The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
The Guiding Principles and New Rules document is now in effect.
Entry Level Jobs
Professor Snugglesworth
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Not to be confused with the Jobs thread in D&D, the purpose of this thread is to get any and all advice you can provide to help me secure a new job.
Long story short (I'll blog about the long version once I kick this fever out of my system), I was removed from my latest job at a credit card company due to a few minor errors followed by one "major" incident that eventually broke the camel's back. Basically, I need to find work now, so I can continue paying my bills as well as getting most of the benefits I had before (health, dental, tuition, etc). But job searching can be quite daunting, and so many positions require previous experience or some sort of degree. So I hope with your help, I can secure a new job in a much speedier fashion.
First, the job sites. Careerbuilder, Monster, Jobing, etc. Which one of these sites is the most efficient? Or are they about the same equally?
Secondly, what I don't want to do: Customer Service. I'm tired of catering to angry or ignorant people who demand that I perform the equivalent of magic to satify them. I'm not saying I won't do it, but I'd prefer not having to deal with the common folk anymore.
And thirdly, I'd really like a computer related job. My previous job had me accessing accounts through an online workstation, but I'm always told by people that I have a better calling that involves networking, or helping people with internet connections, that sort of thing. I've also heard there are some jobs where you can actually work at home via remote access. My PC certainly has the specs for it, and it's directly connected to the home router, so a work at home job would be pretty sweet. If you know any good companies that use remote access, I'd love to hear them.
That's about it. Apologies if any of this sounds a bit broken, I'm still real sick here, but it's important that I find a new job soon, and asking you fine folks for advice is one of my primary leads at the moment. I gots to get paid.
Long story short (I'll blog about the long version once I kick this fever out of my system), I was removed from my latest job at a credit card company due to a few minor errors followed by one "major" incident that eventually broke the camel's back. Basically, I need to find work now, so I can continue paying my bills as well as getting most of the benefits I had before (health, dental, tuition, etc). But job searching can be quite daunting, and so many positions require previous experience or some sort of degree. So I hope with your help, I can secure a new job in a much speedier fashion.
First, the job sites. Careerbuilder, Monster, Jobing, etc. Which one of these sites is the most efficient? Or are they about the same equally?
Secondly, what I don't want to do: Customer Service. I'm tired of catering to angry or ignorant people who demand that I perform the equivalent of magic to satify them. I'm not saying I won't do it, but I'd prefer not having to deal with the common folk anymore.
And thirdly, I'd really like a computer related job. My previous job had me accessing accounts through an online workstation, but I'm always told by people that I have a better calling that involves networking, or helping people with internet connections, that sort of thing. I've also heard there are some jobs where you can actually work at home via remote access. My PC certainly has the specs for it, and it's directly connected to the home router, so a work at home job would be pretty sweet. If you know any good companies that use remote access, I'd love to hear them.
That's about it. Apologies if any of this sounds a bit broken, I'm still real sick here, but it's important that I find a new job soon, and asking you fine folks for advice is one of my primary leads at the moment. I gots to get paid.
Professor Snugglesworth on
0
Posts
First: You really need to list the type of jobs you are willing to work along with the types of jobs you want to work. Put those lists together. Then make a resume or use a previously made one. See if you can't 'doctor' it up to make you sound better while only telling white lies and some half truths. Make it sound professional . (if you need more explanation on that part, let me know)
Second: Use ALL of the sites. Not one, not two, all of them. And get to your local paper online, find the classifieds. Check all available job resources every single day. No joke. Check them in the morning, 8am-ish. If you are trying to snag a decent job in a short amount of time, it is a numbers game.
Third: When you spot a job you want to contact, research the company first. Make sure they are real, make sure its what the ad advertises. Contact the job as early in the morning (8 being the earliest ever) as possible.
Fourth: Schedule interviews as soon as possible (assuming the option is available). Aim for 3 interviews a week after the first week of job hunting. You get a one week start-up. And you should be contacting 5 possibilities a day. If you are not, then find more job listing resources. Remember, numbers game.
Fifth: When you go to the interviews, bring multiple copies of the current resume. Have a notepad and a pen. Do research on the company before you go. Have any relevant info in the notepad, so you can reference it during the interview. Cheat sheets are your best friend, and guess what? Once out of school, a cheat sheet is no longer cheating, its being incredibly well prepared. Dress to kill. The best dressed always gets noticed. And you want to be noticed.
Thats the quick and dirty version. Interviewing is a whole other ball of wax.
"This is where I say something profound and you bow, so lets just skip to your part."
While this is certainly true, the percentage of hires that originate from online websites makes the method solid. So all companies will use it or perish.
Oh, another good resource are job agencies. Try to find one that is geared towards IT related jobs if you can. They are usually setting you up with temp jobs, but temp to permanent is often an option. And why not get paid while some other perm job you are looking at puts you through their interviewing process.
"This is where I say something profound and you bow, so lets just skip to your part."
As for contacts, there was a guy who started the same day as me, but was let go due to a widespread situation new hires were involved in. He was accussed of it but ultimately declared innocent, but he left out of anger for being fingered. He's working at another company, so hopefully he can hook me up.
And finally, in regards to resumes, here's my current one that I've got posted in Monster and such.
The **** below each job and college is the address and contact information, by the way.
Blog||Tumblr|Steam|Twitter|FFXIV|Twitch|YouTube|Podcast|PSN|XBL|DarkZero
That's what I mean. I may have went slightly (and I stress slightly) overboard turning 'item maintenance' into two job aspects.
Says the same thing, just in a way that catches eyes.
If they plan on calling references, and they probably will, can you rely on any workmates as the contact? People who still work at these places? If not, call up some friends. Tell them to lie for you. Coach them on what you want them to say. Is this dishonest? Yes. Does it work? Yes. Just make sure you don't go too far or you'll end up in a job you may not be able to handle. But if you know the job is for you, do whatever you can to land it.
edit: when listing duties performed at a job, make it a sentence and begin with an action verb.
"This is where I say something profound and you bow, so lets just skip to your part."
2) It's hard to get an idea of the formatting of your resume from that, but it's important. make sure your contact information is clearly visible and prominently displayed. Also try to fit in on as few pages as possible - for a resume with that amount of experience you should probably be shooting for one page.
3) "MS Office, Word, Excel, Spreadsheet" - GAH! If you list office, don't list word and excel separately. Listing "spreadsheet" as a separate item next to excel makes you look ignorant of what excel does. Additionally, do you expect everyone to know what "Aspect" and "Triumph" are? Those are pretty common words and there are probably quite a few pieces of software named that.
4) Personalized cover letter for every serious application. This gets their attention, shows that you've done your research, and shows that you're spending some attention on the application.
Yes, 1,2, and 4 are definitely huge points. Especially 4, it prevents the need of having an 'objective' at the top of the actual resume.
Honestly, make changes and repost the resume. Hard to get an idea of what else could use a touch up.
"This is where I say something profound and you bow, so lets just skip to your part."
I'm gonna tell you this right now. Do NOT get discouraged if you don't get "3 interviews a week". The economy is shit right now, and for the hundreds of resumes I have sent out, I have received 5 or 6 phone calls. Like was mentioned before though, this is a numbers game. Get your name out there, call your friends and ex co-workers, if you're really interested in entry level work then go to job fairs, and stay sharp. You can't let yourself get in a rut or get dull. Some weeks are better than others.
Keep in mind, finding a job is about 10x harder than keeping one. You hav to work much much harder to get a (good) job these days. But they are out there.
"This is where I say something profound and you bow, so lets just skip to your part."
If you want to work with computers, ask a few of these companies what sort of experience/certifications they want in an employee. Getting a simple A+ certification isn't usually difficult for someone who has built a few systems, and it can go a long way towards getting your foot in the door.
Review that resume, and let others do it as well. In my tech hiring experience, about 90% of the resumes/cover letters that "computer people" submit are pretty terrible. While petty, if you can't take the time to review a resume, I probably don't need to take the time to deal with you.
Resume tips from a guy who has hired lots of entry level tech people:
1) Your resume should fit on one page.
2) Objectives on a resume are useless. Your "objective" is to get a job - I don't need you to throw BS at me here; that's what the cover letter is for.
3) Nice formatting is your friend, but avoid directly using the Word resume templates - you'll look just like the other 50 people who applied that used them.
4) Call the place you're applying to, even if you apply online. If you talk to me, I'm more likely to take a closer look at your resume.
Good luck!
Word.
I actually have an interview with the local indie paper on Tuesday because of a craigslist posting. More often than not, the e-mail goes right to the person it needs to.
I'm still unsure what makes a good cover letter. Could some of you post some examples?
Blog||Tumblr|Steam|Twitter|FFXIV|Twitch|YouTube|Podcast|PSN|XBL|DarkZero