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Applying for jobs is exhausting and soul-crushing

yepyepyep

Member
Then don't, write a modular cover letter you can copy and paste sections into a cover letter.

As you apply to jobs with different requirements and or responsibilities add new sections.

I've actually done that. Keep the paragraphs that will always be the same such as uni experience, volunteer experience, etc.

It's more the general process of researching each school and trying to write paragraphs about how you can/want to contribute to their specific values and approaches. It is so tiring after you do so many and I've only got one response so far. Its near the end of the year so most of the grad teaching jobs for 2016 will dry up soon.
 
Drug test tomorrow for a one-two month assignment with Manpower. I hate drug tests. Failed the last one I did in March because I couldn't pee in the cup (nothing was coming out even after three hours). I don't do drugs so I have no reason to avoid a test. Have coffee and green tea ready as well as not planning on peeing when I wake up.

Gonna be brutal but hopefully this works.

Any other tips?

Edit: Just received a call saying that the hiring company canceled the project. They apologized and all but that means there is no job for me.

Yay. Fml
 

Cth

Member
Here's the latest update..

Checking in again with the latest update..

After three weeks, they get back to me and ask me to stop in for an in person technical interview (basically observing my methodology for diagnosing and fixing things)

I went in this past Friday and properly diagnose the machine and accomplish the tasks they set before me ("Get the machine up and running and then go to google.")

Here's hoping this is the one. It's been four years since I've had full time work. Going on three months just for this job interview alone.
 

Edwardo

Member
The recruiter got back to me within a half hour of me completing the assessment test. He wants to set up a phone interview this week. I'm pumped!
 
Take heed gaf! I graduated as a liberal arts major and just landed a nice gig...Use your career center if you have one!! My 4 months of job searching taught me its all about finding a contact with the company, and persistence, lots and lots of persistence, never give up.

Finding an affordable apartment thats not garbage. Now thats the real struggle. Anyone need a roomie in Stamford CT? lmao

English major here. Graduated in August. Now im working at a mortgage company doing customer service. Pays pretty good, more than ive ever made.
 
Oh god I thought the first phone interview was going to be behavioral not technical

Hope I get a call back

The recruiter got back to me within a half hour of me completing the assessment test. He wants to set up a phone interview this week. I'm pumped!

Don't do a lot of "ummmms" like I did.
 

oni_saru

Member
In the event i get an interview should i mention i'm applying for graduate school for fall 2016 start?

I want to work while i'm in grad school (just going for a MA). Will mentioning this hurt my chances?
 

Koriandrr

Member
In the event i get an interview should i mention i'm applying for graduate school for fall 2016 start?

I want to work while i'm in grad school (just going for a MA). Will mentioning this hurt my chances?

It could damage your chances, but it will damage your career in the long run if you don't mention it.
 

gwailo

Banned
Drug test tomorrow for a one-two month assignment with Manpower. I hate drug tests. Failed the last one I did in March because I couldn't pee in the cup (nothing was coming out even after three hours). I don't do drugs so I have no reason to avoid a test. Have coffee and green tea ready as well as not planning on peeing when I wake up.

Gonna be brutal but hopefully this works.

Any other tips?

Edit: Just received a call saying that the hiring company canceled the project. They apologized and all but that means there is no job for me.

Yay. Fml

Sucks that you didn't get the job but TBH in my experience (I did temp/contract work for about 10 years) for a job that short to require a drug test is pretty ludicrous.

I had a gig a Best Buy's HQ that required a month of BS to go through (phone interview, 2 in person interviews, drug test, fingerprinting, etc). The only reason I did it was because it was pitched at 12-18 months temp to hire. The contract was cancelled after 6 weeks because they never had the budget. After that, I got really picky about what I would do for temp jobs. If you don't push back, the companies will treat you like cattle.
 
This might have already been covered but if it's impossible to find work for whatever reason what prevents folks from joining the Military?

Free home, food is covered, you gain experience and skills, free tuition while on Active Duty, free medical care, heavy discounts and cheap healthcare for your family, some jobs offer security clearances, possible to get a top secret over time, etc.

Know an old Soldier of mine who joined at 31, he got his BA in IT, A+, Net+, Linux+ and CCNA and had a Secret clearance. He was in for 4 years and he makes 126k a year now in DC lives in NoVA.

He never had any intention of staying active duty and took advantage of what was available to him. He even got out as an NCO and had over a year with experience being a manager/leader.
 
Age, disability (mental or physical), not wanting to die for an administration that has a different ideology than yours.

Minimum ages for enlistment are mid thirties iirc, disability is obviously unfortunate but most people I have briefly seen post here are younger.

Dying for your country can happen, however if you leverage your job opportunities outside of combat arms that is greatly reduced and the wars are an afterthought at this point.

Just saying, I get some people don't want too but it's an option most people don't fully understand how beneficial it can be.
 
So, I applied for a job at a great company. I passed the resume check and written interview pretty well, since I was offered another interview in less than a day. I was asked to do an interview using InterVue. It's an application on your smartphone where you record yourself giving out your answers.

At first, I didn't think this was a big deal. I get everything running on my smartphone and did a "practice question." You get thirty seconds to read the question, followed by two or three minutes to answer the question. I was alright introducing myself until I noticed my phone's front facing camera not responding well to movement. I stopped halfway during the mock question and replayed the session and it seemed fine.

I go onto the real first question. Note, you only get two attempts to get a proper recording. I started giving my answer when suddenly I blanked out and my anxiety went through the roof. Since you have to stare at the corner of your bezel on your phone to look into the camera, I noticed my damn phone was also frozen. This made me want to pass out, lol. I wasn't sure if I was recording video, audio, or anything at anytime. And if it was, it was a partial response to a question. I didn't dare try the second attempt.

Call me old fashioned, but I do better with person to person interviews. Fewer risks of technical glitches, or the fact you aren't forced to perfectly nail the response on every question in a short amount of time. It was an overall awful experience.

I sent out a email to the hiring managers if there was another way to do it, hopefully a phone interview. I feel defeated and just want to crawl into bed.
 

Makai

Member
secretly-unemployed.png
 

keffri

Member
Looking for a job as a college graduate with no experience sucks. I see a lot of psychology jobs I would like to do, but can't do any of them without the experience or training. I'm not sure where to start really. I'm just applying for some entry level non-related stuff atm but haven't had any luck. I'd like to get the training or experience on the side through volunteering but I'd like an actual job first. FeelsBadMan.
 

oni_saru

Member
Looking for a job as a college graduate with no experience sucks. I see a lot of psychology jobs I would like to do, but can't do any of them without the experience or training. I'm not sure where to start really. I'm just applying for some entry level non-related stuff atm but haven't had any luck. I'd like to get the training or experience on the side through volunteering but I'd like an actual job first. FeelsBadMan.
Do you want to stay in the psychology field? If so, are you interested in research? Or in counseling?

If you're not sure and only know you want to be in the psych field, get a research assistant job.

Also volunteering while looking for a job is good especially if it's relevant to your career goals. You can gain valuable experience
 

ShOcKwAvE

Member
Interesting day. I've been interviewing at three places over the last three weeks. This morning I got an email from my 3rd pick saying they were going with someone else. Disappointing, but I wasn't excited too about them...rejection just sucks after two phone calls and two in-person interviews.

Later, the recruiter for my second pick told me they would make an offer! Only one in-person interview, but three phone interviews was a bit much. It's a great 19% bump, so now I have a few days to decide. Nice benefits, really not much to complain about.

I called the recruiter for my first pick and told him I'm leaning toward his client, but I need to know where I stand since there's another offer on the table. He told me to sleep on it and if I really want it, he'll call them tomorrow and push for me. I will probably ask him to go for it, but I wonder if I'm pushing my luck. It will probably be a few % less salary, but really the role is more interesting and better for my career.
 

Heartfyre

Member
I applied for five jobs I thought I had a great shot at, and four of them declined me, and the last hasn't been in touch for fifteen days, so I'm not optimistic. I'm sure there are plenty here who have dealt with worse results than that, but it's definitely enough to shake anyone's confidence if you have a shred of self-doubt in you.

Worst of all, when going through a drop-down menu of job types on a website, I came to a horrible conclusion: "I don't want to do any of these". The more I think about it, I don't really want to work in a business at all, even as that dramatically decreases the amount of possible positions. Sitting here, it seems as though I'm doomed to work a job I hate for the rest of my life, and it's not a good (albeit a temporary, mood-based) place to be.
 
I applied for five jobs I thought I had a great shot at, and four of them declined me, and the last hasn't been in touch for fifteen days, so I'm not optimistic. I'm sure there are plenty here who have dealt with worse results than that, but it's definitely enough to shake anyone's confidence if you have a shred of self-doubt in you.

Worst of all, when going through a drop-down menu of job types on a website, I came to a horrible conclusion: "I don't want to do any of these". The more I think about it, I don't really want to work in a business at all, even as that dramatically decreases the amount of possible positions. Sitting here, it seems as though I'm doomed to work a job I hate for the rest of my life, and it's not a good (albeit a temporary, mood-based) place to be.

You don't want to work in a business? What's left government and education?
 

eot

Banned
Worst of all, when going through a drop-down menu of job types on a website, I came to a horrible conclusion: "I don't want to do any of these". The more I think about it, I don't really want to work in a business at all, even as that dramatically decreases the amount of possible positions. Sitting here, it seems as though I'm doomed to work a job I hate for the rest of my life, and it's not a good (albeit a temporary, mood-based) place to be.

Tell me about it. That's why I'm hoping to do a PhD instead.
Looking at corporate jobs makes me barf.
 

danthefan

Member
I managed to get myself a phone interview with google coming up in the next few days.

Just wondering what I can expect? I believe they've stopped asking how many golf balls you can fit into a plane and that sort of stuff?
 

Sotha_Sil

Member
I had an interviewer randomly ask me "If you could have lunch with three famous people, alive or dead, who would it be?"

That threw me off so quickly.

Trying to see how you respond to an unusual scenario. In my rapid fire interview, they asked how many basketballs it would take to fill up a room.

The key was that I didn't just blurt out a random number but actually verbalized some quick logic. Probably the most important question of my 4 hour interview.

By that point, they knew I was qualified for the job with my resume, they wanted to see which candidate had the best critical thinking and personality fit.
 
>>>I submit a resume online
>>>Interview with HR on phone
>>>Two days latter interview with (2) managers on phone
>>>A week later come in for a whole day of interviews from 10 AM in till 3 PM (8 different people)
>>>interview went great and I am told I will hear back on Wednesday
>>>>On Wednesday I get email from HR how great fit I am etc. but unfortunately there are budget cuts and they are eliminating the position!!!! Wttfff!!! I and them spent so much time and energy and it’s all for nothing… Shouldn’t they decide that before they go through hiring process with someone? SMH something is not sitting right with me like they found a better person for position but lied to me..would feel better if they say the truth honestly
 

entremet

Member
I managed to get myself a phone interview with google coming up in the next few days.

Just wondering what I can expect? I believe they've stopped asking how many golf balls you can fit into a plane and that sort of stuff?

Check Glassdoor.com.

They should have some tips.
 

keffri

Member
Do you want to stay in the psychology field? If so, are you interested in research? Or in counseling?

If you're not sure and only know you want to be in the psych field, get a research assistant job.

Also volunteering while looking for a job is good especially if it's relevant to your career goals. You can gain valuable experience

I plan on going back to school in a couple of years to get masters in clinical or counseling psychology. At least that is what my plan is at the moment.

I figure I could volunteer in something related to that to get the proper experience/training if that is what I want to pursue in the future. If it isn't I could work a job in an unrelated field/area and see if that is what I'd like to do in.

Kind of tired of sitting at home applying at places. I feel like since I graduated I should be able to get a decent job, but I know that life is not fair. Luckily I do not have any debt to worry about so all that I am losing is time.
 

Edwardo

Member
My phone interview went really well. I take another assessment test now and then if that goes well, they'll bring me in for an onsite interview.
 

jelly

Member
Ugh, you know it's a bad day when you take one of those personality tests, situation tests with no obvious right or wrong answer, which part of your two choices to each question are the most truthful and least truthful and they email you the next day, saying you're not what they were looking for. I was thinking, that's quick, opens email..oh. Onto the next one....
 

Heartfyre

Member
You don't want to work in a business? What's left government and education?

That's what it amounts to, I think. And I'm not fond of the thought of entering into education either. I actually heard back from that last job I mentioned, which was a government job I was really gunning for, and it turns out that I'm highly qualified for the position...but thousands applied for it, so I probably won't hear back from them. Very frustrating. Civil service graduate jobs seem few and far between here.

Tell me about it. That's why I'm hoping to do a PhD instead.
Looking at corporate jobs makes me barf.

Yeah. It's something about working solely towards a profit motive that really turns me off. I think I just want a job that makes a meaningful difference, rather than just increasing some corporation's bottom line. It's a shame my interests are so narrow, and the opportunities within them so few.
 

oni_saru

Member
I plan on going back to school in a couple of years to get masters in clinical or counseling psychology. At least that is what my plan is at the moment.

I figure I could volunteer in something related to that to get the proper experience/training if that is what I want to pursue in the future. If it isn't I could work a job in an unrelated field/area and see if that is what I'd like to do in.

Kind of tired of sitting at home applying at places. I feel like since I graduated I should be able to get a decent job, but I know that life is not fair. Luckily I do not have any debt to worry about so all that I am losing is time.
Yeah if that's your plan then definitely do research. Either volunteer or paid research positions. You could always do volunteer while continuing to apply to paid research assistant positions.

Also volunteering at hotlines like a domestic violence, suicide, or crisis one is a good idea.

Another good thing about volunteering, you can prove that you're a great worker and once a position opens up for paid work, apply to it.

I'm in the same field. And had similar experience. The volunteer work i did and the recommendations i got from those opportunities really helped me get my current job (which i hate lol but it's more of a can't stand coworkers/no opportunity for growth reason)
 

Coda

Member
>>>I submit a resume online
>>>Interview with HR on phone
>>>Two days latter interview with (2) managers on phone
>>>A week later come in for a whole day of interviews from 10 AM in till 3 PM (8 different people)
>>>interview went great and I am told I will hear back on Wednesday
>>>>On Wednesday I get email from HR how great fit I am etc. but unfortunately there are budget cuts and they are eliminating the position!!!! Wttfff!!! I and them spent so much time and energy and it’s all for nothing… Shouldn’t they decide that before they go through hiring process with someone? SMH something is not sitting right with me like they found a better person for position but lied to me..would feel better if they say the truth honestly

I had a similar thing happen to me about a position I interviewed for. Everything was going well, and then towards the end of the process the manager said that they weren't actually looking to hire anyone anymore. It's like why even put up the job on your website if you don't think you need another employee. So frustrating.
 
I had a similar thing happen to me about a position I interviewed for. Everything was going well, and then towards the end of the process the manager said that they weren't actually looking to hire anyone anymore. It's like why even put up the job on your website if you don't think you need another employee. So frustrating.

Yup, they used up a lot of their resources for this interview, was most draining interview I had in my life its like it was a practice for their engineers/managers or some bullshit they even took me out for lunch..I was never in my life take out for lunch because of lengthy interviews.
 
Need some advice:

I've been interviewing around several companies.
Today, got a call from an unknown number while I was in the shower so I missed it. No messages left. I googled the number and it seems the estimated location is an area I once interviewed for. Don't know if it belongs to that company for sure.

Should I call back or wait for the number to call again? I'm probably being too paranoid.
 

Hylian7

Member
Okay, I thought I would ask this thread this. I'm applying for a job, and it has this agreement that requires an eSignature. It asks me to enter my full name and a "unique identifier". Wtf is my "unique identifier"?!

The box says "Please enter your unique identifier". What is that referring to?
 
Okay, I thought I would ask this thread this. I'm applying for a job, and it has this agreement that requires an eSignature. It asks me to enter my full name and a "unique identifier". Wtf is my "unique identifier"?!

The box says "Please enter your unique identifier". What is that referring to?

The unique identifier is just a secondary way for them to confirm that you have signed your application. Doesn't have to be the same if you send multiple resumes to the same company I believe too.

Also, does anyone have any experience applying for R&D jobs in the Pharmaceutical/Biotech/Med field? Is it pretty hard to get your foot in the door with these companies without prior experience besides working in labs during school? I graduated in May and was doing training through October, but I started actively searching now and I don't really have any idea how difficult it is to get a job within the R&D industry.
 

Vegito

Banned
I am finding out that working 40 hours a week is exhausting an soul crushing, I envy you unemployed fools

I would gladly trade places with you. Im so fuckin tired of doing nothing. Im not even getting interviews now. My last interview was in August. I need some routine back in my life. Its depressing.
 

Tarsul

Member
both can be depressing. I was un(der)employed for more than a year and always looking at this thread - it really helped in not feeling so alone. Now I'm working and feeling like everyday's the same day (I think there's a game about that?). Time goes by and nothing special happens. Well, it was the same while unemployed. The big difference is:
feeling like trash / wasting your time (unemployed) VS. feeling all energy drained out by doing the same things every day and not having enough time to do something worthwile. Although the difference is: now you have the money to do it (well, i dont really have the money :)), but not the time.

But if I had to choose: It's better to be employed and tired than unemployed and feeling worthless / having to cope with surviving (depending on the social services in your country).
 

keffri

Member
Yeah if that's your plan then definitely do research. Either volunteer or paid research positions. You could always do volunteer while continuing to apply to paid research assistant positions.

Also volunteering at hotlines like a domestic violence, suicide, or crisis one is a good idea.

Another good thing about volunteering, you can prove that you're a great worker and once a position opens up for paid work, apply to it.

I'm in the same field. And had similar experience. The volunteer work i did and the recommendations i got from those opportunities really helped me get my current job (which i hate lol but it's more of a can't stand coworkers/no opportunity for growth reason)

Yeah I think my best bet would to get a volunteer position and hopefully a job opening pops up. Although I'd like to remain optimistic I do not plan on relying that that happens so I'll take a job in the meantime.

It is good to know somebody else had a similar experience. Kind of discouraging that I'll have to start from the bottom and work my way up, but I guess that is only fair. I think I will try applying a little big longer before I settle for something that will just hold me over.
 

Linkark07

Banned
Yes, got the call. According to them, as soon as I sign the contract I will start working for the university, so next week I'm giving my 2 weeks notice (heard it was one week but whatever).

So excited.
 

oni_saru

Member
Yeah I think my best bet would to get a volunteer position and hopefully a job opening pops up. Although I'd like to remain optimistic I do not plan on relying that that happens so I'll take a job in the meantime.

It is good to know somebody else had a similar experience. Kind of discouraging that I'll have to start from the bottom and work my way up, but I guess that is only fair. I think I will try applying a little big longer before I settle for something that will just hold me over.
Sounds good! Good luck! If you need any other advice regarding this field, i can definitely help.


Yes, got the call. According to them, as soon as I sign the contract I will start working for the university, so next week I'm giving my 2 weeks notice (heard it was one week but whatever).

So excited.

Congrats!!!!
 
Went for an interview with aa very small company. They're doing well but everything points towards this being a "gain the experience it's not about the money" position. And I'm all for hard work but if the pay isn't enough to live comfortably in a city that is fairly expensive I can't take it.
 

ionitron

Member
Seeking some advice here:

So today I got accepted for an internship at an art museum! Woo! Great.

The catch(es): Well, for one it's unpaid, they're asking for 10 hours a week. I'm a third year undergrad studying Zoology, and I have a really, really generous scholarship so money really isn't an issue for me right now. This semester was very bad for me because of a lot of stuff in my personal life and events in the last few months, so I'm scared that I really can't handle more work now. My upcoming semester is going to be really hard, too, and I'm honestly really scared that I can't handle my coursework anymore. I'll be taking Orgo 2 and Genetics next semester, along with an intense Vert Anatomy class- 14 credits total, don't know if that gives any insight -shrugs-.

But the internship, well, college always emphasizes experience, experience, lines on your resumés, etc, so there's that. I already have an internship from a science museum that I worked at over the summer (that was paid) under my belt, and I really so think this one is really relevant to my career goals (I'd like to have more of a foot in public programming in a museum, especially in art) so... yeah... I don't know.

Bottom line: This is quite relevant to what I'd like to do later, but school is hard, I don't know if I can, and this is also unpaid so is it really worth it? I don't know. Just wondering what you guys think.
 
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