sovereignb
Well-Known Member
struggling.
The job hunting support thread
- Thread starter Cloo
- Start date
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
have applied for something, although it's slightly further away from london than i am now. this will probably cause a medium sized explosion if it gets as far as discussing it with mum-tat, but not convinced there's going to be a lot of choices the next few years and i'm reaching the point in life where i can't wait a few years.
did see something promising in london advertised yesterday with a closing date some time next week. vacancy now closed / withdrawn - not sure if this means they advertised in error or got swamped with applications.
bugger.
did see something promising in london advertised yesterday with a closing date some time next week. vacancy now closed / withdrawn - not sure if this means they advertised in error or got swamped with applications.
bugger.
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
listed again today (which suggests either a technological problem or a mistake in the original advert) - will see if i can get application in this evening before it vanishes again...
sovereignb
Well-Known Member
Feeling completely overwhelmed. Two more rejection emails this week without even getting an interview, which makes me feel my experience is amounting to nothing. I just dont know what to do.
a_chap
When the world came apart, where were you?
IMO the hardest and most dispiriting part of getting a job is sending application forms & CVs. It's so damn arbitrary the criteria they use to select who to interview.
Not that I ever did it you understand but I hear some people massively exaggerate their CVs on the grounds that the CV's sole function is to get an interview. I hear that tactic has worked rather well in the past...
Not that I ever did it you understand but I hear some people massively exaggerate their CVs on the grounds that the CV's sole function is to get an interview. I hear that tactic has worked rather well in the past...
weltweit
Well-Known Member
Not only that but recruiters, especially agencies only glance at CVs for a few moments before putting them into yes no or maybe piles. They apparently look for on average 8 seconds (the agency people) so if you are going for a job as a banana taster, your CV better say pretty clearly at the top of page 1, "I am a skilled banana taster" ....
Not that I ever did it you understand but I hear some people massively exaggerate their CVs on the grounds that the CV's sole function is to get an interview. I hear that tactic has worked rather well in the past...
And the maybe and no piles don't get another look, assuming there are CVs in the yes pile.
a_chap
When the world came apart, where were you?
I have always tailored my CV to the requirements of each job I've ever applied for.
However, I am NOT advocating other people do this. No, I hope no-one else does it.
It greatly increases my chances of securing an interview
co-op
But....but cLoWnFiSh....
You have my sympathy, it's a shit life job-seeking. Important to remember that a hell of a lot of it is random and down to luck, nothing to do with you or your skills.
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
there was something in the news this week about a front of house job at a restaurant getting over 1,000 applications this week, so first off, i'd say not to take any of it personally...
without wanting you to go in to great detail here, just wondering quite what you're applying for and how it matches your past experience. ultimately, if your experience is in doing one thing, but you're applying for a job doing something else, then that experience generally won't count for a lot. which is a bit of a sod if your past experience is quite specialist but there aren't many jobs in that line.
even before the coronavirus, most jobs had a lot of people applying for them, and employers will generally go for people who have got "recent and relevant experience" rather than take a chance on someone who (from their perspective) might be able to do the job after a bit of training. most employers aren't interested in developing people (with the possible exception of the shiny new graduates on the management trainee scheme - and then they need people on a 'slow track' for the graduates to be 'fast tracked' past)
there's often some way you can go to sell skills in a more generalist / transferrable way (as in tailoring CV to sell particular aspects of past jobs), but if they really want someone with experience of doing that job, it's questionable if there's any point in applying if you don't have it (unless of course you're on the dole and on a target to apply for X jobs a week, in which case you have to apply for jobs where you know damn well you're wasting everyone's time.)
public sector tends to be a bit easier in that there's usually a more detailed 'person specification' where you can address the specifics in that in the application (or if you really don't meet something they list as 'essential' then you can give serious thought to whether it's worth the time and effort)
is there someone you could get to give your covering letter / CV a once-over to see if they can suggest any different approaches?
weltweit
Well-Known Member
With unemployed people being encouraged to apply for many jobs there are often many applicants for every position. If there were 70 applications for a position you are interested in, how do you plan to stand out?
One way is to be first, get your application in at the very start, if they like it they may well progress your application without waiting for others to arrive. Certainly agencies will send you in early if they think you are relevant.
If you wait until the closing date you will likely be one of 70.
One way is to be first, get your application in at the very start, if they like it they may well progress your application without waiting for others to arrive. Certainly agencies will send you in early if they think you are relevant.
If you wait until the closing date you will likely be one of 70.
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Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
i'm trying to decide whether to go after something - it's with a south london council, trainee level in something i've not really done before (although think i meet the essential requirements)
can't help thinking there will be a lot of people applying and wondering if there's any point.
and someone i was at school with (i've avoided all contact with people i was at school with since i left) is now a tory councillor there (opposition party and fairly likely to remain so) and medium sized twunt.
can't help thinking there will be a lot of people applying and wondering if there's any point.
and someone i was at school with (i've avoided all contact with people i was at school with since i left) is now a tory councillor there (opposition party and fairly likely to remain so) and medium sized twunt.
sovereignb
Well-Known Member
there was something in the news this week about a front of house job at a restaurant getting over 1,000 applications this week, so first off, i'd say not to take any of it personally...
without wanting you to go in to great detail here, just wondering quite what you're applying for and how it matches your past experience. ultimately, if your experience is in doing one thing, but you're applying for a job doing something else, then that experience generally won't count for a lot. which is a bit of a sod if your past experience is quite specialist but there aren't many jobs in that line.
even before the coronavirus, most jobs had a lot of people applying for them, and employers will generally go for people who have got "recent and relevant experience" rather than take a chance on someone who (from their perspective) might be able to do the job after a bit of training. most employers aren't interested in developing people (with the possible exception of the shiny new graduates on the management trainee scheme - and then they need people on a 'slow track' for the graduates to be 'fast tracked' past)
there's often some way you can go to sell skills in a more generalist / transferrable way (as in tailoring CV to sell particular aspects of past jobs), but if they really want someone with experience of doing that job, it's questionable if there's any point in applying if you don't have it (unless of course you're on the dole and on a target to apply for X jobs a week, in which case you have to apply for jobs where you know damn well you're wasting everyone's time.)
public sector tends to be a bit easier in that there's usually a more detailed 'person specification' where you can address the specifics in that in the application (or if you really don't meet something they list as 'essential' then you can give serious thought to whether it's worth the time and effort)
is there someone you could get to give your covering letter / CV a once-over to see if they can suggest any different approaches?
I think that's part of the issue. Majority of my background is social services case management/safeguarding. My last two contracts were professional conduct investigation case management. What I'm applying are similar roles of CM investigation/complaints resolution or roles centred around sensitive information management. I rarely apply for things where I don't fit the essential criteria.
I applied for Customer Dispute role and the company got back to me saying the role was on hold, but they wanted to speak re. CV and potential opps with them. I got back to them when they didn't call at the agreed time, to which they responded that they have given the role to someone whose "skills fit the role more blah blah blah". I have asked for further feedback considering they were actually prepared to talk to me two weeks ago.
Giving my CV/cover letter to someone to check id probably have to do with each application as I'm always altering, but it could be done.
I appreciate your input. I guess I just have to keep ploughing on
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sovereignb
Well-Known Member
Yeah, that's something I've always wondered if companies wait until the deadline to start the selection process? Doesnt hurt to follow your advice when possible.
sovereignb
Well-Known Member
That might explain I was getting calls from agencies at the beginning of lockdown. They actually had the time to look at the CVs that had registered with them, rather than scanning them.
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
hmm
bearing in mind that i know next to nothing about the specifics of this sort of work, is it the sort of application where it's letter and CV or local authority application form (albeit electronic) sort of thing?
with the local authority thing, i find that going in to detail in the personal statement bit (even if there's a bit of repetition with the past jobs bit) tends to be fairly good at least at getting short-listed
some will (particularly public sector) where the hiring manager might not get to see the applications until after the closing date
some may not. some will also say 'closing date is X but we reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received a certain number of applications' so it's not always a great idea to leave it too late.
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
my job hunting is not going well
haven't officially been told 'no' re the job in brighton (i think i'm in reserve - i got to the final 3 out of quite a lot of applicants - it was about the first job advertised after the lock down)
the one that fell off the web and re-appeared, i did apply for. then had to do an online personality test sort of thing. obviously some twit in HR has decided that a company standard personality is more important than ability to do any particular job, so i got the 'no thanks' today. (for a role very similar to the one somewhere else i got offered but had to decline because of the lockdown)
couldn't face the london council one
bugger
haven't officially been told 'no' re the job in brighton (i think i'm in reserve - i got to the final 3 out of quite a lot of applicants - it was about the first job advertised after the lock down)
the one that fell off the web and re-appeared, i did apply for. then had to do an online personality test sort of thing. obviously some twit in HR has decided that a company standard personality is more important than ability to do any particular job, so i got the 'no thanks' today. (for a role very similar to the one somewhere else i got offered but had to decline because of the lockdown)
couldn't face the london council one
bugger
sovereignb
Well-Known Member
Differs with each job! I tend to prefer CV/statements applications because you tailor it each time and possibly show some sort of personality.
What do you think, if anything, we are supposed to learn from what we are currently going through re. work/employment?
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
got asked to do an online test for this one (stuff genuinely related to the job) - job is a tangent to what i do now
test was allowed an hour for 15 questions - did it in 20 minutes (and re-checked a lot of the answers as they were so easy i was wondering what the catch was...)
hmm
sovereignb
Well-Known Member
Well I might have a role working in a hostel with unaccompanied minors. Friend asked me to send my CV over as they know someone working there. I just had a call and they seem to want someone to start soon. It would definitely be going back to my old field of social services work, which is not what I wanted. Hours are longer than im used to and it will be an awkward commute. I also wonder how it looks on the CV going backwards as such. However, I'm at a stage where I just want to engage and earn more than what UC is giving me.
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Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
hops something good comes of it
dunno really - i suspect you're by far from the only person making a 'career move' like this at the moment, and it may be possible to spin your CV so that the last main job was the one before, and this is something temporary / short term.
traditional approach is to put most recent job first on a CV, not sure how well received it is to adjust the order to put the last 'proper' job at the top and have something like 'since accepting a redundancy offer in X year I have done temporary / short term work including ....'
i did one (online) application form for a local authority job a few months back where they said to put most relevant past job at the top of the list. since most relevant job was 25+ years ago, i didn't (and didn't get shortlisted - i thought i was pushing my luck a bit)
it probably looks better to be doing something at least related to your field of work rather than something completely unrelated or being unemployed
sovereignb
Well-Known Member
hops something good comes of it
dunno really - i suspect you're by far from the only person making a 'career move' like this at the moment, and it may be possible to spin your CV so that the last main job was the one before, and this is something temporary / short term.
traditional approach is to put most recent job first on a CV, not sure how well received it is to adjust the order to put the last 'proper' job at the top and have something like 'since accepting a redundancy offer in X year I have done temporary / short term work including ....'
i did one (online) application form for a local authority job a few months back where they said to put most relevant past job at the top of the list. since most relevant job was 25+ years ago, i didn't (and didn't get shortlisted - i thought i was pushing my luck a bit)
it probably looks better to be doing something at least related to your field of work rather than something completely unrelated or being unemployed
I guess thats what I would need to do. I try to keep positive but I get the impression most of these employers dont give a toss and want to see the perfect career progression CV. Guess it depends on whose reading.
I've just done a quick calculation online regarding the monthly amount they threw out to me and it works out much less than minimum wage. Definitely will be asking for more, but at the moment anything more than waiting for UC is welcomed. I spent today chasing up previous applications and will continue looking/applying for things. Calling them back tomorrow so lets see what they say.
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
have got to next stage - a video interview (pre-recorded questions, my answers recorded, not a video conversation)
at least it means i can do it without having to take time off work, but
heinous seamus
Perfect in an empty room
I applied for a job in a local brewery, helping brew the beers (which sounds brilliant). The guy mentioned I may need to drive the van in future (which sounds terrible as I'm not a fan of driving. So much so, I was thinking I might need to turn the job down if I'm offered it.)
Anyway, he just phoned me up to say he's struggling to decide between myself and another candidate, so he's proposing to take us both on. My role will be focused on driving the van rather than helping with the brewing.
Naturally, I said 'that sounds brilliant, I accept'
Anyway, he just phoned me up to say he's struggling to decide between myself and another candidate, so he's proposing to take us both on. My role will be focused on driving the van rather than helping with the brewing.
Naturally, I said 'that sounds brilliant, I accept'
RubyToogood
RubyTwobikes
Congratulations. You just need to focus on undermining the other person at every available opportunity so you can steal their job. It'll all work out.I applied for a job in a local brewery, helping brew the beers (which sounds brilliant). The guy mentioned I may need to drive the van in future (which sounds terrible as I'm not a fan of driving. So much so, I was thinking I might need to turn the job down if I'm offered it.)
Anyway, he just phoned me up to say he's struggling to decide between myself and another candidate, so he's proposing to take us both on. My role will be focused on driving the van rather than helping with the brewing.
Naturally, I said 'that sounds brilliant, I accept'
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
did that last weekend.
it was bloody awful.
like leaving a message about something complicated on an answering machine only more so.
and one of the questions was about a certain bit of organisation's policy which i hadn't found on their website, so had to bullshit my way through it.
somewhat to my surprise, i have been invited to next stage, another bloody video interview but at least with real people at the other end...
Puddy_Tat
naturally fluffy
The first one was some software I'd not met before where it played me a video of someone asking a question, then (after a short count-down) recorded me saying stuff. There was a chance to test my camera set up and record a practice answer first.
The next one will be a live video call - teams or zoom or skype or something (suppose i'd better check i have whatever software it needs)
ETA - glad i did it in plenty of time. installing Teams seems to be bloody complicated...
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