Jobs for Teens

liveandlearn_2

Hi,

To the OP, I think it's great that you want to work, it's a great experience and so good to get a bit of financial independence. The best advice is don't give up! I do think, though, that face-to-face or at least a telephone call is best.
If you're not having any luck with companies, why not try babysitting, dog-walking, car-washing, a newspaper round? Maybe not the most glamourous of jobs, but it's a start, and something to put on a CV to show you are responsibe, perserverent, flexible...
As others have said, it's often a case of word of mouth. Have you told everyone you know that you are looking? And I mean everyone!! Mates from school, all the neighbours, parents' friends and colleagues.....I got all of my part-time jobs before uni this way (baby-sitting, chambermaid, shelf-stacker, barmaid...) just by knowing someone (usually friends from school or college) or being in the right place at the right time.

One thing though, I personally would be a bit wary of putting a notice up in shops with your contact details, or maybe that's just the mum in me speaking Take care though

Keep trying and well done!

LL

stella512200

Hi, thought i'd throw mu bit of advice in too

I'm 19, my first job (at nearly 17!) was waiting on at a brewers fayre, the take on over 16yr olds. pubs and restaurants don't advertise, so you have to call around a bit and find out where and what jobs are going. also going into the pubs/restaurants helps, asking a manager if there is anything going is embarrassing if they say there isn't but normally they'll ask you to fill in an app form (i did this last week!) and if anything becomes available they get in touch. high street clothes shops are difficult to get into (i tried this a couple of years ago) as teenage girls all want them, you get discount off the clothes in there! if you find a respectable pub or restaurant to start in, customers are normally very nice and tip well (you aren't taxed on your tips ). I've recently been looking for a part time bar job to top up my wages and i found that calling and asking, or nipping round is much more effective than sending out CV's or looking on any website. There are more jobs going around now for waitresses as over the xmas period they hire people from uni, they've all gone back now. the weather is getting nicer so the pubs are getting busier, they'll need more staff! Also, a waitressing job has lots of responibilites behind it, listing these on a CV looks pretty impressive. Make sure you do have an up-to-date CV on you to hand in if they ask if you go there.

My younger sister is 17 and has been looking for her first job. she has found a couple of places taking on that are hotels and even care homes. Some of the jobs she has received app forms through for she had to call around and ask if there were jobs going. like i said to her, if she calls up and asks, there worse thing they can say is no. they don't know who you are so there's nothing embarrassing about it.

It sounds and looks like a waffled on a bit but hopefully you can pick up a couple of tips to help!!

good luck x

Lokolo

sophie131 wrote: »

Just wanted to add my half to this story!
I was looking for a job last summer, walked around town nowhere had job vacancy signs etc. If I had of accepted that as fact I wouldn't have got the job I have now!
I handed my CV in at 10 places - got interviews at 5 and job offers at 4, none of these were advertising for staff.
I just went to customer services or a high up looking person and asked if I could give them my CV - a couple said they couldn't take it as they had no jobs at the min - but most took them.
Even if the application does go in the bin, at least you tried, you never know exactly how each compny deals with the job application process.
Good luck

:-O nice one!

vinerga

my friend used to work in a Hairdressers when she was younger, sweeping up the hair etc off the floor and making cups of tea. Its not much but its start?

andrina_nightshade

I can totally sympathise with the OP. I lost count of how many jobs I must have applied for when I was 16.

I know it seems ages away, but I would maybe wait until the summer. That way, you won't have the added pressure of your exams. Plus you might find some more opportunities then - many students graduating and moving onto other jobs, plus some of the big stores take on temps round about this time. There's no guarantee of a permanent position if you do get taken on as a temp, but it's better than nothing.

Best of luck

Rufff

Sorry, I completely disagree with Lokolo - In your area businesses may be drooling for the chance to get cheap labour but as I said everywhere is different!
In my area I asked around almost everywhere, in person (because e-mails and CVs tend to get moved to the side and overlooked!). But with several large colleges in my area there are literally hundreds of students, every year beggining to look for jobs so competition is fierce and generally the more hours your available the more likely you are to get hired, so dont be too picky but dont sacrifice your studies either.

Jakg

cheekyweegit wrote: »

I'd be interested in this too, I've got a 15 year old who is itching to start work so he can start saving up for his first car.... An Impretza (Sp?).

An Impreza (or at least the fast ones) is group 20 - If I pay £2,000 a year to insure my pimping fwd hatchback with 89 HP, I don't even want to think what they will want for a 300+ 4WD rally-bred car.

They wanted £8k to drive my Dad's Omega (2L, 130-odd HP RWD).

AliceMegan93 wrote: »

It seems impossible at the minute to get any jobs due to the recession and everyone wants someone with "experience"

I doubt that - my friends (around 16-17-18) keep telling me that they can't find a job, then I find them about 20 within a £2-odd train journey and it shuts them up :P

Simplest way is to look on Monster (which has a part time section) or just check the website of shops near you and see if their recruiting.

Mobile phone companies are ALWAYS recruiting, but Sales (or at least high-pressure sales) isn't my thing.

EDIT - If your looking to go to Uni I would recommend a national company - atm I work for PC World, and I'm hoping to go to UEA in Norwich in September - Norwich is FULL of students who will work for peanuts, and so the job prospects there are going to be pretty rubbish because if you won't work for half a peanut (recession, donchaknow) someone else will - but I should be able to transfer to the Norwich branch easily as I've got experience in the company and already know what to do etc.

Beven

Ruthibe73 wrote: »

Good luck with trying to find something...too many youngsters can't be bothered ...ooops feel I might get shot down now....

I realy do hope that that was not an agist comment towards teens. I happen to be a teen myself and i am sick to the core of people assuming that all teenagers are druggies who just stab people. Its not fair that people just discriminate against youngsters. So please keep your nasty comments to yourself.

AlbertMARKET

Some schools usually have a student board of avaiable jobs that local parents drop by to look for some High Schoolers to either baby sit, help, and all sorts of jobs.

ThinkingOfLinking

I know you're over 16 but for under 16s who may be reading this thread:

Newspaper round
Babysitting
Cleaning
Tutoring other kids

Over 16-18 year olds

Supermarkets and retail are your best bet.
Waitressing.