What do you have to do to get a job these days?

[josphII]

in december 2001 i got my engineering degree from UC Berkeley. i got a job shortly after graduation (from a job posting on bayareahelpwanted.com) but was laid off just a few months later in june =(. the job paid 55k and was located in silicon valley (campbell, CA to be exact). after being laid off i looked and looked but didnt get any leads during the summer months (its very difficult as a new grad to start looking in june-july). but finally in november i had two offers - one permanent at 53k/yr, and a 6mo contract opportunity at $27/hr plus per diem. to simplify matters lets just say i didnt accept either. i since relocated to oklahoma city from san jose and starting january 1st i told myself id go out and get a job, any job, and pursue a better more carrer oriented postion after i was working. two weeks later i was able to interview with two companies for help desk type work (both leads from the internet - monster.com and careerbuilder.com). one of the companies told me they had over 300 replies for their job posting on monster =o and both companies offered me the position. i accepted one of the offers and am currently being paid 55% of what i was making 6 months ago. ah but who gives a fvck, right? im sure if i apply myself i can get another offer that pays much better in a short period of time.

what i have learned since i graduated just over a year ago is:

1) be greedy. less than one week after signing with my first company out of college a better opportunity presented itself, but i passed on account that i had just signed with a company and felt it would be unprofessional to quit after one week. two months later i happened to get laid off. companies only look out for themselves, you should only look out for yourself

2) your cover letter, not your credentials, will get you an interview. no matter what gpa or degree you have thier are always others with the same credentials if not better. what separations you from the competition is what you say in your cover letter. im not the best of writers (530 sat verbal) but i spent a shltload of time putting my cover letter together and i must say, my cover letter is quite simply the bomb

so my advice to you SunnyD is to get your cover letter and resume looking spotless and apply for jobs that fit your education, skills, and experience. january-febuary are great months to be looking for a job. companies have their budgets for the new year and are looking to spend spend spend. get your resume in the right persons hand now!

 

[T2T III]

i accepted one of the offers and am currently being paid 55% of what i was making 6 months ago. ah but who gives a fvck,

But, you also have to consider that living in Oklahoma has to be a bit cheaper than where you lived in California, correct?

 

[amnesiac]

As far as security clearance goes, you can get it through a government contractor. That's the only way a civilian can get it; they can't do it on their own.

 

[JEDI]

Originally posted by: josphII
in december 2001 i got my engineering degree from UC Berkeley. i got a job shortly after graduation (from a job posting on bayareahelpwanted.com) but was laid off just a few months later in june =(. the job paid 55k and was located in silicon valley (campbell, CA to be exact). after being laid off i looked and looked but didnt get any leads during the summer months (its very difficult as a new grad to start looking in june-july). but finally in november i had two offers - one permanent at 53k/yr, and a 6mo contract opportunity at $27/hr plus per diem. to simplify matters lets just say i didnt accept either. i since relocated to oklahoma city from san jose and starting january 1st i told myself id go out and get a job, any job, and pursue a better more carrer oriented postion after i was working. two weeks later i was able to interview with two companies for help desk type work (both leads from the internet - monster.com and careerbuilder.com). one of the companies told me they had over 300 replies for their job posting on monster =o and both companies offered me the position. i accepted one of the offers and am currently being paid 55% of what i was making 6 months ago. ah but who gives a fvck, right? im sure if i apply myself i can get another offer that pays much better in a short period of time.

what i have learned since i graduated just over a year ago is:

1) be greedy. less than one week after signing with my first company out of college a better opportunity presented itself, but i passed on account that i had just signed with a company and felt it would be unprofessional to quit after one week. two months later i happened to get laid off. companies only look out for themselves, you should only look out for yourself

2) your cover letter, not your credentials, will get you an interview. no matter what gpa or degree you have thier are always others with the same credentials if not better. what separations you from the competition is what you say in your cover letter. im not the best of writers (530 sat verbal) but i spent a shltload of time putting my cover letter together and i must say, my cover letter is quite simply the bomb

so my advice to you SunnyD is to get your cover letter and resume looking spotless and apply for jobs that fit your education, skills, and experience. january-febuary are great months to be looking for a job. companies have their budgets for the new year and are looking to spend spend spend. get your resume in the right persons hand now!

why didnt you accept either the $53k/year or $27/hr contract? and why did you decide to move to oklahoma city w/o a job? what was so special about oklahoma city? just curious incase i get laid off and cant find anything in my area