Jobseeking is driving me mad!

jembie

It's so good to find I am not alone in my failed jobsearch efforts.
I knew my CV wasn't up to scratch and although my history is in Retail I wanted to re-train for admin type work.

I went on a 13 week course through the Jobcentre.
I finished the course work in just 6 weeks and for the last few weeks I did jobsearch and helped out training the newer learners to put together decent CVs and also helping out the less computer savvie learners.

I was supposed to get 4 weeks work experience as part of the deal but they failed to deliver because 1) all the employers they approached only wanted applicants with experience (!!!!!!?) and 2) Employers didn't want to take me on because I am on IS and they won't get the government subsidy that they would get with New Deal applicants.

So I came out of the 13 weeks with a City & Guilds in Business Admin and a couple of new friends and a great polished new CV but I still don't have a job although I am applying for on average 10 a week.

therealdessie

Keep at it, the right job will come along. I've been searching for almost three months now, the longest I've ever been out of work, and it's a bad time. Generally, jobs come around at Christmas/New Year and will be around until Feb. March and April we've had Easter and bank holidays messing up schedules, and a lot of people have been taking holidays.

That coupled with the "credit crunch" means people don't want to vacate their roles - but that always changes in the summer. When the sun is out people start to feel like a change, go on maternity leave, go travelling etc - things will pick up soon.

Just remember how to read the agencies: if they don't call you in to meet them then they're not going to be searching for work for you - they simply won't unless you have met to fill out the forms etc so don't get false hope from them. That doesn't mean you can't keep on applying for things to eventually get your foot in the door - and when you do meet them pressure them for CV advice, make them earn their pay.

And whatever you do, if you get an interview DO NOT TELL THE AGENCIES. Other agencies might ask you who you're going to see and where, they say they're doing this because they don't want to send you to the same job: what they really want to do is canvass an employer they don't have yet or suss out the competition. Just politely tell them that you have been asked to keep the details confidential, and that if they call you with a job you will be happy to tell them whether or not you have already been to see that client.

boldaslove

hey, glad i found this, just having a break from scouring the net for jobs again! i lost my job in february (contract ended, can't say i was too upset, it was one of those jobs that drains the life and soul out of you!), jobhunting got delayed a little because i concentrated on putting together a portfolio for college interviews. i got in (yay!) but because it's a level 3 i don't get student loan so i'm going to struggle even with bursaries and a part time job in september.

i've been going for shop jobs, part time, so i can keep it when i start studying. i thought it was a logical choice as most shops are dying to get weekend staff, the students are all in final exams and will be going home soon, plus i'm going to be studying art and design including fashion so i've gone for clothes shops and arty places. since feb i've had only one interview (out of LOTS of applications), which went great, but they never phoned me back. i'm getting sooooo frustrated, i've rewritten my CV to look really smart and easy to read and that points out all my skills. i'm starting to apply for barwork now, there's one just opened around the corner that has jobs available, my mate works there so i went in and had a good chat with the shift manager and gave him my CV. that was friday and still nothing! i've worked on a cocktail bar for god's sake, i can handle pulling pints in a quiet bar!

i'm beginning to suspect it's because of my age. i'm going for jobs that school leavers/students tend to take and because i'm 23 i'm on the highest bracket for minimum wage. i don't put my age/DOB on my CV deliberately but i still don't get any joy. a lot i've appled for have given me the 'no jobs but we'll put you on our database' speech which is fine, but there are at least 4 places who desperately need staff (i hung around for 15 mins in one shop as there were so little staff around i couldn't find one to speak to!). i don't get it? i say on my CV i can start straight away and i'm completely flexible with hours. i'm experienced, well presented, friendly, polite and reliable. i just don't understand why i'm not getting offers!!

i'm glad i'm not alone, i'm getting near breaking point now. it's this vicious circle of applying, feeling optimistic, not hearing anything, getting low, bigging yourself up, and applying, and round and round it goes. when i contact employers to ask if there's something wrong i get fobbed off but i don't want to get pushy, i imagine that's offputting for an employer. however i'm getting to the point where i really want to just march in and have a go at the managers!

good luck to everyone jobhunting. here's the sites i scour regularly -
www.worktrain.gov.uk
www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk
www.hotrecruit.com
www.reed.co.uk

therealdessie

You would definitely not want to call and employer to follow up an application: it's a death sentence on the job. Sometimes it just comes down to fit: if these jobs are all fairly local then make sure you get in and speak to the manager, don't leave it to somebody else. Making that first impression can mean your CV isn't even required, in some cases. Are you being clear too on the length of service you will provide? If it seems you might disappear quickly, it could be off-putting for anyone who needs to spend money training you...

nappentass

OP very much similar situation to myself - I have to change type of job because basically my speciality is out of date/no longer needed and I want to work near home because OH has good job. Yes I can do a lot of the jobs I apply for but get little or no response, with the over qualified exceptions.
Then I had an email from peoplemaps today (I did a profile with them ages ago) This information made sense - that employers will minimise risk of hiring anyone that isn't exactly like who they'll replace, so generally they won't let people change job types, no matter how good you might seem.
Something to think about..
HTH
Jill

boldaslove

interesting. i can see the logic, but there are lots of people out there who've temped or got seasonal jobs and have had to move on through no fault of their own (i've done a lot of temp jobs to keep me going but it seems to also be my downfall in finding something permanent). it scares me to think employers won't consider this!

does anyone else get riled by this? - often i'll see jobs that say "start an exciting career in X!" or "looking to make your way into X?" and further down say "if you have 5+ years experience in X then apply straight away!". one of the positions i'm trying to get is a visual merchandiser and this line comes up so often i feel like pulling my own teeth out!! why are employers so unwilling to train people? i know it costs money but surely an employee is more likely to stay with you if you trained them and helped them learn new skills? it often seems to me like employers are actively making finding staff much harder than it actually is!

therealdessie

Well that's exactly the downfall actually. Some employees will use free training as a stepping stone to another role elsewhere, same as many studiers use their company's study support to get qualified and then disappear.

As for temp jobs, as an employer I have seen it as a downside before. When I look at a CV I look at dates - 3 months in last role, 2 months before that, etc - I'd think "sketchy". It's always better to amalgamate temp roles into one overall period when presenting on a CV, it gives a much better impression.

Jellicat

If there's something to take heart in, is that IMO the wrong job can be worse than no job. Just quit my job working in a bookies a few weeks ago, it was absolutely hellish. The customers were beyond rude, one of the managers was worse, after the first few weeks I was expected to know everything about betting and odds, the other manager regularly !!!!!!ed off for periods lasting up to three hours (once or twice to the pub, which is TOTALLY illegal), leaving me alone and stressed at a job I couldnt handle, and security in a betting shop that took over a million over the counter in a year (this is ONE shop mind) was an absolute joke...I was regularly popping round to the post office with thousands of quid stuffed in my pants pockets.

I am now back in the world of frustrating job searching. I feel the pain, because I ideally want to work with animals, but everywhere wants work experience...I guess a year of a full-time Animal care course with a very high practical element of handling dogs and small animals isn't enough for them. :mad:

boldaslove

therealdessie wrote: »

Well that's exactly the downfall actually. Some employees will use free training as a stepping stone to another role elsewhere, same as many studiers use their company's study support to get qualified and then disappear.

As for temp jobs, as an employer I have seen it as a downside before. When I look at a CV I look at dates - 3 months in last role, 2 months before that, etc - I'd think "sketchy". It's always better to amalgamate temp roles into one overall period when presenting on a CV, it gives a much better impression.

thanks, it's good to have input from an employer. i have lumped all my office temp roles into one but i'll have another look at my CV and see if i can spruce it up some more (off to speak to college guidance today and then yet another trawl around town doling out CVs!). the rest of my jobs have either been xmas temp type positions or contracts, perhaps i should put a little info on about that to clear it up. it's hard fitting it all onto just 2 pages though, although i don't want to add any more. i've tried to keep it short, snappy and easy to pick out roles i've done and skills i have.
what do you think of applicants coming in to check up on the position? i keep getting conflicting advice, some people think it's good as it shows you're enthusiastic about the job but others have reckoned it's too pushy and offputting. i get really annoyed at places who just leave adverts up in the window for ages when you know damn well they'll have had loads of CVs. i once applied for a shop i really wanted to work at, whenever i walked past they always had the recruitment poster in the window. when i finally went in to ask about the job they said they keep it up to collect CVs and there was nothing available. i really wanted to tell them how much time i'd wasted chasing them up but again i reckoned that'd just put a big black 'X' on my cv!

jellicat have you looked at vet nurse positions? you sound like you've got the perfect amount of experience. i got offered a trainee vet nurse position a while back and the only experience i have is nursing my pets! might be worth asking around the local shelters and boarding kennels?

good luck to everyone job hunting today

Jellicat

I have considered vet nursing, I'm keeping my options open at the moment but I'm not entirely sure if its a career more I want to get into...I'm very into the whole idea of dog handling (sniffers or security mutts) or training dogs if I possibly can. But thanks, I'm going to start looking for voluntary work in vets and things and see where that leads.