Difficulties finding a job

mistymemo

I have been unemployed for 4 months now and so far I have only had 4 interviews all of which I have failed. I knew the current climate was bad but not to the extent where I am finding myself as a previous Civil Engineer, applying for bar staff work. Not that there is anything wrong with that but every job I apply for, seems to have over 500 applicants. I am getting seriously worried if I will ever be able to get any job at all.

I am feeling depressed, sad and unmotivated to keep looking knowing that everyday I apply, I will either not hear back from the employer but that it will just be all the effort wasted.

Has anyone else had the same problem as me? Are there any decent jobsites that actually you do get a response from? I have a cv and cover letter that I always tailor to the job Im applying for.

I would appreciate any help. Thank you :-) x

Emmzi

potentially stupid question but have you identified which agencies deal specifically with your profession and had a face to face with them?

mistymemo

Not a stupid question at all :-) I have joined Hays who deal with Engineering professions but I never hear from them. I have called them a few times but all they can say is that nothing has come up and they will let me know if any vacancies arise. I have also joined Matchtech, Randstad and ICE, and uploaded my CV on there for any employers to view but again nothing :-(

se999

Have you had friends etc., & recruiters give you any feedback on your cv? Are you applying for just the one role, if more than one type of job have different cv's ready to send.

Have you set up a network on linkedin of current and previous professional contacts, and put a current cv on there tailored with key words so recruiters can find you too. If you google linkedin there are websites which give advice on how to get it to work best.

Have you been on any of the free job centre courses for job hunting, if not ask about them.

Other than that it's a numbers game with job applications really.

For more senior jobs quite often there's a long lead time between advertising the post, and actually getting to interview, so you might hear from some of these job applications still.

se999

Forgot one thing - treat it as a job, get into a routine. When OH was last job hunting, he actually checked the main websites twice a day, as sometimes the jobs vanished once they'd got a certain number of applications.

mistymemo

I did have one recruiter say that my cv needed more bullet points which I did. I also simplified it so only the important info was on there. I have actually just joined Linkedin today though I don't have many contacts yet. But fingers crossed. Thanks so much for the advice, I will go to the jobcentre and ask about any free courses which could help. Many thanks :-)

mistymemo

Quick question how do i upload my cv on linkedin? thank you

Stew68

I know exactly how you feel. I've been looking for four months now and only had the four interviews. One of the jobs I got through to the last three out of hundreds of applicants but just got pipped to the post on that one.

We'll just have to keep trying and hope that something eventually sticks.

mistymemo

Stew68 wrote: »

I know exactly how you feel. I've been looking for four months now and only had the four interviews. One of the jobs I got through to the last three out of hundreds of applicants but just got pipped to the post on that one.

We'll just have to keep trying and hope that something eventually sticks.

Good luck with your jobhunting. Im sure something will come up even if it may feel like eternity. :-)

flossyblog

There are jobs out there. However it is an employers market.

To get that elusive job in this climate you really have to stand out from others.

You must be doing something right because you have been invited to 4 interviews.

Unfortunately, you have been unsuccessful, have you looked at why that could be? Was there anything you learnt at the first interview that you could have improved etc

Sambucus_Nigra

Have you tried Coyle