Can't find a job. where else to look?

So I've been looking for ANY entry level job into IT, and have applied to well over 125 positions. I printed out copies of my resume and cover letter and went door to door. All I have gotten so far is 3 sets of multiple interviews and 3 thanks, but no thanks responses.

The door to door approach backfired because of the 15 or so companies I walked into, every single one of them told me that they don't accept in person applications.

Anyone have any ideas?? I even volunteered at 3 hospitals and a college but haven't heard anything yet.

I am willing to work for pennies and still no bites??

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droolmonkey

It looks a bit better than that post in .doc and .pdf formats, but I massaged it and made small tweaks. ...Im working on how to revamp the experiences section to better convey my specific paid and unpaid IT experience. Im all for doctoring my work experience, just dont know how since I've never done that before.

I also got a temporary job doing something completely unrelated for now. I need the money.

...whoever told me to tighten my game was hilarious. No problem there though but thanks.

droolmonkey

I GOT A JOB!!!! THANK YOU ALL FOR THE TIPS!!! My resume rewrite did the trick

You guys are frickin awesome!!!!!!! Thank you thank you thank you!!!

got over 10 call backs in the last 2 days. had 10 phone interviews and 4 offers over the phone. I checked out the companies I liked and accepted an offer today. Its tech support with some serious upward mobility and they will pay for whatever certifications I want to get. They also organize classes monthly for whichever cert gets the most sign ups the previous month. ...SO STOKED!!

Cpl.Klinger

Iristheangel wrote: »

As others have said, pick up a couple entry level certifications on the side to make yourself more appealing. For the first year in IT, it's very unlikely that you'll be making tons of money so write it off for the first year while you're gaining experience.

You'll want to do is gain experience ANY way you can - onforce.com, workmarket.com, guru.com, selling yourself on Craigslist, volunteer work, etc. While you are doing these side jobs, you can write this as experience on your resume as self-employed. Of course you should still apply for jobs while doing all these because you never know when the right opportunity will come along. After you get your first 12 months of experience, things start to get a lot easier. Just hang in there

To tag along with this, here's what my setup looks like right now: A+, N+, S+, CDIA+, a few MTA's and a few CIW's. Pretty entry level. Almost all of my experience is in retail management, but I've been doing side work through WorkMarket for a year. That really opened the door because I had tangible experience in an area my new employer could understand. Forget the fact that I've been inside of every register and computer where I used to work, in addition to outsmarting the help desk every time I called. The WorkMarket stuff they could understand. Take a year, do some side work to pay for the certs and you'll be ready to break in.

[EDIT] Well, I guess OP got a job. Anyway, for any one else in his position, the above is sage advice. [\EDIT]

sparob

That resume doesn't even have a cover letter says a lot of bad things to an employer. Learn to make a cover letter and a resume, other wise that is going to go to the trash!

DoubleNNs

Drastic change in such a short amount of time!
Congratulations droolmonkey!

sparob

Damn you got a job using that resume? Nicely done I thought for sure that would eff your chances.

droolmonkey

I included cover letters in each submission. I wrote a separate cover letter for each company.

Moon Child

Yeah getting entry level experience is very hard in IT, but one thing I never considered when I first was trying to get in IT was taking a non IT job that involves a lot of use of technology and computer skills. Also volunteering your IT services on the side for service organizations such as a local Lions club. When I first graduated college I could not land an IT job at all, but I landed a job as an administrative assistant for $15/hour with full benefits for a local hospital in my area. After months of unemployment I decided to stop being so picky with jobs and just take what I could get and so I took the job. Although it was not a tech job, I was on a computer all day long. I did that job for a few years along with volunteering my IT services for local service organizations in my area. I put on my resume the experience working at the hospital and what computer skills I had to use in that job role on a daily basis. I also put down the volunteer experience I did for local service organizations being very specific with what I did for them such as: creating web pages, repairing computers, networking, etc. The combination of help from a professional resume writer that I hired and the added experience on my resume helped me land my first job as a computer programmer.

Congrats on landing the job.