought about it,” I reply, “but I don’t have a clearly defined idea.” He refers me to a public call for self-employment subsidies for the unemployed that was active at the time. We schedule my next appointment for three months later, and I hope we won’t need to see each other then – because that would mean I have found a job in the meantime.
I get home and immediately start researching the self-employment subsidy programme. I notice that there is no age limit for applying. I don’t have a business idea, but I do have time to develop one. That sounds great! So, I start thinking – I am young, I completed my studies on time, at the age of 23 – these are ideal conditions to become a young entrepreneur. Why should I wait? According to the Law on Youth, a youth or young person is an individual between 15 and 30 years of age. Then I calculate – I have just under seven years available to become a young entrepreneur; it seems sufficient. And then I move on to a deeper analysis.
Seven years on paper – are they enough in practice?
It seems logical to me that I should first enter the system, find employment, accumulate initial capital, contacts, and experience. So, the first step is to get a job and actually enter the labour market.
The first year after graduation, in many cases, is spent actively searching for a job—monitoring job postings, submitting applications, attending job interviews, selection processes, and a trial work period. All of these can last from six to twelve months, which is most often considered a “normal” timeframe for finding first employment.
Almost half of the total number of unemployed people have been looking for a job for more than one year.
However, data show that nearly half of all unemployed individuals have been seeking a job for longer than one year. This means that even assuming, on average, a maximum of one year spent searching for a first stable job, I am left with six years to start my business as a young entrepreneur. The second step is first employment, which unfortunately often involves traineeships, fixed-term contracts, or underpaid internships whose duration is extended several times.
As a result, the period of first employment – even if it formally counts as “work” – rarely enables the creation of a solid financial foundation or the accumulation of sufficient experience to allow for starting one’s own business. This period can last up to two years, and often even longer. When I add another two years to the calculation, I realise that I am left with four years to start my business as a young entrepreneur.
In order for a young person to seriously consider starting their own business, it is desirable to have acquired professional and work experience, knowledge of the market and its needs, developed soft skills such as communication, problem-solving, a network of professional contacts, and an understanding of organisational processes and how the working environment functions.
This is not a quick process, especially for young people, and even more so for young women, who often face additional challenges such as gender pay gaps, unequal working conditions, and limited opportunities for advancement. If this step, which can last up to two years, proceeds as it should, the result may be sufficient professional stability and the capacity to begin orienting oneself towards entrepreneurship. This leaves me with two years to start my business as a young entrepreneur.
This is not a quick process, especially for young people, and even more so for young women, who often face additional challenges such as gender pay gaps, unequal working conditions, and limited opportunities for career advancement.
I come to the conclusion that I will use these remaining two years to develop and shape my entrepreneurial idea, because developing an idea and laying the foundations for a business is not something that can be done “on the side.” It involves market research, analysing the needs of potential users, validating the idea, testing prototypes, preparing a business plan, and learning about different business models. I would gradually build the foundation of my business, assess its sustainability, and direct the resources, knowledge, and contacts acquired in previous phases so that, in the end, I could start my business as a young entrepreneur with a secure professional and financial base.
Then I realise that I may have left out the most important factors from my calculation – life circumstances. Personal life planning can significantly affect the time and resources available for business development. This includes relationship, moving, starting a family, pregnancy, maternity leave and return to work, as well as regular household responsibilities. Gender differences in the distribution of household and family duties mean that young women, on average, have less free time and fewer resources for entrepreneurial activities than men. Data show that, on average, women in Serbia spend more time on unpaid domestic work, and the length of maternity leave further affects their professional development.
In Serbia, around 75% of marriages are concluded when women are between 24 and 34 years of age, while the average age at the birth of the first child is 29. In addition, one-third of employed women work part-time, citing family obligations or the care of dependent adults as their main reason. In practical terms, once all these factors are taken into account, the remaining time for developing and launching an entrepreneurial venture may amount to only one year – or, more realistically, even less.
When everything is taken together, it is clear that young women are left with a limited period of real opportunity to enter entrepreneurship. Formally, the status of a “young person” lasts until the age of 30, but substantively, most of that time is consumed by all the previously described phases. This leads us to a paradox: the best period for entering entrepreneurship is simultaneously the period of greatest systemic instability for young women.
Life does not end after the age of 30 – but support for young women entrepreneurs must be stronger
On that same day, when I found myself at the unemployment office for the first time immediately after graduating, I was given a booklet with the date of my first interview and the number of my counsellor written in it. I still keep that booklet – not as a particularly cherished keepsake, but as a reminder of the beginning of my professional journey and the challenges faced by young women.
All of the above points to the need for systemic support that is more long-term, flexible, and designed in a way that enables young women, with a stable professional and financial foundation, to truly realise their entrepreneurial potential. It is precisely in recognising these challenges and providing realistic, practical support that the key lies to increasing the number of young women entrepreneurs and enabling them to achieve their professional ambitions.
Legal frameworks and existing programs in practice do not provide sufficient opportunities for the active inclusion of young women in economic life.
The situation in Serbia points to deeply rooted structural inequalities in the labour market –lower employment rates and lower wages for women, especially young women, as well as numerous challenges they face when entering the labour market. They often have to balance professional obligations with family responsibilities, including household care, maternity leave, and a lack of systemic support. Legal frameworks and existing programmes in practice do not provide sufficient opportunities for the active inclusion of young women in economic life.
Through all of these reflections and calculations, I have concluded that, although I am open to entrepreneurial challenges, I am not, for the time being, deciding to start my own business.While one might initially think that this decision stems from the analysis and calculations I have carried out, the real reason is my desire to direct my resources and knowledge toward supporting other young women in entering the labour market and developing their entrepreneurial potential.
And all of this through programmes that include practical training, the development of entrepreneurial skills and mentorship, as well as activities aimed at raising public awareness of the importance of women’s economic independence. In this way, it is possible to act where formal programmes do not reach, to provide concrete assistance to individuals, and at the same time to contribute to long-term systemic changes that will enable a greater number of young women to realise their professional potential.
Author: Milica Dolašević, Project Manager, Institute for Development and Innovation
