Can I get some advice on job hunting?
Quick summary: Graduated with a degree in IT in May of 2015. Took a break for a few months and started job hunting in earnest in September (I thought it wouldn't be this hard). I realize now that I fucked up and my resume is pretty blank except for some volunteer work and some development work at a local start up. Startup went belly up and I focused on my degree.
It's now June of 2016 and I'm still jobless and it's really getting to me. I check Indeed, Dice, Monster, and a few other websites but everything requires +3 years of experience in super specific things and I don't know what to do. Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated.
If it helps at all, I'm looking for work in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Bump. Please.
get a different kind of job
>>17273113
You mean ditch tech completely? How would that be possible?
Anyone else have any advice?
>>17273120
depends on where you live. in my city this month I'd recommend becoming a delivery driver for amazon.
All you can do is maybe broaden your job search criteria and branch out a bit into areas you weren't quite expecting to work in. Any job is better than no job.
I don't mean being a cashier, but a lot of job skills are transferable. My wife got a great job with a fresh law degree even though the job required 3+ years legal experience. She discussed the fact that the job required a lot of project work and she was a project manager for 5 years in another company before starting her studies and that she got top grades in school so the legal side of things wouldn't be too tough on her.
Broaden your horizons a bit even if for no other reason than to get something on your resume.
>>17273157
That's not bad advice at all, thanks. I've been looking around the country (and even in some other countries). At this point, I'm just looking for entry level work in anything tech related. I feel like at this point, it's a numbers game. I've sent out so many resumes and cover letters that eventually I'll get an offer. The farthest I usually get is 2-3 interviews into the process.
>>17273180
What exactly are you doing? Development?
>>17273198
Yeah. Misc volunteer work and at the start-up I was doing .Net work. Have 1.5 years in that.
If you're having problems finding a job, try making a job of your own.
t. self-employed
>>17273211
Make sure you keep your skills sharp and keep adding stuff to your portfolio. Open a github page if you haven't already and commit often so people can see you're still actively coding.
Do freelance work if nothing else.
>>17273349
Not a bad idea. Any specific tech or industries I should check out?
>>17273378
Yeah, got my git pretty populated. Update it at least once a week.
>>17273437
>Any specific tech or industries I should check out?
You're a recent college graduate, so try looking at things working on what you studied first. You're already aware of freelance programming, but you can also look at more networking or desktop support work.
The best place to go looking for customers would be small businesses. Small businesses have needs and problems like larger ones, but the owners/managers generally don't have the time or resources to go look for those bigger, well-qualified companies that compete with you. They're the kinds of places where you could actually try going inside and simply talking with someone about yourself and asking if they're having any issues or work they'd like someone to help with. You can also ask around people you know if they have any computer related issues at their places of work, and ask them to introduce you to their boss.
There are also online options for non-programming IT stuff, varying from regular freelancing to subcontracting, if you're interested.
