Job search depression

[BoomerD]

Be sure to list your achievements in finding people to give you the parts to build a computer. Companies really like a good scavenger.

 

[Zeze]

With a degree like that it's either start your own business or get a sex change into a hot chick.

I was a double major in mgmt & marketing. That's so naive for tens of thousands that major in this every year. I mean what kind of job do you actually get? Mgmt is NOTHING. You need to generate revenue for the company first, why would anyone start with Management out of college?

Luckily I was hired by a company called American Tower as an application processing specialist. I was paid $33,000 + 10% bonus. This was wow, 2005?. Then I was promoted to a Project Specialist - $40,000 + 10% bonus.

I remember after paying $600 rent and $300 car payment, I barely had money to go on. I stayed up worrying about my finances at $33K/yr.

I had to pivot to get into IT. IT industry generally pays very well for similar positions in non-IT area. Then why not take advantage of it?

Do entry level corp jobs still pay in $30Ks? Then that's awful after all that inflation since my 2005 first job.

[edit]
Oh my god, my 44K/yr in 2003 is making $55K TODAY. That is INSANE. Do college grads get $55K jobs today straight out?

 

[clamum]

Keep your head up and keep looking. I didn't have a job out of undergrad (I graduated in 2006 with a B.S. in computer science, GPA 3.6 from Michigan Tech). I didn't get my first job out-of-school until about Oct-Nov of 2006 and it was a web design job, not perfect but certainly nothing to piss at. I ended up getting my first dev job around Feb-Mar of 2007 from someone who I interviewed with that summer after graduating but position hadn't opened up until the next spring. I also sent out my resume, did interviews (was even flown to Madison, WI for a pretty intense interview process that I ultimately failed), and nothing would happen. Just gotta keep at it. Good luck.

 

[Zeze]

Keep your head up and keep looking. I didn't have a job out of undergrad (I graduated in 2006 with a B.S. in computer science, GPA 3.6 from Michigan Tech). I didn't get my first job out-of-school until about Oct-Nov of 2006 and it was a web design job, not perfect but certainly nothing to piss at. I ended up getting my first dev job around Feb-Mar of 2007 from someone who I interviewed with that summer after graduating but position hadn't opened up until the next spring. I also sent out my resume, did interviews (was even flown to Madison, WI for a pretty intense interview process that I ultimately failed), and nothing would happen. Just gotta keep at it. Good luck.

What were the starting salaries in your first two jobs? And what location?

Just curious how people in IT made in the same era as me (graduated 2005~)

 

[ViviTheMage]

I concur with zeze, clean it up, text only. No colors, or anything "new". Those wouldn't even fly at a silicon valley startup. Networking is huge, you have to use your marketing skills, and market yourself!

 

[clamum]

What were the starting salaries in your first two jobs? And what location?

Just curious how people in IT made in the same era as me (graduated 2005~)

Oh billy, well this was in Escanaba, MI, in the Upper Peninsula, so it's gonna be WAY lower than just about anywhere else besides other po-dunk Midwest towns. As an example, I lived with my buddy there in an apartment for a time. We split the $300/month rent and it wasn't a dump either.

I think that first web design job was around $13-$14/hour or so(40 hours/week). No 401(k).

The second job started at $15/hour. At the start of my second year I got a raise to $18/hour then it was $19/hour I think when I left just shy of four years. I had a 401(k) there with some matching (6% maybe? I don't remember). Honestly I was still underpaid here a bit but again, it's Escanaba, MI, not Los Angeles.

 

[Chaotic42]

As far as resume style goes, I use a modified version of the LaTeX modern cv style. Mine has no picture and a lot less whitespace, but I've got a lot of experience and need every line:

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Thanks y'all. I've made several changes to my resume.

 

[Zeze]

Oh billy, well this was in Escanaba, MI, in the Upper Peninsula, so it's gonna be WAY lower than just about anywhere else besides other po-dunk Midwest towns. As an example, I lived with my buddy there in an apartment for a time. We split the $300/month rent and it wasn't a dump either.

I think that first web design job was around $13-$14/hour or so(40 hours/week). No 401(k).

The second job started at $15/hour. At the start of my second year I got a raise to $18/hour then it was $19/hour I think when I left just shy of four years. I had a 401(k) there with some matching (6% maybe? I don't remember). Honestly I was still underpaid here a bit but again, it's Escanaba, MI, not Los Angeles.

Thanks for sharing.

 

[Zeze]

Thanks y'all. I've made several changes to my resume.

Don't you want further help? You desperately need a job no?

We can help with:
1. Searching methods (which recruiters, trigger keywords in resume, which recruiting firms, which online sites you using - you tapping all the right ones?, etc).
2. The tone of writing. Your bullets are pretty subpar. It reads like a High school practice resume than a real college graduate looking serious to be compelled to call you for an interview.
3. Formatting. The image resume I shared is also not the best formatting.

But only if you're willing.

 

[Sho'Nuff]

What were the starting salaries in your first two jobs? And what location?

Just curious how people in IT made in the same era as me (graduated 2005~)

I know you weren't asking me but this could be fun.

My first job out of undergrad was as a physical scientist for the naval research lab. I made a whopping $29,000/year in 1999. 4 years later I left NRL to become a patent examiner. After a few years examining patents I moved on to become a patent lawyer. 2 pivots = almost 10 fold increase in salary. Not bad - though the work I do now is pretty soul rending.

OP - I review a lot of resumes and frankly Zeze has a point. Yes you want your resume to stand out, but there is "good" stand out (the format is standard but content is eye catching) and "bad" standout (format is anything other than the standard resume format). Realistically, hiring personnel probably toss your resume out just based on its appearance. It might work for a graphic design firm or somewhere that is looking for "artistic" talent, but most businesses expect resumes to be in a business professional format. Yes its boring. But you should adopt it nonetheless.

As for content - action words without context are meaningless. "I managed XYZ" tells the reader nothing about what you did.

Also, excessive generality in a resume can be tantamount to lying, particularly if the applicant's experience level belies the claim made on the resume. I once saw a resume where the applicant (a 24 year old 1st year law student) claimed that he managed the budget for a division I university athletic program while he was a summer intern there. In reality he probably did data entry for the athletic department. What he actually did there though is unimportant, as that one improbable statement made me question whether anything else on his resume was true.

In sum, a resume should be a concise document that presents your abilities and experience in a professional format. It is not a document through which you demonstrate your artistic talent. If the job you are applying for requires such talents, consider submitting an addendum of sample projects that demonstrate your work along with the resume.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Don't you want further help? You desperately need a job no?

We can help with:
1. Searching methods (which recruiters, trigger keywords in resume, which recruiting firms, which online sites you using - you tapping all the right ones?, etc).
2. The tone of writing. Your bullets are pretty subpar. It reads like a High school practice resume than a real college graduate looking serious to be compelled to call you for an interview.
3. Formatting. The image resume I shared is also not the best formatting.

But only if you're willing.

I'd love further help but I'm not that much in a rush for a job (I can keep my current internship for the summer, I'd love a job right out of college).

In terms of searching for a job, I've been looking at Linkedin, Glassdoor, and Indeed (as well as individual companies' career pages)

I'll need help with improving my tone in my resume (I know I suck at it, I have looked at "action" words for resumes to write it up)

Here's an updated resume, I decided to remove non relevant jobs in favor of marketing/data projects I did in class

Edit: Most entry level marketing grads make around 45k but sometimes higher, depending on the job title and what not.

Edit 2: I know y'all don't see many youngins like myself on forums, but I truly do appreciate the comments y'all have left.

 

[Zeze]

I'd love further help but I'm not that much in a rush for a job (I can keep my current internship for the summer, I'd love a job right out of college).

In terms of searching for a job, I've been looking at Linkedin, Glassdoor, and Indeed (as well as individual companies' career pages)

I'll need help with improving my tone in my resume (I know I suck at it, I have looked at "action" words for resumes to write it up)

Here's an updated resume, I decided to remove non relevant jobs in favor of marketing/data projects I did in class

Edit: Most entry level marketing grads make around 45k but sometimes higher, depending on the job title and what not.

Edit 2: I know y'all don't see many youngins like myself on forums, but I truly do appreciate the comments y'all have left.

What's your gmail? I'll send you my resume. You can directly see them as examples for writing effectively.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

What's your gmail? I'll send you my resume. You can directly see them as examples for writing effectively.

I PM'd you

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Oh my god, my 44K/yr in 2003 is making $55K TODAY. That is INSANE. Do college grads get $55K jobs today straight out?

No. In most fields they still start in the low 30s.

 

[ultimatebob]

You gotta make your resume stand out from the others.

Like this;

Heh... that dude knows that he's friggin smart and that his skills are so in demand that he'll get a job no matter what his resume looks like. Baller for him!

 

[ultimatebob]

The OP's resume, on the other hand... damn, dude. You didn't even spell T-Shirt on it right!

Also, all that wasted space, excessive use of color, and the picture that looks like it was taken at a wedding.... Oy!

 

[Red Squirrel]

It may be easier once you're actually done and graduated. Nobody wants to hire someone that is "probably going to finish" they want someone that already finished.

The job market right now is tough unless you want to live in a big city and even then the competition would just be super cut throat. Employers are doing you a favour by even having a job opening, because they could easily just outsource or automate that job if they really wanted to. It's a really crappy time to be looking for a job unfortunately.

Also consider entry level jobs for big/medium companies, as it's a foot in the door and you can eventually move up to the job you want. I took computer science and my first job was help desk. I got lucky that they were hiring pretty much around the same time I graduated. I was actually planing to take the summer off and just enjoy time off and then start job hunting in fall, but that job showed up so I got it.

 

[Brainonska511]

It may be easier once you're actually done and graduated. Nobody wants to hire someone that is "probably going to finish" they want someone that already finished.

That's not necessarily true. Many places will hire good candidates if they know they will be done by X date. My company has done this many times both when we hire PhDs for our scientific department and on the accounts side, when we hire junior account managers straight out of college.

The job market right now is tough unless you want to live in a big city and even then the competition would just be super cut throat. Employers are doing you a favour by even having a job opening, because they could easily just outsource or automate that job if they really wanted to. It's a really crappy time to be looking for a job unfortunately.

And if anything, with unemployment as low as it is, the market favors candidates, since companies will have a harder time finding people to fill new openings

 

[Dr. Detroit]

You need to formalize your LinkedIn, you need to formalize your resume.

Hiring managers don't give a fuck what your dream car is.

Your 21 working on 12. Very amateurish, juvenile, and bronyish.

Start over. Completely over.

Review your fellow classmates LinkedIn for ideas, Review job postings that you believe you qualify for and use those keywords in your resume.

 

[deadlyapp]

What were the starting salaries in your first two jobs? And what location?

Just curious how people in IT made in the same era as me (graduated 2005~)

Not IT, but engineering degree
Started out in 2012 making $61k+10% bonus, southern California region.
6 years later making $103k+15% bonus, still socal.