jobless and frustrated

Parent Cafe
1

<p>My daughter graduated in May with a degree in Communications from a good LAC. She really would like to work in College Admissions, but is also looking at Independent Schools Admissions and Public Relations. While her internships were in PR, her understanding is most PR firms are not hiring entry level positions.</p>

<p>While my daughter is not sending out her resume in mass, she does spend hours a day searching for openings online. I believe she has applied for about 30-35 positions in 4 cities, but has only had one phone interview, and no responses from most of the others. She has found out some of the jobs were filled by looking online, but it seems most do not let you know anything unless they invite you for an interview.</p>

<p>At what point does one just blindly send out resumes? She has a friend that sent out 150 resumes; my daughter only sends cover letters and resumes to places she has an interest in and currently have job openings. I realize college admissions is not a large field for a new graduate, especially one that never worked in college admissions. Once a resume and cover letter are emailed to usually the HR department, what does one do other than sit back and wait? How do your get your application the attention it deserves?</p>

<p>A concern my daughter has is some of the schools might not be interested in her from the start as she is not currently living in the city where she is applying. She is willing to relocate obviously, or she wouldn’t be applying. I don’t believe this would be a problem as they would have no way of knowing what her situation was. </p>

<p>The only application she received feedback on was the one she had an interview with. She got a rejection letter similar to a college rejections letter say with so many application the decision was hard, etc… When there is only one job opening and 250 applicants, I understand getting an interview would be tough. Where does one go from here? I have suggested she apply more broadly, and to apply to anything she could live with for a year or two. I do not know if that is really a good suggestion, but it is all I’ve got!</p>

<p>Currently babysitting is the job for the summer and the money isn’t terrible! I do notice each time she hears another classmate got a job, she get a bit more upset. I am hearing how so and so wasn’t a good student, or didn’t even apply for the job they were handed, or some other rant. She had a major pity party the other night and we ended up yelling at each other. I know this is hard for her to be living at home and not to have a real job yet and I do know she has been trying; I am just not sure there isn’t something different she could do to get herself noticed.</p>

<p>If I thought it would help at all for her to move to one of the cities she was interested in while job hunting, I think we could foot the bill for a few months, it just isn’t something we want to have to spend money on. Then she would have to pick a city; then what happens when a job opens in one of the other cities? I think it is best she stay home and continue to apply to all jobs within reason, waiting to move after a job offer comes.</p>

<p>What can my daughter do differently in her search for a job? As a stay at home mom for the past 25 years, ny job hunting skills are a bit rusty!</p>

2

<p>This might help a little:
Where, Oh Where, Has My Application Gone?
<a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/jobs/19career.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=job%20online%20applications&st=cse[/url]”>http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/jobs/19career.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=job%20online%20applications&st=cse&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Good luck!</p>

3

<p>She needs to be sending out <em>way</em> more resumes. One of my buddies just got laid off (Electrical Engineer on H1-B Visa). He has put out ~100 resumes in the span of 3 weeks. He has also hand delivered a resume to every local company in town that would hire an EE (~20 places). That’s someone with experience.</p>

4

<p>I thought the ratio was suppose to be 1:100, that is for every 100 resumes sent you should expect 1 interview.</p>

5

<p>I know very little about this, but…</p>

<p>If I were your D, I’d contact the college admissions office at the college she attended. First, because I think it’s the most likely to hire her and, second, because I think she should set up an “information interview” with the staff there. I’m just guessing, but it seems to me that there’s probably some degree of interaction between admissions offices at various colleges and the one at her own college may be aware of some possible openings. The staff there might also give her ideas as to the skills she might list on a resume–PowerPoint, Excel spread sheets, whatever. </p>

<p>The other thing she might do is to look through directories of alumni from her own college and see if she can identify grads who are working in areas of interest to her. Write to them, asking for any advice they can give and any assistance they can give in getting a job in that field.Agan, ask if she could meet with them (or talk with them by phone if the distance is too great) to pick their brains about the field. </p>

<p>I have a young neighbor who had a brother who attended a local law school. He went into the admissions dean at the law school and told him he’d just graduated from college and was looking for a job. He’d like to work in admissions. He knew he couldn’t do it at a law school, but would like the dean’s help in breaking into the field. The dean met with him and gave him a lot of ideas. The next thing he knew, he got a call from the undergraduate admissions director. He’d had lunch with the law school admissions officer, had mentioned he was going to hire someone, and the law school person handed him the kid’s resume–which he’d just helped him revise. </p>

<p>Yeah, there was a lot of luck involved. Still, I do think that it helps to network in addition to taking the direct approach only.</p>

6

<p>Totally agree with Jonri, she needs to be using her college’s network to find a job.</p>

7

<p>Jonri’s advice is what I was going to give. One of the selling points for a lot of good LACs is their alumni network–people who will talk to you, give you advice and return your emails just because you graduated from the same school. </p>

<p>Admissions is a tough field this year–many admission offices have downsized, which means that experienced people are out there looking for jobs. Good luck to your D.</p>

8

<p>[Jobs</a> - The Chronicle of Higher Education](<a href=“http://chronicle.com/section/Jobs/61/]Jobs”>http://chronicle.com/section/Jobs/61/)</p>

<p>She should also be looking at the Chronicle of Higher Education’s jobs website to see what’s out there. It’s where the majority of colleges post their openings.</p>

9

<p>The college alumni network is something she has been working with since the first of the year. Her school was able to give her a list of each graduate that worked in the fields she was interested in. She emailed each one earlier in the year and had phone conversations with many and met in person a few others. Only one of them worked at a college with an opening, and that just came available this week; my fingers are crossed for that job!</p>

<p>She has 4 different sites that list college admissions openings, including the one above; she checks those twice a day and usually has her cover letter and resume out within a day or two. </p>

<p>If all else fails, I think she may volunteer at her high school’s college counseling office. Her favorite teacher ever is now one of the college counselors and I can not imagine she would not love to have the free help during the busy admissions time. If nothing else my daughter will gain some useful experience and will meet many college admissions reps. When she needs to reapply next year, she will have a name of someone in the college office.</p>

10

<p>I agree that networking with alumni makes sense. Maybe she could also research some local groups for PR or admissions professionals and attend some networking events.
One thing that is important…Jonri’s post indicated that she should contact and ask to get some information about breaking into the field. I agree that this is the right approach. Your d might be tempted to ask for a job but that’s a good way to scare a contact off. Make it non-threatening. Ask for advice and information…not a job.</p>

<p>This approach takes time so she’ll need to be patient and persistent. Her goal is to get exposure - to meet people who will remember her. </p>

<p>I am NOT a fan of sending out mass resumes. IMO, it’s a waste of time and paper, especially in this type of market. Applying to online jobs is fine but it’s not enough. You really need to go deeper and start building those relationships. Maybe even take on an unpaid role to prove yourself. It’s tough out there…<br>
Good luck.</p>

11

<p>I would also look into doing some substitute teacher position at private schools now. It’s usually around this time they find out some teachers are not coming back. They don’t pay as much as public schools, but they also do not require certifications, it may be a good stepping stone to work in school’s admission office.</p>

<p>I also second (third, or fourth) in using the alumni network. Meet alums as “information gathering,” not as “interview.” I have always tried to meet students from my school if they should contact me. I have even met with students from my daughter’s school. </p>

<p>Most HRs don’t even look at resumes any more. They get more than enough referrals.</p>

12

<p>oldfort-That is my worry, that all her work is a waste of time. She has made all the contacts she can make at this time. If my daughter was sitting at home doing nothing, I would be upset; but she truly is looking at every avenue she can think of to acquire more contacts. Just the other day she was moaning that her father and I don’t know enough people, especially people in the areas she is looking! Me being a stay at home mom and her dad being a doctor in the same solo practice for 25 years, does not allow for the kind of contacts she wants. While she is looking for jobs here at home, she really wants to head to the Northeast.</p>

<p>Teaching is not an area she is interested in, although she has a ton of experience in nannying and day care centers. She loves young children, but really wants to work with adults! I do think her best bet if not hired somewhere soon, is to volunteer at the high school in college admissions. I think it really would help her for the next year, even if it means living at home for another year.</p>

13

<p>Scout - doesn’t your husband come across a lot of different people? Does he chit chat with his patients (some of my doctors do)? He could bring up the fact his daughter is looking for a job. I wouldn’t be surprised if his patients would be happy to help out (good to stay on your doctor’s good side, or maybe advice about medical schools from your husband someday). I got someone an internship with a very distance relative (by marriage) in the legal area. He did it as a favor because he thinks he may ask me for a similar favor for his daughter down the road in my line of work.</p>

14

<p>I’m in the public relations industry, and I can tell you that she would do herself a service by getting comfortable with and building a network on social networking sites like LinkedIn and Twitter. These sites are completely different but both hold value to individuals that are in seeking jobs in communications or recruitment fields. On LinkedIn, she could begin building her network by connecting with previous employers or intern coordinators and professors. Some of her peers might already be on these sites too. </p>

<p>From there, she can also research companies that are hiring, or she can find the names & contact info of hiring managers or managers that are in the admissions departments where she wants to work. She can then proactively message these people to introduce herself and let them know that she’s submitted a resume and is interested in working there. Even if they don’t have openings, this is not a fruitless effort; she is networking and getting her name out there. Using Twitter, she can connect with these individuals and share her knowledge and expertise and begin to build her reputation in the industry.</p>

<p>Lastly, I’d encourage her to attend networking events, TweetUps ([What</a> Is A Tweetup?](<a href=“Welcome socialhat.com - BlueHost.com”>Welcome socialhat.com - BlueHost.com)), and other industry-related invents in the cities where she wants to work. Again, networking takes time and it’s sometimes awkward to throw yourself into a room with people you don’t know, but by attending more and more of these events, you get to know the attendees and see some of the same people and build relationships with them. By spreading the word that she’s seeking employment, she’s extending the likelihood that someone knows of an opening - VERY often, job opportunities are not posted online. </p>

<p>My most current job was NEVER posted on a job site, but because I’ve kept in close touch with my network via in-person events and Facebook/Twitter, someone told me about it and I was hired 2 months later. </p>

<p>Especially in this economy, it’s important that she not let the skills & knowledge go stale. Babysitting is a great way to keep her busy and earn some money, but she should also think about volunteering for a company or school where she can do some form of admissions or communications work. Or, she could look into doing another internship; not all companies require you to be an undergrad or earn credits. </p>

<p>Best of luck!</p>

15

<p>My bf graduated from one of the best communication schools in the country in TFR and english. Only job he could get is one at the local electronic store. Had a few interviews, but always gets the same answer of “we want experience.”</p>

<p>He’ll be going back to school after this year for his teaching degree while trying to freelance this year and get on staff at any paper.</p>

<p>I feel bad that after 4 years at a good school he can only get a slightly above minimum wage job. :(</p>

<p>No suggestions here though, just sympathy.</p>

16

<p>One more idea. DEFINITELY volunteer to be an alumni interviewer for her college. This too can be a way to meet the admissions staff and get to know them. I think when a job opens up in any non-profit field, people like to give it to someone who volunteered first.</p>

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<p>Maybe even setting up her own part time business as well - Career / College Advisor.</p>

18

<p>Scout, I like the idea of her volunteering to help at her high school’s college counseling office. She should try to be helpful and friendly, make a good impression on every college admissions person who comes through, and get their business card. Then follow up with an e-mail and resume to see if their college (or anyone they know at other colleges) is hiring. I am an independent consultant, and can vouch for the fact that getting a job through someone you know is by far the most effective method vs. flooding the market with resumes.</p>

19

<p>With due respect, and understanding the difficulty of this situation on a variety of levels, I would suggest that she try and find a 9-5 type job–ANY 9-5 type job–while she continues to look as hard as she can in her chosen field (which I would guess is probably pretty crowded). Even leaving self-esteem issues aside, this would at least demonstrate to employers that she is willing to do whatever it takes in a tough environment.</p>

20

<p>I’m not a big fan of the shotgun the resumes out there approach nor the only apply to advertised openings approach. </p>

<p>The shotgun resume approach relies way too much on luck and there are many studies out there which show that most job openings are never advertised.</p>

<p>Instead what I would suggest is really focusing on informational interviews. Work sites like Linked in to meet people one or two steps beyond the person that she knows (e.g. she knows Mary who can introduce her to Bill who knows Mike who is the person she wants to meet). </p>

<p>Don’t go to those sessions looking for a job - rather go looking for information on how Mike’s job actually works, how he broke into the field, etc. Build that first relationship and then Mike may chose to help her further. It is a slow process - and involves buying lots of cups of coffee (I always suggest meeting for coffee before work) - but it will help her to get established in the field.</p>

<p>I love the two ideas above and would suggest combining them. She should offer her services as a college admissions advisor to the public at large - offer to coach on essays etc. - while at the same time finding a school or schools where she can offer her services as a volunteer. The idea is to amass experience which will be useful in building her resume.</p>