I have been trying to find an entry-level position for a year with no success. I have tried everything that I can think of:
-Use job boards such as LinkedIn, Indeed, SimpleyHired, WeWorkRemotely, FlexJobs, and other job boards.
-Reach out to my network on LinkedIn asking for assistance.
-Reached out to my career center at my university (they seemed more interested in working with current students).
-Worked with recruiting agencies (had some success, was able to get some interviews, but haven’t contacted me about any recent openings).
-Tried reaching out to my local community and see if they are hiring or looking for part-time workers (they either told me to apply online or they didn’t have anything at this time).
-Taken some online courses to beef up my resume
I have a BA in English and I knew it was already going to be difficult to find something, but I never thought it was going to take this long. I don’t know what to do at this point. I feel I tried everything and I have gotten nowhere. If anyone can provide me some advice, that would be greatly appreciated!
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what is you major?
Based on the comments you seem to be a creative type with some coding experience. I say you should expand your boundaries. Some areas like some administration, administrative assistance, marketing, possibly IT if you wanna go in to tech.
I do have some experience working in IT as I did customer support there for a bit, but finding it difficult to jump back in there. What other career choices are in IT that you would recommend?
Unfortunately, in this economy, young graduate needing one year to find a job isn’t uncommon.
As usual,
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how easily can you move, it’s easier as a 20 year old kid than as a middle aged parent with an employed spouse in a niche sector
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Lookat various temporar/consulting agencies. It pays badly, isn’t a permanent position but any experience is better than no experience
-what about further training? A non professional bachelor, is usually too theoretical for employer, and when they want theoretical profile they are people with master degree
-What about government job, may be not a dream job, but with just a bachelor you’re eligible to middle management position, not fun to manage a team of civil servant in charges of dealing with whatever paperwork, but again, it’s a job.
- don’t forget to join an union supporting the Universal basic income and affordable housing so you can do something to improve our situation
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Learn how to weld
You mention that you have a BA without providing further details as if a BA automatically means your degree is unemployable.
What was your major?
Also what type of jobs are you applying for?
I have a BA in English. As for the jobs that I am applying for, mainly writing & editing jobs, customer support/service, tutoring, and really anything else that I can qualify for.
Besides continuing to do what you are already doing, try looking at the career sections of local businesses and applying directly to them/through their career pages. I was in a similar situation recently and noticed a lot of companies were apparently hiring, but didn’t have listings on job sites.
Good news, you’re not alone! I have a terminal degree and have been unemployed for even longer. It’s rough out there. You are doing literally everything I’ve been told across several years. Do NOT go back for a MA and put yourself in debt just to get the letters — this is not a good time for higher education.
Direct apply is the best advice I can give. If you find a listing on a job board, go to the company itself for the application. Everyone has a different opinion on how to do a résumé and cover letter, and I think the more input you can get the better. Have some more basic text ones you can feed into the applicant tracking systems (the newfangled trendy ones with your picture and skill percentages will get bounced.) Also see if there’s a local “young professionals” group through your chamber of commerce for more networking.
I really do wish you the best. It sounds like you already have a lot of good stuff going on.
Oh that’s rough. I’m sorry that after doing all the same things that I have done, you still aren’t able to get employment. It’s really sad that we do everything that we are told to do and it’s still not enough! Yeah, some people keep telling me to go back and get my masters and no, I’m not going further in debt and find myself in the same scenario. As you said, it’s just not a good time to do that. I’ll take a look and see if there’s a young professionals networking in my area. I kind of just been looking at general networking events. Thank you and I wish you the best of luck as well!
Network in person as much as possible. Not just traditional networking events, but if you can do things around your hobbies and interests, but mention to folks what your career / job targets are that’s a way to find “ins.”
I got a great job in tech strategy because of a public speaking course. I made sure my speech topics leaned towards my career interests and chatted with a fellow student who was an exec assistant which led to the job.
I know it can feel like a crap shoot, but if you speak up around people who feel connected to you, it’s likely at least some of them will want to help.
Yeah, I find professional networking events and conferences and whatnot to be real crapfests. Like I almost never see anybody get hired it’s kinda like public marketing for big companies and they just give you the link to their job applicant page.
My experience has been different, but the professional events I go to are like “Brews and Biotech,” more interest-based, than slick corporate focused. I agree that “job fair” and “recruiting” events are generally not worth it.
Yeah, I’ve learned that job fairs and recruiting events are a waste. They literally tell you to apply online. I think they just go to those events to just look important and that they are hiring. I wish I could find more laid back professional networking events in my area. I think I would have much more success.
This is the way. Have a vibrant, diverse social life where you contribute to group efforts and show off the skills you have. Introduce yourself to everyone with a smile. Be nice to old people and make friends with them - they are the ones who know about jobs that will never be posted to job boards.
How does someone have a vibrant diverse social life with no money?
Ask friends and family to look over your cv. There might be something off about it that you haven’t noticed.
Your degree isn’t my domain but it would help to know what jobs you are applying to. What’s your applying rate? I aim for 15 applications per day and usually get a job within a week or so. Not every sector has that many openings however.
I’ve had my resume looked over dozen of times, but I guess it can’t hurt to look it over one more time. I started applying for maybe 10 jobs a day mainly in mainly writing & editing jobs, customer support/service, and tutoring. Now, because I’ve been doing this so long and haven’t been getting results, I kind of apply for jobs that I can just qualify for, but not so consistent. I kind of got discouraged with applying for jobs.
Definitely this. There are so many minor things regarding formatting or how something you wrote may sound off to someone else that you generally won’t know or notice wirhout an outside perspective
Bachelors of Arts degree
theres a reason this is colloquially referred to as toilet paper
do you have any real world skills? i know many people in professional careers that do not match their degrees, but they had to start at the literal bottom (cleaning,answering phones, etc) making minimum wage until they proved they were more competent than the people who generally take those jobs.
No one thinks like this or uses this term.
you should visit the Southern U.S., lol
I’m here dawg. No one thinks like this.
huh, I would guess that the majority of people where I live in the South think this way. It’s repeated dogma from teachers, parents, etc. - there are literally billboards along the roadways talking about how useless university degrees are and advertising for trade schools and certificate programs.
Maybe different state and different environment? I have encountered people like this but rarely. I feel they’re more a loud minority. There are plenty of dumb billboards the more south you go on the interstate but people paying for billboards doesn’t equal majority opinion.
Are you saying billboards directly saying university is pointless or just advertising trade school?
One billboard said:
Avoid student debt, learn a trade.
or something like that. It jives with the general opinion. I do live in a very conservative place, so maybe like you’re saying it’s a matter of where in the South you are. I’m sure in a major city like Atlanta that’s not a common attitude, for example.
no thanks
those instincts will keep you alive
I’m not afraid to die.
But that kind of humidity… would make me want to.
I have over five years of writing and editing experience and three years of customer service experience. I have taken several AI courses, and I am currently taking some coding courses, mainly because I’m interested in coding, but it also looks good on a resume.
Ohhh. As someone who also went through an editing program recently, yeah, I think AI has taken a lot of those jobs. Are you a member of any editing guilds like the EFA (if in the US)? They seem to have more one-off jobs for freelancers, but there was a regional guild I was part of that posted more corporate editing jobs, which maybe sounds more like what you’re looking for. But right after AI got big it quickly became apparent that even the experienced freelancers were having a hard time getting steady work. I wish you luck. At least you have a good chunk of experience. I gave up because I didn’t have any.
I didn’t know about editing guilds. I’ll take a look at the EFA and other similar guilds and see what I can find. Even if I can’t find steady work, from what I understand, at least I connect with other editors. Thank you for sharing that information!
What is your BA in?
Just want to say that your degree is not toilet paper nor do you lack real world skills.
You have real skills and your degree reflects that. What is the issue is the system under which we exist not valuing certain skills and certain people. As this system, especially in the US, crumbles further everyone will struggle more and more to find work that pays decently, including those with the currently ‘valuable’ degrees.
I don’t have much advice for you other than what you’ve already done, except maybe lean on your family if you have one or can, but I hope you find a job soon, Comrade.
Thank you!! I have a degree in English and yeah, even though it’s a hard degree to market in this job environment (especially this one that is collapsing), I am proud of it. It improved my writing and editing, research, and critical thinking skills. It’s sad how these are skills that employers say they are looking for yet have zero respect for the liberal arts.
I second this. I can only assume that our esteemed comrade doesn’t know what a BA is but saw the word ‘Arts’ and decided to have a snipe. As if having a BSc is somehow a guarantee of employment lol.
If you’re looking to make ends meet while you look for something better, have you tried employment agencies. I know you mentioned recruitment agencies, but I graduated just after the 2008 crash, and bottom level admin work though agencies was all that was really open to me. Then I fled the country and became a TEFL teacher 🤷
I can take a look at employment agencies and see what they can offer. I was looking into a TEFL certificate as that can allow you to work abroad and make some money, but wasn’t sure about that path. I can certainly look at it again. What would you list as the pros/cons of being a TEFL teacher?
What utter bull 🙄
Where about do you live?
I just got a new full time job as a canvasser in california almost immediately after signing up for indeed. Granted I have a pretty solid resume, but I was fired from my last two jobs and they swooped me up quick full time with benefits and bonuses.
You made the doctors without borders canvasser post I saw yesterday?
yeah that was me
Travel. When they ask about the gap, say you needed some time off.
Just lie. I’ve heard many people having luck with simply lying on their CV.
Expand your search to other counties if you’re willing to move.
He’s unemployed. How is he supposed to travel?
It’s actually easier when you don’t have to plan your travel around your work schedule.
yeah, but without money, where are you travelling?
OP never said anything about being light on money.
If they don’t have a job then how are they going to have money?
You don’t really comprehend money do you?
Well how can I explain travel? I looked for a job for 2 years after university until I gave up and just left.
