p14

Machinist needs a job.

4/19/2009 9:44:40 PM

If a job ad says that it requires 3-5 years of experience, I would still apply for if I were entry-level. This assumes that you have some impressive academic credentials and maybe some intern/coop experience you would put on a resume/cover letter.

If you haven't learned already, job ads list the ideal requirements, but employers are definitely willing to settle for less.

I would also attach cover letters that look tailored to the job. The goal of the letter should be to mitigate your lack of experience, show how you are exceptional (awards, projects), show why you are passionate about the work, why you can learn quickly, show how you see yourself helping the business, show that you are hard working, and show that you can get along with people and aren't some dysfunctional asshole.

Almost no one writes cover letters, so if you do, you will stand out.

You want the hiring person to feel comfortable about hiring you -- they don't like looking at resumes and doing interviews as much as you don't like sending resumes or performing interviews. But most of all, they don't want to screw up and hire the wrong person.

90% of resumes are worthless and don't show how one candidate stands out from another. The worst are ones that simple don't tell you any information that isn't on a transcript or basic bio.

If you are having a tough time, I suggest you evaluate whether what you are doing makes you stand out in any way. You might be in the 90% who is completely clueless about looking for jobs.


[Edited on April 19, 2009 at 10:38 PM. Reason : .]

4/19/2009 10:35:51 PM

this may be of interest to some - 28 companies that are hiring:

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2009/fortune/0904/gallery.F500_hiring.fortune/index.html?cnn=yes

it's a slide show but hopefully it'll work

[Edited on April 22, 2009 at 12:37 PM. Reason : ]

4/22/2009 12:37:40 PM

Got an offer today, but the starting salary is a 55% paycut and I just don't think I can do that. I also had a meeting with a company concerning contract roles. They love my resume and don't think there would be any problem putting me in with the companies that they work with since I've already done consulting work with them previously.

4/22/2009 4:00:30 PM

^ Why not just take it so you have a job and just keep looking in the mean time?
Some income > no income.

4/22/2009 5:29:51 PM

^^you sorry bastard...take the job and quit mooching off taxpayers.

4/22/2009 5:36:11 PM

once again, people, Unemployment Insurance is not mooching off the tax payers. It's insurance that companies pay into (most likely in the form of decreased overall compensation for the employees), and when you lose your job, you get it paid out to you. Not taking Unemployment would be like paying Home Insurance for 5 years, then when your house burns down, just shrugging and telling All State, "nah, just keep the money. i'll rebuild the house myself. I wouldn't want to put you out or mooch off of your other premium payers"

4/22/2009 5:40:29 PM

^^ get that out of here man. there are plenty of threads to troll in chit chat.

^ thank you for your calm head. my response was not going to be so nice.

4/22/2009 5:51:56 PM

A certain wolfwebber on here linked me to an entry level structural engineering job posting here in Cary. I contacted the recruiter and was the lead guy he sent in to the company to be considered for the position. The company is figuring out how many people they can hire at one time before moving ahead with interviews, but I think I may be onto something awesome here.

It was some good news for a change. <3

4/22/2009 7:22:26 PM

^^ Sir, I was not trolling. I was actually offering pretty good advice, and I still stand by it.

Unemployment only lasts for so long. Take the job and keep searching. Unless it required a drastic/sudden change in your current living/life situation, I can't understand why this isn't a no-brainer (especially in these times when competition is high).

Quote :

"thank you for your calm head. my response was not going to be so nice"

Why are you taking things so personal that YOU can't reply with a calm head and play nice, after all it isn't isn't chit chat...

^ Congrats and good luck


[Edited on April 22, 2009 at 8:31 PM. Reason : .]

4/22/2009 8:28:09 PM

^ Thanks, and INDEED I would take most any job right now as long as it paid enough to cover the bills and had some benefits (health insurance plan I pay for keeps pissing me off every time I have to use it).

I did have an offer on the table in February that I turned down, but at the time I was about to lose my shit and drive off a bridge so I figured I needed a month off to clear my head (they wanted me to start absolutely immediately).

[Edited on April 22, 2009 at 8:36 PM. Reason : Oh yeah, did you already counter their offer which was half your current pay?]

4/22/2009 8:35:51 PM

^^first of all, i wasn't talking to you. i knew you weren't trolling.

Quote :

"Unemployment only lasts for so long. Take the job and keep searching. Unless it required a drastic/sudden change in your current living/life situation, I can't understand why this isn't a no-brainer (especially in these times when competition is high)."

it is true that unemployment only lasts several months. while i do not necessarily advocate passing on jobs in this economic climate, i might point you to this: Unless it required a drastic/sudden change in your current living/life situation. a 55% pay decrease for me would be making less than unemployment is willing to pay and would not in any way shape or form allow me to pay my mortgage and other bills. so this would apply. you don't know his situation.

also, i noticed the post (6^) long before i replied. i kept my cool by not posting until someone else did. thanks for your input.


[Edited on April 22, 2009 at 8:42 PM. Reason : k]

4/22/2009 8:36:34 PM

Quote :

"once again, people, Unemployment Insurance is not mooching off the tax payers. It's insurance that companies pay into (most likely in the form of decreased overall compensation for the employees), and when you lose your job, you get it paid out to you. Not taking Unemployment would be like paying Home Insurance for 5 years, then when your house burns down, just shrugging and telling All State, "nah, just keep the money. i'll rebuild the house myself. I wouldn't want to put you out or mooch off of your other premium payers""

Exactly.

For the record, I have receive $0 of unemployment money so far, so any of you telling me to quit being a mooch can add that to your thought process. I had a very good job and I have been comfortably living off of my PTO and Severance payouts since I got laid off in February.

At some point you shift from job focus to career focus. I'm not going to take a job that would divert me from my career and/or salary track if it's not the right fit, even in these times. Contract roles will allow me to do the same work I was doing and possibly get paid more due to overtime. It will also put me in the same companies I consulted with previously and set me up for future opportunities with those companies, as well as allow me to flexible and search for other FT positions.

Taking a FT job and then jumping ship in two months time is not a great way to keep your network intact.

4/23/2009 8:57:06 AM

you are absolutely correct.

that said, I am back to work next week

4/23/2009 9:18:36 AM

My layoff got pushed back until may 8.

4/23/2009 9:33:39 AM

^^Congrats Travis. You were only unemployed for about three weeks, right?

4/23/2009 9:55:45 AM

yeah about 3 weeks. my network got me my new job....I was lucky.

4/23/2009 12:21:10 PM

Aha, a recruiter I've been in touch with just asked me if I like the cold and would like a transit/municipal job. It's for a fantastic company, but HMMM about moving near minneapolis.

4/23/2009 12:27:16 PM

^ do it man.

4/23/2009 12:42:59 PM

I'd be submitting my resume to the position like everybody else, but I have it on record that I did a fantastic first interview for another job so they're trying to get me to come back.

See I've got two local opportunities that would be just as good that I hear back from in 3-4 weeks, so I'm hoping those close first and I can then not worry about whether or not I'd need to move. That is, if I get a local job I can forget about everything else, but if not I can go ahead with every other opportunity I have on the table.

[Edited on April 23, 2009 at 1:00 PM. Reason : plus, it's REALLY fucking cold up there]

4/23/2009 1:00:10 PM

Congrats, DaBird! 3 weeks is pretty darn good.

^Glad things are looking up for you too. Best of luck.

4/23/2009 1:18:41 PM

New job starts Monday

SUCK MY DICK ECONOMY

4/23/2009 1:51:11 PM

*raises hand*

Laid off from IBM

4/23/2009 4:03:04 PM

Laid off from a law firm, wrapping up week 3 of unemployment and I'm applying for anything and eveything. Nothing yet and it SUCKS.

4/23/2009 11:47:40 PM

Anyone else going to this job fair tomorrow? http://www.trianglehope.com/
They're giving away groceries also, holler.

4/25/2009 12:06:16 AM

I'm not a fan of going to job fairs. I like checking to see what companies are there and checking out their job postings. The ones who care always had a "so and so job fair" posting for you to send your resume to.

I suppose it could be worth it for the free groceries.

4/25/2009 11:04:49 AM

^ It was definitely not worth it for the job fair part . It was a tiny tent with Manpower, ESC, and TWC.

I did get some groceries (and my blood pressure taken), but had to go through some prayer tent before I got the groceries. It's funny, I was the only chump there with any resumes at all.

4/25/2009 12:23:41 PM

Your time might be better spent organizing coupons for the next HT triples.

4/25/2009 2:06:25 PM

Snap, thanks for letting me know. Are they doing them once a month now?

4/26/2009 1:12:57 AM

Well, I finally got a call from that employer I was 50/50 about landing a position with. As I thought, they decided to land somebody with experience while the economy was down. I mean, shoot, they listed the job 3 times after telling me that they might or might not hire me. Not the best news, but I've still got one other local offer.

I want to go apply to a bunch of other jobs but I am so very sick of doing this over and over again right now. If worse comes to worse, I've got a job that will pay 77% of my expenses starting in the 3rd week of June, if I want it. It could cover 100% of my expenses if I get some help from my parents, but I was trying not to mooch off of them ever again.

Oh well, how's everybody else doing. Somebody post some good news.

5/1/2009 11:30:35 PM

i had an interview yesterday that went pretty well and a former coworker and my sister-in-law know people who work there and were able to pass on their recommendation. i really like the company too. i heard through the grapevine today that the revenue they were expecting in order to be able to hire somebody didn't come through, so at this point i am not expecting good news, but i haven't heard from them directly yet, and i sent a thank you email anyways so i'm hoping they like me enough to hire me anyways.

but i got a different interview on monday and a recruiter called me about another position today so that's something

5/1/2009 11:34:25 PM

i prolly want qtnmfred to get a job the most out of anyone on tww

5/2/2009 12:11:05 AM

i heard from a past colleague yesterday about a possible 2 month contract job. he's working for a company now that just acquired a bunch of new assets. they need a couple more people to come read/sort/edit technical documents. it's not the most glamorous job in the world, and not really want i want to be doing all day, but i'd be employed and getting money/experience for 2 months. i sent him my resume for him to forward up to his supervisor so hopefully i'll be hearing something positive soon.

5/2/2009 12:41:24 AM

had been out since end of February, and finally going back next week.

from what I have seen, alot of the places that I applied to left the ads up for about a month before going in and deciding who to call for an interview.

after all the places that I applied to, I ended up being contacted from having my resume uploaded on either monster or careerbuilder (the interviewer didnt say which, just that he found it online). even if you dont use them to apply for the jobs (i was going directly to company career sections on the websites), at least upload a resume on to those sites, and if you are qualified, you should have someone get in touch with you.

job right out of school I got the same way, they contacted me because of my resume that I had uploaded.

I am a civil / construction major, so hopefully that sector is going to start to pick back up and the rest of the civils will get work soon

5/2/2009 1:06:55 AM

I don't know if any of yall are interested or qualified, but the one area that Microsoft is still hiring like crazy is Game Studios.

Just checked and there's 100+ open positions for developers in Xbox/Windows Live/Game Studios groups, plus more for researchers and program managers. They are all for Redmond, WA but a job's a job Just thought I'd throw that out, in case it can help anyone out

5/2/2009 1:41:28 AM

^ i interviewed for a MS position in charlotte last week. except it was a SQL support role involving 10 year old technologies that i haven't used and had no interest in anyways. not to mention the pay was almost half what i was making before. i told the recruiter i wanted to pass on it, but she asked me to do a phone interview anyways. which i did, figured it couldn't hurt. haven't heard anything since. not in a position right now to move to WA otherwise that'd sound pretty good

had an interview this morning that went well. got a round 2 on wednesday to meet the other developers. as long as that goes well i think they are gonna make me an offer. and i just got a call from a recruiter for another interview wednesday too. so the interviews are starting to pick up so i'm feeling like hopefully i'll be employed again soon

5/4/2009 2:07:59 PM

congrats! still looking, still feeling optimistic.

5/4/2009 2:13:28 PM

Getting ready to get laid off Friday..... Cant really complain though, the face of the company is starting to turn real ugly.

Last week there was a meeting for all the people they are not laying off, the VP announced that everyones new priorities should be in this exact order:

1 work
2 Family
3 God

Now I dont bring religion into the workplace but I would be damned if anyone is gonna tell me to put my family second to any job.

5/4/2009 7:14:55 PM

wow, that was an entirely inappropriate thing to say, no matter what order those three things are in.

was that a big company? small?

5/4/2009 8:15:01 PM

I would say med to large company.

5/4/2009 9:28:17 PM

Accepted offer today and start Thursday!!!

All I can say is to keep putting your info out everywhere, Network, call old bosses and people you worked with, and do it everyday. It is very easy to get frustrated but that isn't going to help you find a job. Another thing is don't be greedy right now. Employers are getting steak for the price of hamburger and that is the reality of the situtation now. I could have fucked around for 4 thousand more probably but just isn't worth the chance to loose the job for getting greedy.

Good luck to the others out there and in the Greensboro area.

5/5/2009 10:15:19 AM

^ awesome! Where did you end up getting in?

5/5/2009 11:01:17 AM

Just promoted today

5/5/2009 11:07:49 AM

^ i have to wonder why you're posting in here then.

^^^ congrats!

5/5/2009 11:09:21 AM

Probably because he was promoted to "bitch made faggot" and felt like this was a good thread to let everyone know

5/5/2009 1:06:08 PM

Layoffs just swept through my corporate park today, people were carrying boxes to their cars around lunchtime. It's bleak out there.

5/5/2009 1:38:24 PM

I'll post some good news in here. Though the shake-up of the DoD delayed this offer, it looks like they're hiring for the shipyard again proper.

Just got an offer to enter the Navy Career Intern Program as a Nuclear Engineer. It's a six month training/intern program that then turns into a proper engineering position. After a two year probationary period it can be turned into what will more or less be a permanent job as long as I don't suck at my job.

Also, I know I'm a civil/structural engineer, but this Nuke Engineering position would have me designing steel and stuff at the shipyard. It's at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard (on the Portsmouth, Va side of the hampton roads area).

Was not expecting to receive this news this morning! This is awesome!

5/5/2009 2:21:29 PM

gs-05/07s don't make dick, have you looked at northrop too?

[Edited on May 5, 2009 at 2:33 PM. Reason : newport news]

5/5/2009 2:32:33 PM

Uh, job starts at the full performance of GS7. That's a lot for people in my field. A lot.

[Edited on May 5, 2009 at 2:35 PM. Reason : There's a signing bonus as well. It does pay well, trust me, lol.]

I do have contacts at northrop I could work, but I noticed they didn't have any listed positions. I visited the shipyard with my department a little while back, it was cool.

[Edited on May 5, 2009 at 2:36 PM. Reason : ]

5/5/2009 2:35:12 PM

still unemployed. I'm waiting to hear back about a second interview at this job. They told me in an email Monday that it could be a few more weeks. I've got a phone interview in about 2 hours for a shitty temp job that I don't even want.

5/5/2009 2:39:30 PM