Very scared for my future, no job

LegacyUser

Hi all.

Never posted to PI before but here goes.

My own story is this. I graduated from college with a degree in 2007, and worked for a year until August 2008 when I decided to go travelling to Australia for a year. That plan flopped for a number of reasons, I couldn't find a job over there and also a member of my family became very ill and needed to be hospitalised so I returned to Ireland beginning of October 2008.

I have been looking for a job ever since then. For the first 3 or 4 months (until maybe January-February of this year) I admit I was only seeking jobs in my degree area. But between then and now I have been applying for anything and everything without luck.

I can see myself coming up to the 1 year unemployed mark now in about 6 weeks and not only is it very crap not having a job, I also have this massive gap on my CV. I could be wrong, but from an employers p.o.v. doesn't 1 year unemployed look incredibly ridiculous?

I can't afford to do a Masters, I just want to work really. By the looks of it there is no point travelling to USA for work either because companies over there don't seem to be hiring either.

What is the way out of this? Thank you kindly.

dny123456

Lie about your one year out and say you stayed in Oz for a little extra time. You had such a great time and met so many interesting people etc etc. Whatever you do, don't let people feel pity for u in an interview situation. Positive all the way. On the immigration thing, how about the UK?

Paul Tergat

mule departed wrote: »

Hi all.

Never posted to PI before but here goes.

My own story is this. I graduated from college with a degree in 2007, and worked for a year until August 2008 when I decided to go travelling to Australia for a year. That plan flopped for a number of reasons, I couldn't find a job over there and also a member of my family became very ill and needed to be hospitalised so I returned to Ireland beginning of October 2008.

I have been looking for a job ever since then. For the first 3 or 4 months (until maybe January-February of this year) I admit I was only seeking jobs in my degree area. But between then and now I have been applying for anything and everything without luck.

I can see myself coming up to the 1 year unemployed mark now in about 6 weeks and not only is it very crap not having a job, I also have this massive gap on my CV. I could be wrong, but from an employers p.o.v. doesn't 1 year unemployed look incredibly ridiculous?

I can't afford to do a Masters, I just want to work really. By the looks of it there is no point travelling to USA for work either because companies over there don't seem to be hiring either.

What is the way out of this? Thank you kindly.

Your situation is very similar to mine mate.

I graduated last summer and went home to England for the summer. I came back to Ireland in October and since then have been called back to just 1 interview despite me applying for a sick amount of jobs. I also have no idea what to do but the advice given to me is generally to just stick it out and hope things improve. I dont really know what I can say to ya just that i'm in pretty much the same position and its pretty ****ty being bored out of my head all day

babaloushka

Would you consider doing some voluntary work? There's always a big demand from a huge variety of charities and community organisations. Making such an effort always looks good on a CV and it gets you out of the house and feeling useful.
My son was unemployed for a while and did some work in a charity shop - at the next interview, he knew they were impressed as they asked him lots of questions. He got the job BTW, he still does a bit of voluntary work here and there - it's 2 way process.

DO'Carlo/Wex

Tell them you were inside. As in The Joy. Read Paul Howards' book to get some insight. It'll break the ice & generate some nervous laughter if nothing else.
I'm 4 & a bit on the dole myself & now & again get peeved but any employer who can't cut you a bit of slack in the current climate isn't worth working for.
It's an employers' market though & they are the ones turning the screws with regards to perks & pay so be prepared to grovel but remember, there's ALWAYS someone else worse-off than you. Would you try self-employed jobs like "marketing"? They're soul-destroying (I did one for a day as a 2d-interview & learnt a lot from it genuinely, enough to not go back & to get a pair of comfortable shoes!) but you can network & it gets you out of the house & meeting people.
Is there a river beside you? Go jump in it (for a swim!). Take a run along the canal/river bank. Cycle. Walk. Jog. Just get the fock out of your' comfort zone & eventually someone will notice you & it might just get you a start.
I feel you're pain kinda but the current weather means I'm giving less of a monkeys. When it starts piddling-down or gets colder, I'll get my mo-jo back & look for work in a more meaningful-way than through jobs websites.

davyjose

DO'Carlo/Wex wrote: »

Tell them you were inside. As in The Joy. Read Paul Howards' book to get some insight. It'll break the ice & generate some nervous laughter if nothing else.

That's a great idea - tell them you murdered someone, that'll cover up the whole "1 year unemployed" situation. They'll fall over themselves to get you.
:rolleyes:
OP, a one year gap is nothing in this climate TBH. There'll be thousands of people with gaps all over their CV's when this is all over. Don't let that get to you, seriously.

petethebrick

Yes, don't worry about the one year gap - it'll soon be a standard enough feature of most people's CVs in the current economic climate I would think.
You say you can't afford to do a masters - you might qualify for the mature students grant for it. Have you been living away from home over the year, you just have to prove independence to qualify for it. You could always take some evening courses of the like.
I don't know if it would interest you, but teaching english in Korea pays ok money and is a great laugh. All you need is a degree in any subject and you could line up a job there very easily. Have a look at www.eslcafe.com

philologos

petethebrick wrote: »

Yes, don't worry about the one year gap - it'll soon be a standard enough feature of most people's CVs in the current economic climate I would think.
You say you can't afford to do a masters - you might qualify for the mature students grant for it. Have you been living away from home over the year, you just have to prove independence to qualify for it. You could always take some evening courses of the like.
I don't know if it would interest you, but teaching english in Korea pays ok money and is a great laugh. All you need is a degree in any subject and you could line up a job there very easily. Have a look at www.eslcafe.com

Currently doing a TEFL course myself at the minute. For many job placements you do not actually need a degree at all. If you do a course through i to i (www.onlinetefl.com) there is a list of 8,000 schools on a PDF that you can apply directly to all over the world.

Certainly a great idea to get away until things improve though.

LegacyUser

I have zillions of gaps in my career and have still worked very successfully in a highly competitive area. I've never seen gaps as a problem, as you can I was travelling/taking time out to write my screenplay (or whatever) or simly taking a break. If you're well qualified and have some work experience it simply doesn't matter. Nobody expects the workplace to own you body and soul from the age of 21 to 65.

Also, I don't like the way everyone is on at the unemployed to do voluntary work all the time. Working in a charity shop might paint you as a nice lad in the eyes of an employer but its going to fok all to help your job prospects in a highly skilled job market. Sorry but thats what I think. By all means do it if you're bored and charitable by nature. Perhaps you would be interested in something more engaging like working with the homeless/problem kids? Hmm. I looked into that kind of thing awhile back and found that it demanded a level of commitment to training and then staying with a program for months - something I couldn't responsibly commit to during my last unemployed patch, as I didn't know if it wasn't going to last 6 wks or 6 mnths.

So if you must work for free how about some kind of internship in your chosen career? Can you approach companies?

When I was starting my career I approached directors in my field simply for informal 'chats' to ask them how I should approach the job hunt and how my presentation was looking, and made valuable contacts that way that paid off. I realise not every field allows that much flexibility.

For interviews, relax and be yourself, a joke about the Joy is actually not such a bad idea (but don't - something like that needs great delivery). Where all candidates have similar skills you will be chosen on how you interact with them personally. Just like you don't connect with all people in life, same rules apply in interview, so don't take it personally.

So TEFL course seems like a good idea. You'll have job lined up and it will be easy, with a great social among other teachers. It won't do much to forward your real career but you'll come back older, more confident and perhaps therefore more employable. Oh and recesssion will be over and we'll all be reach again. ;-)

petethebrick

Jakkass wrote: »

Currently doing a TEFL course myself at the minute. For many job placements you do not actually need a degree at all. If you do a course through i to i (www.onlinetefl.com) there is a list of 8,000 schools on a PDF that you can apply directly to all over the world.

Certainly a great idea to get away until things improve though.

Yeah, it's true there are a lot of countries where a degree is not a requirement. Korea is by far the best option for working and saving though. In countries like Thailand, Vietnam and China or even European countries like Spain and Italy you can expect to make enough from teaching to just get by ( decent social life inculded in definition of egtting by obviiusly ).
In Korea you can have a great standard of living, eat out all the time, head out on the town several nights a week and at least save 700-800 euro a month. If you take on private classes a few evenings you can expect to save 1.5-2k per month.

philologos

I've been told by someone who went to Korea that a TEFL course isn't even neccessary for some teaching there, however it does increase how much you get paid. A degree isn't strictly necessary either. Many put down strict requirements but it often happens that they will not get many people with a degree and will have to compromise. I know this is hear say but the guy I heard from had been working in South Korea without a TEFL qualification for 3 years.

WithCheesePlease

Do a postgrad or else just keep yourself ticking over researching into your area of expertise or working on some personal hobby type projects.

philologos

Postgrad degrees are rather expensive though. It may not be the best advice to offer someone who is currently out of work.

petethebrick

Jakkass wrote: »

I've been told by someone who went to Korea that a TEFL course isn't even neccessary for some teaching there, however it does increase how much you get paid. A degree isn't strictly necessary either. Many put down strict requirements but it often happens that they will not get many people with a degree and will have to compromise. I know this is hear say but the guy I heard from had been working in South Korea without a TEFL qualification for 3 years.

Basically no job in South Korea requires a TEFL qualification. Probably 90% of teachers there have no TEFL certificate. Generally you don't get paid for having one more but just better job conditions maybe.
A degree is mandatory to qualify for a visa to teach english - if you don't have one you have to work illegally on a tourist visa. It's not the schools that demand you have a degree- it's the Korean government.
Schools that hire teachers without degress are those without the proper licence to employ foreign teachers ie low quality, poorly run schools.
But yes, lots of people do work there illegally earning lots of money. If you're caught you face fines and deportation.

roadrunner 1

dny123456 wrote: »

Lie about your one year out and say you stayed in Oz for a little extra time. You had such a great time and met so many interesting people etc etc. Whatever you do, don't let people feel pity for u in an interview situation. Positive all the way. On the immigration thing, how about the UK?

exactly what i would do. good advice. beware though of what companys you go to especially amercan giants who will want you to sign a consent form for a private investigation into your past. lie your tits off, be cautious and good luck