Current Events > The job hunting process has become laughably ridiculous

(+) Yeah! (+)

Once you apply for a job you NEED to call or visit them in person saying you applied and are really interested in the job. That makes you stand out from the dozens to thousands of applicants who are fighting for the same job.

BigB0ss13 posted...

Once you apply for a job you NEED to call or visit them in person saying you applied and are really interested in the job. That makes you stand out from the dozens to thousands of applicants who are fighting for the same job.

Many places do not like when you do this though.

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This is something that hasn't been mentioned:

The HR/corporate guys are playing games. They always come up with new labels and excuses to devaluate and shame applicants so they can tell them they are shit and deserve shit.

If you stay too long in a job? It's bad.
But if you don't stay long enough in jobs then they label you a "job hopper" and then that's bad. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Apparently you're supposed to stay a medium length of time in a job, and who knows what that length is.

If you're not qualified for the position? It's bad.
But if you're too qualified, then you're "over-qualified", and that's bad too! Stupid you, why did you get that masters'/phd? ;).
But if you somehow manage to nail that "medium amount of education and qualifications", then they will ask you about experience. Remember! You gotta have 5 years of experience in this application that has only been around for 3 years! :P

Do you remember the microsoft guy (not gates, the newer CEO) who gave a speech about raises and promotions? Never ask for one! Build good karma (what is this, fucking reddit?) and the money will come to you. Asking for them just sets back the process!! D: . Just don't get mad and leave when you haven't gotten the promotion or raise after 2 years and the boss' useless son got two already, because then you'd be job hopping ;)

Smashingpmkns posted...

Don't forget the Frankenstein'd Myers Briggs test every job requires applicants to take now even though it's proven to be racist/sexist/ableist etc.

This the gender, ethnicity bs questions?

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I shouldnt have read through this topic. Its giving mad anxiety.

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Finding my first job after college was like the most soul crushing experience I've ever had in my life. Started having anxiety levels so bad that I couldn't fall asleep.

I eventually got a job after like 1000+ applications.

It was pretty low pay but they basically spent the first few months training me in data science and I have since moved up to a much better position.

It wasn't a job I found on any recruiting site, I straight up emailed some random researcher/professor and told him I was interested in his work and sent him my resume.

Edit: Also, I recommend everyone just completely ignore the "1-3 years experience" part on most job applications. Experience doesn't matter for entry level stuff and if you have some of the relevant coursework you will at the very least get interviews.

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spikethedevil posted...

This the gender, ethnicity bs questions?

Nah, I think they're like those personality questions where you have to choose where on a scale you fall between two extremes.

Like "I prefer to follow company policy" vs "I prefer to look for new and creative solutions"

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Can't forget about the references, too. Which is 99% of the time a list of people the candidate cherrypicked to give them a favorable reference. That or it's their friend/family member pretending to be a manager.

What's even the point of asking lmao

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So glad I dont have to do that shit anymore. It was the worst

A good portion of jobs you find online arent actually open and the company uses it to build a resume database or for analytics.

Others they will fill with an internal candidate and know it.

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Look, lower skill jobs will have tons of applicants. Companies can be as picky as they want with those. Its simple supply and demand. Higher skill jobs mean lower supply and they are more flexible.

Ive worked on new grad roles that will get hundreds of applicants in a matter of days. We physically cant go through them all. And most of the resumes look similar enough. We cant interview everyone. So we decide on the filter criteria. For software engineer jobs, we decided to only look at those with school projects, internships and a GitHub account. As well as whatever particular coding language that team used. Its not because we think all the others are shit, we just need to filter them down somehow.

Cleo_II posted...

Look, lower skill jobs will have tons of applicants. Companies can be as picky as they want with those. Its simple supply and demand. Higher skill jobs mean lower supply and they are more flexible.

Ive worked on new grad roles that will get hundreds of applicants in a matter of days. We physically cant go through them all. And most of the resumes look similar enough. We cant interview everyone. So we decide on the filter criteria. For software engineer jobs, we decided to only look at those with school projects, internships and a GitHub account. As well as whatever particular coding language that team used. Its not because we think all the others are shit, we just need to filter them down somehow.

you're a good person. :)

It's not what you know, it's who you know.

BigB0ss13 posted...

Once you apply for a job you NEED to call or visit them in person saying you applied and are really interested in the job. That makes you stand out from the dozens to thousands of applicants who are fighting for the same job.

Literally trash advice that will get your resume tossed out and further applications blacklisted. I never got a job where I followed this advice. Never. It's not the 50s anymore and you can't just "hit the pavement."

_Rinku_ posted...

Literally trash advice that will get your resume tossed out and further applications blacklisted. I never got a job where I followed this advice. Never. It's not the 50s anymore and you can't just "hit the pavement."

This "trash" advice of mine got me two great jobs in with thousands of people applying. I guess people like OP just gotta keep on sending 10,000 more resumes without saying anything before settling at McDonald's then.

I dont even get much in terms of rejections. I get no contact and just assume its a lost cause. I actually recently applied for a job and got an interview, but it turned out the job posting was mistaken and the job was in a completely different state. Its so frustrating, its like Im being mocked by the job gods.

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BigB0ss13 posted...

This "trash" advice of mine got me two great jobs in with thousands of people applying. I guess people like OP just gotta keep on sending 10,000 more resumes without saying anything before settling at McDonald's then.

Good for you.

Most places, you can't even get ahold of anybody involved with the hiring process unless it's a small office environment or it's retail/fast food.

Even if you do, there's a 50/50 shot you'll just annoy the recruiter so you're better off not bothering.

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Someone showed up to our office with cupcakes and their resume. We ate the cupcakes and tossed their resume lol

They just werent a fit for anything. I dont recommend just showing up at places unless its in retail or something.

Cleo_II posted...

Someone showed up to our office with cupcakes and their resume. We ate the cupcakes and tossed their resume lol

They just werent a fit for anything. I dont recommend just showing up at places unless its in retail or something.

What if the cupcakes were laced with something?

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Don't forget the job ad having a few paragraphs of duties, some of which sound above the position they're hiring for and are made to sound complicated. Or finally getting the interview and finding they aren't interested in your technical skills, but are gauging your social ones. Bonus points if you catch them hiring for the same position again and they don't even want to consider you.

Cleo_II posted...

Look, lower skill jobs will have tons of applicants. Companies can be as picky as they want with those. Its simple supply and demand. Higher skill jobs mean lower supply and they are more flexible.

Ive worked on new grad roles that will get hundreds of applicants in a matter of days. We physically cant go through them all. And most of the resumes look similar enough. We cant interview everyone. So we decide on the filter criteria. For software engineer jobs, we decided to only look at those with school projects, internships and a GitHub account. As well as whatever particular coding language that team used. Its not because we think all the others are shit, we just need to filter them down somehow.

At the same time, no one likes to pay for people to not work and be on unemployment, so the combination extreme ninja warrior obstacle course and minefield just seems to keep people in that system because there's little to no way to get your foot in the door.

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At least in my industry (which is career based and involves 6 figure salaries), everything now is either based on recommendations from known quantities in the industry or recruiterswho take a bite out of a qualified persons paycheck. Regular resume hunting = good luck.

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1337toothbrush posted...

What if the cupcakes were laced with something?

I waited for someone else to eat them before I did lol

Thaumaturge posted...

Has anybody ever said this before? I never have, but I'm thinking of doing it because I am officially out of fucks to give.

About 2 years ago, I was too honest in my applications to places like Walgreens and Kohl's, basically answering that I wasn't going to put up with customer's obvious bullshit. Big surprise, but I was quickly informed that they would be passing on my application.

Now, I get like 2 e-mails a week from them, saying they have reviewed my applications and would like to set up an interview if I am still interested. I guess they were somewhat truthful when they promised to keep my information on file is anything opens up in the future.

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Entry level
10 years of experience
Internship level pay

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Flamer_Blue posted...

Entry level
10 years of experience
Internship level pay

Duties seem to involve low level management.

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RchHomieQuanChi posted...

Good for you.

Most places, you can't even get ahold of anybody involved with the hiring process unless it's a small office environment or it's retail/fast food.

Even if you do, there's a 50/50 shot you'll just annoy the recruiter so you're better off not bothering.

Fuck what they might feel. If the recruiters have a issue with aspiring employers calling in directly then they should have said so in their ad. Things like emailing, calling or answering questionnaires properly can put you ahead of the masses.

On another note hidden salerys can be annoying but oftentimes the average income for (X job/position) for most companys arent hard to find. Yes researching it can get repetitive and annoying but job searching is essentially a full time job and you get out of it what you put in.

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RchHomieQuanChi posted...

Good for you.

Most places, you can't even get ahold of anybody involved with the hiring process unless it's a small office environment or it's retail/fast food.

Even if you do, there's a 50/50 shot you'll just annoy the recruiter so you're better off not bothering.

Yup. I've tried applying at companies where close friends work and even they can't figure out who to contact most of the time. At one company, the hiring people are in a different state on the other side of the country. I've had one "slam-dunk" application get tossed out because people a level above the guy who was the team lead (aka the guy who would be the best judge of whether or not I should get hired) decided to cull mine.

RchHomieQuanChi posted...

Many places do not like when you do this though.

Can confirm.

I've literally had hiring managers tell me to fuck off/threaten restraining orders because I had the audicity to call about a position one time too many (4 times in two weeks, for anyone wondering what counts as "aggressively excessive" in the minds of these people).
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Wtf? Employers should be happy to see people wanting the job enough to go out of their way and contact them at least through the phone once. Don't sound desperate and don't contact the company more than once. Just say you're interested in the position and that you think you're more than qualified for the job then thank them for their consideration. Contact them like one week after submitting a resume to them. Either they'll get interested and go straight to your resume/application out of the other thousands of resumes/applications they get or they do what people say here and ignore you just like they'd do anyways if you didn't call them. That's it.

Why don't employers like that anyways? Cause they think the person doing that thinks they're too good or have entitlement?

one of the reasons i went to trade school. got tired of trying to find anything that paid above $11/h

Employers now think they are in some movie where they have the power to live or let die. Its all a power trip. They are also afraid of getting replaced by people with actual experience or education.

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Phantom36 posted...

Please fill out this application that asks for basically a complete reiteration of everything your resum which we already have.

Ive wanted to just type in this is on my resume you literally just asked me to upload in every single field but figured it would automatically disqualify me from consideration

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_____Cait posted...

Employers now think they are in some movie where they have the power to live or let die. Its all a power trip. They are also afraid of getting replaced by people with actual experience or education.

"Now?" It's been like that since the beginning of organized labor.

do you ever try to tailor your resume to each job specifically?

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_Rinku_ posted...

Literally trash advice that will get your resume tossed out and further applications blacklisted. I never got a job where I followed this advice. Never. It's not the 50s anymore and you can't just "hit the pavement."

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BigB0ss13 posted...

Why don't employers like that anyways? Cause they think the person doing that thinks they're too good or have entitlement?

Because its not the 1950s anymore and serious career worthy jobs tend to have hundreds, sometimes thousands, of applicants.

You think a company that posts multiple job openings want thousands of people calling them?

If you are really interested in some place maybe send a brief email explaining your interest and attach your resume.


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This is exactly why its hard to imagine people getting jobs purely through merit

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This topic is cathartic, cuz Im going through the exact same thing.

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BigB0ss13 posted...

Wtf? Employers should be happy to see people wanting the job enough to go out of their way and contact them at least through the phone once. Don't sound desperate and don't contact the company more than once. Just say you're interested in the position and that you think you're more than qualified for the job then thank them for their consideration. Contact them like one week after submitting a resume to them. Either they'll get interested and go straight to your resume/application out of the other thousands of resumes/applications they get or they do what people say here and ignore you just like they'd do anyways if you didn't call them. That's it.

Theyre never interested. Its a waste of your time. Job hunting is a numbers game so youre better off just trying to complete as many applications as you can and then crushing the interviews

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Interviews are such BS lol. We want to get to know you as a person so come wearing a suit and put on an act while we interrogate you.

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Arcanine2009 posted...

do you ever try to tailor your resume to each job specifically?

Feline_Heart posted...

Job hunting is a numbers game so youre better off just trying to complete as many applications as you can and then crushing the interviews

Nowadays you're better off shooting a bunch of quick applications versus wasting too much time on one job posting.

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Also there's a lot of companies that post fake job listings because they really want to get someone overseas for cheap labor but are required by law to offer it to Americans first.

The whole thing is fucked.


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BigB0ss13 posted...

Wtf? Employers should be happy to see people wanting the job enough to go out of their way and contact them at least through the phone once. Don't sound desperate and don't contact the company more than once. Just say you're interested in the position and that you think you're more than qualified for the job then thank them for their consideration. Contact them like one week after submitting a resume to them. Either they'll get interested and go straight to your resume/application out of the other thousands of resumes/applications they get or they do what people say here and ignore you just like they'd do anyways if you didn't call them. That's it.

We have other shit to do and we arent going to answer every phone call about a job. And usually the people calling arent qualified. I get messages on LinkedIn all the time and I just dont have the time to respond to every one, especially since its rarely specific to a job they applied but a lazy can you take a look at my resume and tell me if Im a fit for anything message

Arcanine2009 posted...

do you ever try to tailor your resume to each job specifically?

When I was job hunting full time I would have a generic resume that I would apply with to like 20-30 jobs a day.

Then I would try to have 3-5 jobs that I would send a more tailored resume + cover letter to.

Can't tailor your resume or make a cover letter for every job, you need to be applying to hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs.

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I really just got a job recommendation labeled Entry-Level that said 3-5 years experience. Insanity. However, it might be they consider University to be experience, as they don't actually require a degree. I'll go for it I guess. Won't hurt.

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Bunch of complainers and generalizers in this topic who probably have that same attitude in their every day life, and wonder why they can't find a job or advance at the one they're at.

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Perfectinsanity posted...

Bunch of complainers and generalizers in this topic who probably have that same attitude in their every day life, and wonder why they can't find a job or advance at the one they're at.

And you're such a ball of positive energy that you came into this topic just to complain about people venting about a shitty job market

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I worked in a animation studio for my co op placement in high school for 6 months and after sitting in a room watching them go through 100's of resumes only to hire 2 people was enough for me to completely drop that as a career choice in college.


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we require 5 years experience in this entry level field that has existed for 3 years
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