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scottbre

Time to vent...

By scottbre, in The Bonfire

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scottbre    0

scottbre
Sorry folks but I have to vent some frustration. Why does it seem like every job worth having requires 2 or 3 years of apparently already doing that job? How can you get experience in a field if you have to have that same experience to get into the field in the first place? >:(
You spend your whole childhood and school years being told to go to college and get good grades so that you can get a good job. So then you spend an ungodly amount of money putting yourself through college, and guess what, you have to have experience before you can get a job and get some experience. WTF!
It doesn't help that I haven't gotten to jump in like a month because of the stupid weather. I hate winter.
"Can't keep my mind from the circling sky. Tongue-tied & twisted just an earth-bound misfit, I."

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Zennie    0

Zennie
Heh. Welcome to the "real world" they don't teach you (and didn't teach me) about in college.
This is sort of what you get when the economy slows down. Employers start getting really picky because they can be in times like this.
Used to be that anybody with a pulse could get a programming job. I have almost 6 years experience and I'm still looking.
I get questions like "Have you used IBM Visual Age?". Um, no, but it's just an IDE, I'm sure I could pick it up fairly quickly. "Sorry. We really want someone who is good with Visual Age." Stupid stuff like that. Oh well.
"Zero Tolerance: the politically correct term for zero thought, zero common sense."

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scottbre    0

scottbre
Yea, but it is even worse for me, because I have no relevant experience. Sounds like you have been doing programming for awhile, so that can't hurt your odds. I have a friend who graduated same time I did with a Comp. Sci. degree and he is still doing temp work for Sprint (over a year now) and they still won't hire him on, because of their stupid hiring freezes. Pretty stupid because they are paying more for him as a temp than if they just hired him.
"Can't keep my mind from the circling sky. Tongue-tied & twisted just an earth-bound misfit, I."

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jfields    0

jfields
The other option is to think flexibly. You see.... the truth is like a rubber band. Sometimes it need to be stretched a little.
I was in a situation like the one Zennie mentioned where I was asked about a particular piece of software. I'd heard of it, so I said, "Yes, I am familiar with it." That impressed the knucklehead in the personnel department. blah, blah... I was told that I had the job.
I went home, found a copy of the software, crammed for a week before I would start working, then did some manual labor, ie. read the entire software manual. By the time I had my first day on the job, I muddled through it, fudged some, and learned the rest.
The whole, "Need experience to get the job" dilemma just requires some careful creativity. Then you'll eventually get to the point where you really do know the things you said you knew. Then it will be time to push the envelope again and find a more challenging job.
Good luck, man!
Justin
My Homepage

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scottbre    0

scottbre
That methodology probably works a bit better with software. But in business, if they ask you about say credit reconcilliation or some such stuff, then you are expected to know it if you say you do. You can't just go home and learn it in a week. But yea, I even say on my resume that I can learn any piece of software fast, which is true, even if I have never heard of it before.
My dad keeps saying, "Don't worry. You're young, you'll find something eventually." But don't want to get stuck gaining experience in a career that I never really wanted to do in the first place. Oh well, until that day when the right job comes along, I guess I will continue, jobhunting online and posting to dropzone.com as I work as an Accountemps lackey.:)"Can't keep my mind from the circling sky. Tongue-tied & twisted just an earth-bound misfit, I."

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freeflir29    0

freeflir29
Never forget that your resume is all about marketing! You have to sell yourself and make that HR geek think he needs you! Life isn't fair......if you try to play fair....well you know where nice guys finish. I have even been coached by a tech recruiter on the exact words and phrases to use when taklking to a company. :)"I got some beers....Let's Drink em!!!"
Clay

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AggieDave    6

AggieDave
I did that with my resume to get a web programming job I wanted a few summers ago..."sure, I'm an ASP jedi-master and a Flash wonder wiz..."I got the job, learned ASP and SQL during the first bit on the job and got it done and learned Flash the weekend before the job started. :)Once you're gone, you can't come back
When you're out of the blue
And into the black-NeilYoung

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MiataDRM    0

MiataDRM
Could be worse, you could be my friend (in the Marine Corps) who has a Masters in Computer Sci. He was assigned Logistics....and my friend the accounting major is now in the infantry! As for me, I lucked out...can't tell u...I'd have to shoot u! :o) Don't worry about spelling, that's what spell check is for... my 3rd grade English teacher warned me about that...thank god her prophecy became true!

**I'm a Pschydiver!
Majdi

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diverdriver    7

diverdriver
Quote

The other option is to think flexibly. You see.... the truth is like a rubber band. Sometimes it need to be stretched a little.

Yeah, and you can lie about your background, get your dream football coaching job with Notre Dame, get found out, and then be embarassed on national TV. Great idea.
Sorry, I get people who claim all kinds of flying time in their logbook and it takes me two seconds with them to find out they are lieing. But, maybe planes are different than computers.
Chris

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scottbre    0

scottbre
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Could be worse, you could be my friend (in the Marine Corps) who has a Masters in Computer Sci. He was assigned Logistics....and my friend the accounting major is now in the infantry


There is an easy solution for this problem...
... don't enlist. :)"Can't keep my mind from the circling sky. Tongue-tied & twisted just an earth-bound misfit, I."

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Zennie    0

Zennie
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But, maybe planes are different than computers.


Nah it only took me one or two follow-up questions to figure out if they were BS-ing or not. Plus I'm not into lying, so if it's a matter of telling the truth and waiting, or lying and taking a chance, I'll wait. :P
"Zero Tolerance: the politically correct term for zero thought, zero common sense."

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jfields    0

jfields
I don't advocate outright lying on resumes either. It is just a matter of creativity and wording.
For example:

Who would you hire?
1) "Burger-Flipper"
2) "Experienced culinary professional, specializing in high-temperature planar cooking methodologies"
Is Skreamer:
1) "Worthless non-jumping lout" ;)
2) "Experienced skydiver with full mastery of both funnel and collision formation techniques"
I'll try to run the middleground between embarassed on national tv like that football guy and frustrated by underemployment.
In any case, I'm sure it will work out well in the end.
Justin
My Homepage

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scottbre    0

scottbre
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what euphamisms do you have for "falls like a freaking anvil"?


"Rapid altitude ajustment"? :)You can use all the fancy words you want, but if the HR person is any good, they are still going to look at your resume then look at you and say, "So, was it Wendy's or McDonalds?"
"Can't keep my mind from the circling sky. Tongue-tied & twisted just an earth-bound misfit, I."

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jfields    0

jfields
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but if the HR person is any good, they are still going to look at your resume then look at you and say, "So, was it Wendy's or McDonalds?"

In my experience, HR people are pretty much the dregs of the company, unless you are talking about some really progressive rare places.
And if they did ask you, "So, was it Wendy's or McDonalds?", then it would be time to get creative with them. Say, "Burger King, but if I get the job here, I'll still do it your way." Follow up with some intelligent sounding banter. The resume doesn't get you the job. It gets you some time in front of a person to show your stuff. (NOT LITERALLY :D)
Justin
My Homepage
PS
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Hell, welfare will give you that...

Yeah Dave, but it won't give you my paycheck. :)

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scottbre    0

scottbre
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In my experience, HR people are pretty much the dregs of the company


I think this has a lot to do with the company. If you are trying to get in with a mediocre company this may be the case. In my experience, the HR people that I have had to talk to are pretty sharp, or are just following a script which then gets handed off to someone else, after the interview is over, who makes a decision, based on answers given and notes made.
"Can't keep my mind from the circling sky. Tongue-tied & twisted just an earth-bound misfit, I."

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