How many times was the door shut for you before one opened?

Zoomer

I've been sending out resumes, tweaking my own in the process from time to time and going on a few interviews when called. But unfortunately, I have not been hired. I am very motivated, have been told by numerous employers that I have a great personality and such, but was not the right fit for the job. I also apply online to at least 10 places a day. I've been out of work for 3 weeks since I relocated to another city.

My discouragement factor is starting to slowly set in. I'm not about to give up, but does anyone have any suggestions that might help me land a position? I recently started communicating with some IT staffing agencies to see if they could place me in a good job. I've started studying for my certs, but I'm at least a month or so away before I feel I can take the exam (A+).

Anything would be appreciated. Thanks!

/usr

Not trying to discourage you or anything, but what kind of experience do you have?

JavonR

What type of jobs are you applying for? If your just trying to land something entry level an A+ cert will definitely get your foot in the door.

Zoomer

Just basic help desk positions. My previous job was as a "System Administrator". It was my title, but I more or less did Level 1 help desk duties. I dipped into a lot of different areas of IT (security, networking, hardware/software troubleshooting, writing policies) but never anything too in-depth as it was a small company and I cross-trained in a lot of other duties. Not all related to IT.

I feel my resume is solid and I believe I do well in interviews, but I don't have any certs and I fear that is what is keeping me back. Plus, with the economy how it is I think it's only going to get harder.

BradleyHU

i feel you on that. i graduated college in 2004, and i didnt land my IT job until June of last year. I went from workin @ Best Buy, to workin @ FedEx(i spent 2 long a$$ years there)...between when i graduated and when i got my job, i had been on countless interviews. but usually i got the same bull$hit...not enough experience...mind you, i was applying for entry level jobs. so i'm kinda back in that same position now, being that i'm lookin for a new job, i'm still getting the not enough experience bit...even tho i know i can do the job, but whatever...

point is, keep at it, you'll eventually get something.

/usr

Zoomer, do you have a degree of any sort?

You may find it much harder to land a position with no degree or certifications...

Zoomer

Yes, I have a 2 year Associate Degree in IT.

jryantech

With the experience and the AA degree you should have no problems landing interviews...

Perhaps try to get professional help with your resume and cover letter.

brad-

Up until the job I have now, the previous jobs have all been through contacts. I would hate to have to do what you are doing now. I dont think I could relocate without knowing where I'm going to work.

ladiesman217

Your location also counts. If you see it's getting hard to find jobs in area you may want to consider moving. what's your location anyway?

nel

have you tried looking at contract work for entry level positions? or even things like desktop rollout projects etc.

May not be great but at least it will give you some experiance. It will be a short term solution until you can get what you want but maybe something to consider.

JDMurray

This is a terrible time of year to look for IT jobs. Be sure you take that fact into consideration.

Paul Boz

JDMurray wrote:

This is a terrible time of year to look for IT jobs. Be sure you take that fact into consideration.

This is a terrible time in our economy to look for jobs.

nel

Paul Boz wrote:

JDMurray wrote:

This is a terrible time of year to look for IT jobs. Be sure you take that fact into consideration.

This is a terrible time in our economy to look for jobs.

i think tha probably stems to world economy too

JDMurray

Paul Boz wrote:

This is a terrible time in our economy to look for jobs.

Not really for IT. The actual unemployment rate among IT people is only about 1%. And there is currently a shortage of experiences people to fill a lot of open, senior-level positions. It is true that, due to the economy, a lot of those open positions are currently on hold, but the opportunities for IT people is still much better than in other job markets.

Healthcare seems to be one industry that is largely (yet) unaffected by the current economy, so look for IT jobs in hospitals and healthcare organizations (they're still good to investment in as well).

Paul Boz

Also look for jobs in the financial industry. Regulators are cracking down on banks and credit unions like crazy right now, and it's just going to get bigger. I was able to get on with a security firm that services the financial industry and our business is jumping.

zen master

Door has been shut many times. In fact, there were points when it just seemed like a brick wall, no door. Sent more applications than I care to remember (probably well in the hundreds), was called in for a handful of interviews (maybe 10 or so), and landed 3 or so jobs. My mom always told me, "finding a job is a job in itself!". Truer words were never spoken.

Zoomer

Since posting I've got 5 interviews set up for next week! 3 are phone interviews and the other two are sit down. I guess it just took a while for them to finally get to my resume and call me.