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BigDave posted:Nope, they pay for me to work, and that's it. If it makes you feel better, I worked in manufacturing for 3.5 years at one job, and 1.5 at another. I hated it the entire time. It was hell. I spent my free time learning new skills for the last 9 months at the second job until I was able to switch careers and find a job I didn't hate. It was worth it, but you need to commit to learning skills.
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Feb 21, 2020 16:25
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BigDave posted:So basically I'm hosed. Short term: A little hosed. But you're employed and in school so its ok. Good news is you have a really good path out and it really won't take much time. Lockback's Guide to getting unfucked: 1. Finish that Bachelors. That will open some things up for you and make focusing on your career easier. 2. Rewrite your resume down to a 1 page, visually appealing thing that doesn't make someone like me want to throw it away. This is pretty easy, like, a 1 hour task. 3. Pick a career direction and learn some skills on your own. Almost universally for any tech job I'd suggest learning some basic Python, SQL/NoSQL, play around with AWS/Azure, and maybe even do some guided Machine Learning exercises (they are easy, look great on a resume, and are a good thing to talk to in an interview to impress olds). What do you want to do? If your not sure, post here or in the career path thread. If you're just drifting that becomes super obvious in an interview. Pick a direction and build yourself in that direction. 4. Stick it out where you're at while you do 1-3 unless its completely untenable. When you graduate you'll have some cover to say "I graduated and looking for that career-type job" but 5 jobs in 2 years is a problem. You do this, 1 year from now you could be in a much, much better job with significantly more room to grow.
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Feb 21, 2020 16:28
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Lockback posted:Short term: A little hosed. But you're employed and in school so its ok. Thanks man, I appreciate it. And honestly? I'd like to move into security work, like a security analyst role, maybe with the federal government if I can. I know two certifications that would be a big help are the CISSP and CompTIA Sec +, but learning about them is really tough when you're already going to school. And I'm 78 days away from graduation with the almighty bachelors, so I got that to look forward to, which is nice.
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Feb 21, 2020 16:34
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lockback's plan is pretty good: get degree, build skills on your own, stick it out for a bit, try to do more at your job if you're just doing the minimum, rewrite resume but: if your reaction to "you need to totally rewrite your resume" is "i'm hosed" you're probably going nowhere fast edit: it's a common mistake. on a resume, nobody cares what you did, provided you meet some of the criteria for the job. people care about how you performed. your resume needs to highlight this.
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Feb 21, 2020 16:34
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BigDave posted:Thanks man, I appreciate it. Ok, so this is good. You will get 0 bites on security jobs without a bachelors, and even when you get it I feel like you're probably 1 job away since it's not a STEM degree, but there's a path. So skills to pick up: Learn AWS and Azure, securing cloud apps is where you'll almost certainly land. You can get free/cheap accounts or do Udemy, whatever. For example: https://www.udemy.com/course/azure-basics/ I'm not so hot on CompTIA, CISSP is better but those are ultimately window dressing. What people care about is hard skills. ISO regulation stuff is also super important but I don't know how you learn that on your own. I always got it in jobs along the way. My Python suggestion still stands but learn CICD Pipelines like Jenkins, look into Kubernetes, things like that. Security taps into a devops stack a lot, and those skills are useful no matter what you do. If you can bootstrap yourself somewhat you might be able to land a junior QA job with these skills which would pay well and give you an opportunity to learn more. Doing some intro work with Selenium or New Relic would be good for that. Basically, I'd start dipping your toe in now, and when you graduate start blocking off ~15-20 hours a week to learning this poo poo. Think of it as more school. Like, you're a little hosed right now but I've been in a job where I was making $100k+ with a great title and I'd describe myself then as "A little bit hosed". You chart a course and do the legwork.
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Feb 21, 2020 17:06
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This thread told me my resume sucked a few years ago and they were right. I fixed it and got a new job. Now I want another new job. I had a phone interview this week that I thought I nailed 100%, but I just got told that no - I won’t be moving on to the technical interview. So I’m bummed and wondering if my resume sucks again. I need to do something with the Interests section like get rid of it. Certificates probably needs to be on the first page. References might be overkill too. Also I just realized I left REFERENCE NAME in there. It’s a template so its tough to modify it too much without making things look janky.  
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Feb 21, 2020 17:23
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Krispy Wafer posted:This thread told me my resume sucked a few years ago and they were right. I fixed it and got a new job. Now I want another new job. I had a phone interview this week that I thought I nailed 100%, but I just got told that no - I won’t be moving on to the technical interview. So I’m bummed and wondering if my resume sucks again. I like the format, Interests is fine, it's not like it's taking a ton of room. References I'd take out but w/e. 1. Too much describing of your job, not enough accomplishments. The last job in particular reads very disappointing and that's the one that gets the most attention. 2. What jobs are you looking for? Your hard technical skills don't come off as great and probably why you're not getting interviews for the next level. I am assuming "Experienced" is below "proficient" and listing "Datacenter Support" as not proficient seems like a concern since you appear to be a Datacenter Support Engineer. I think you should probably do a complete tear-down and rebuild of the skills section. 3. See my advice above about getting on the security track, you probably need to start getting some cloud skills and then focus in on DB or Devopsy/CICD or software development/SRE stuff. Basically you're a generalist but that isn't what the next level up is about. What jobs are you looking for/applying for?
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Feb 21, 2020 17:36
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Krispy Wafer posted:This thread told me my resume sucked a few years ago and they were right. I fixed it and got a new job. Now I want another new job. I had a phone interview this week that I thought I nailed 100%, but I just got told that no - I won’t be moving on to the technical interview. So I’m bummed and wondering if my resume sucks again. ] IMO, 1 is too small a sample size to draw such a conclusion from. There are a million reasons unrelated to your resume or even your phone screen why this particular company might have chosen not to make you a finalist for this particular job. Always Be Improving (your resume, your job skills, your interview skills) is a great philosophy, but don’t let one empty hook plunge you into despair, is what I’m saying.
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Feb 21, 2020 17:46
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Lockback posted:I like the format, Interests is fine, it's not like it's taking a ton of room. References I'd take out but w/e. I am applying for network and IT support positions. I'm a solid mid-tier tech, but the jobs I'm finding are either entry levels making peanuts or tier 3 jobs requiring a CCNP. If it is mid-level they want experience in stuff you usually don't see on a Cisco career track like Active Directory. I am studying for the babby AWS cert and trying to teach myself Powershell scripting in some vain hope I find the magic combination of skills an employer is looking for. And yeah, I've got the generalist curse. I'll find some performance statistics to stick in my current job description and rework the skills section. Eric the Mauve posted:IMO, 1 is too small a sample size to draw such a conclusion from. There are a million reasons unrelated to your resume or even your phone screen why this particular company might have chosen not to make you a finalist for this particular job. This week's interview felt like a kick in the teeth because they appeared desperate (I got a call 2 days after submitting my application) and the job stressed technical documentation and training, two things I'm good at. I know it's a numbers game and I'll get more chances, but it's still frustrating.
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Feb 21, 2020 18:04
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Well I just had a pretty terrible final interview yesterday (par for the course with this place if you've been following my saga with them lately). Got brought in by an HR person and we just stood in the doorway of the hiring manager's office while he talked with someone else. After five minutes he waves me in but keeps talking. Five more minutes. Ten minutes. I'm just standing there. The HR person left. Finally the guy leaves, and the hiring manager tells me to sit down. It did not improve from there. There was no....start. He just said "So you've got something for me" in reference to a deliverable they asked me to put together. I reached into my bag to pull it out and he said "Don't you have any questions for me?" Well, yes I do.....ok, let's start there. Finally we get to my deliverable and he looks at the title slide and goes "Why are you bringing me something from a place you left awhile ago? What about your current place?" Well, I was told to bring something from either place, and given the state of my current job I wasn't comfortable sharing anything from there. He was a massive rear end in a top hat about it, he kept texting and looking at his laptop (which was closed and then he opened it during my presentation) while also taking notes on a sheet of paper. In the end, he knew I had been passed over for a job at my current place, which is why I was looking. He said if they brought in someone above him he'd leave too. Then he said I shouldn't be looking to leave because I was passed over. And then he said thanks for coming in and that was that. Naturally, I expect an offer to come soon...
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Feb 21, 2020 18:12
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Omne posted:Well I just had a pretty terrible final interview yesterday (par for the course with this place if you've been following my saga with them lately). Got brought in by an HR person and we just stood in the doorway of the hiring manager's office while he talked with someone else. After five minutes he waves me in but keeps talking. Five more minutes. Ten minutes. I'm just standing there. The HR person left. Finally the guy leaves, and the hiring manager tells me to sit down. It did not improve from there. That was a wild ride!
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Feb 21, 2020 18:55
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I was interviewing for a firewall job and the manager started talking about how he expected to get laid off at any time and then how the firewall admin job wasn't going to do any firewall work. Automation was the buzz word I kept hearing. Omne posted:Well I just had a pretty terrible final interview yesterday (par for the course with this place if you've been following my saga with them lately). Got brought in by an HR person and we just stood in the doorway of the hiring manager's office while he talked with someone else. After five minutes he waves me in but keeps talking. Five more minutes. Ten minutes. I'm just standing there. The HR person left. Finally the guy leaves, and the hiring manager tells me to sit down. It did not improve from there. Are they still hiring?
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Feb 21, 2020 19:09
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Krispy Wafer posted:
He actually told me they were likely to reduce the size of some of his teams (not the team I was interviewing for). Like, who the gently caress says that to an interviewee?
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Feb 21, 2020 19:15
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Someone who had no interest in hiring the interviewee before the interviewee even got there.
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Feb 21, 2020 19:26
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If nothing else good on him for letting you know what a terrible situation it was and saving you from it.
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Feb 21, 2020 19:49
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It is kind of hilarious to look back at the first page of the thread and see me having the exact same problem as I have now: having a doctorate means you lose access to entry-level jobs. (I ended up working in government for five years, which is one place that does not nearly so much care about your education versus the job you are applying for) But yeah, I did some networking to see about getting an academic administrative job in my field (no worries, no interest in the literally impossible professor job hunt), and everyone is telling me that I should be applying for jobs with the word "director" in the title, and uh, O.K., like, I do see some of the other graduates of my very same program are assistant/directors in academic institutions around the country, so I understand this is not insanity, but...surely a résumé needs to look different for an executive-type job? Like these more buzzwordy-sounding skills sections I always see when I look at examples? Or am I just getting confused by the fact that "executive" can be used to mean both "head of a Fortune 500 company" and "person running an academic office with four employees?"
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Feb 21, 2020 21:49
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Director is not executive-level. It's either middle management or maybe upper management, depending on the company and almost always below the executive level. A doctorate and domain level knowledge of an area is a really good start for a director, yeah. This is assuming you are applying in fields that are related to your education. If not, just don't mention the masters/doctorate. There's no law that says you have to disclose that.
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Feb 21, 2020 23:56
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Lockback posted:Director is not executive-level. It's either middle management or maybe upper management, depending on the company and almost always below the executive level. I got into an interesting discussion once about how if people get fired for lying about having a doctorate, might someone also get fired for lying about not having a doctorate, if similarly that fact would have removed you from consideration initially? Certainly the more time that passes since I finished the more plausible that move would become, as eventually it would no longer be like "so, uh, you just did not work from 2010 - 2014 or what?" Edit: I definitely appreciate any advice, but part of my problem is also geographical. If I were willing to move to D.C. or a few other big cities I would probably be able to snag a fairly high-roller job with my education and experience, but needing to be in Iowa makes that a little harder
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Feb 22, 2020 00:18
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I think the idea of a doctorate being a negative is dumb and that you should always disclose it because it’s a good thing. You earned it. Also “losing access to entry level jobs” I’m just gonna file under good problems. Go for jobs that fit your accomplishments. Teach yourself what you need to succeed.
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Feb 22, 2020 00:38
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Dr. Quarex posted:Yeah I think the concept of "executive" is a strange one anyway, but that makes sense how you are putting it. I can fire you for not disclosing you sat on the red mat in kindergarten, you can fire someone for any reason (that's not specifically protected) in 49 states. However, lying about having qualifications is a MUCH bigger deal than not disclosing qualifications for what I hope are pretty self-evident reasons.
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Feb 22, 2020 00:50
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Could always say you felt it wasn't relevant to the position so didn't put it on the resume or mention it. I don't think it would be a problem. The people it scares off are probably not who you want to be working for. Assuming you don't come across as entitled or too ivory tower.
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Feb 22, 2020 04:06
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CarForumPoster posted:I think the idea of a doctorate being a negative is dumb and that you should always disclose it because it’s a good thing. You earned it. Also “losing access to entry level jobs” I’m just gonna file under good problems. Go for jobs that fit your accomplishments. Teach yourself what you need to succeed. Lockback posted:I can fire you for not disclosing you sat on the red mat in kindergarten, you can fire someone for any reason (that's not specifically protected) in 49 states. However, lying about having qualifications is a MUCH bigger deal than not disclosing qualifications for what I hope are pretty self-evident reasons. Yeah, clearly when you make up a doctorate it might make the news, so that seems like the bigger issue. Xguard86 posted:Could always say you felt it wasn't relevant to the position so didn't put it on the resume or mention it.
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Feb 23, 2020 04:31
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Dr. Quarex posted:It is kind of hilarious to look back at the first page of the thread and see me having the exact same problem as I have now: having a doctorate means you lose access to entry-level jobs.
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Feb 23, 2020 15:28
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Dr. Quarex posted:Really I agree all around. I was only applying to entry-level stuff because I relocated for family reasons and my wife encouraged me to get a crappy job as soon as possible while looking for a real job, but it is seemingly going to be easier to get a good job than a crappy job at my current level. Though I am sure someone can point out the crappy job category that would still hire me (call centers maybe?). Yea I think her advice isn't very good here. If you're in the US, unemployment is at record lows. Its an extremely tight labor market. You have a PhD. Go get a decent job (and maybe figure out how to interview without seeming like a dick).
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Feb 24, 2020 02:44
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My guess would be that retail managers can sense before they even sit down for the interview that he is wildly out of his element in the retail wage-slave world, and one way or the other wouldn't last two months if hired. Definitely don't bring up the Ph.D. if at all possible, but that's probably not the only issue there.
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Feb 24, 2020 03:08
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OK, here's my attempt at a resume rewrite. Because this is the first of many drafts, I have dubbed it CRAP1. The 4th point on my current role is just what it says, I couldn't think of a fancy way to phrase it so I just wrote it as is.
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Feb 24, 2020 04:59
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Personally I'd change putty to something like config via cli or terminal.
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Feb 24, 2020 07:24
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Eric the Mauve posted:My guess would be that retail managers can sense before they even sit down for the interview that he is wildly out of his element in the retail wage-slave world, and one way or the other wouldn't last two months if hired. Honestly I read this from his posts but again, that's not a bad thing, its just an important bit to recognize and react to. As a person with ADHD I'd make a bad factory worker. My workspaces tend to be messy, maintenance tasks like cleaning up drive me nuts, I take like two 20 minute walks per day to stay sane, etc. As an engineer, works great. I once wrote all the requirements for something in Jira on a walk.
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Feb 24, 2020 15:37
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BigDave posted:OK, here's my attempt at a resume rewrite. Because this is the first of many drafts, I have dubbed it CRAP1. I assume your applying to tech support jobs? If yes, feedback: -Format is nice -Very clearly targeted at that job, the way you do that give me an impression you'll have experience. You don't, so I'm assuming you're entry level or maybe one level above entry level. Its a good impression to give. -Career objective is too long and has buzzwords: --"Aiming to leverage a proven knowledge" if you've proven it, you've leveraged it so that is just nonsense Suggestion: Communication Studies major (GPA: [If > 3.5]) attending Minnesota State University-Mankato, with 10 years of work experience. Use my knowledge of end user support, network setup and installation, and diligent troubleshooting to help achieve your company's goals. -Your coursework isn't that relevant, I'd cap at three bullets. -Your 10 year work history is 1 year long with short stints. If you spent 6 years hawking shirts at the Mall, I'd not include any details about it but I WOULD put it there. E.g. Recent Job 1: Date Location Details details Job 2: Date Location Details [Flipping Burgers]: Dates Location No details -I'd get some more online certs, maybe a github if youre going to do some Bash scripting or whatever. They're often free and can be done in a few hours. -Put your most relevant skills first, assume that an HR person will read it. Azure AD is very important, but I'd call it Microsoft Azure Active Directory. -Job descriptions are a bit wordy, cut them down and make room for that 10 year job history. CarForumPoster fucked around with this message at 15:58 on Feb 24, 2020 |
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Feb 24, 2020 15:51
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My brother-in-law was recently laid off due to a reduction in force and has an interview next week for a position in his field. He hates suits and ties. He hates them to a point where he refused to wear a jacket at his wedding. He wanted to wear khakis to the interview. The company is not the kind of culture where khakis would be considered dressing a step or two up from normal day-to-day wear, like a startup where people wear jeans and khakis and a button-down would be considered dressy. My SIL is working on him but he mentioned he had a blazer. I'm not sure what color it is. Should he be trying to match the blazer to dress slacks as closely as he can, or should he be using some kind of complementary color? e.g. if it's a black blazer wear gray pants, if it's navy wear lighter gray pants, etc.?
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Feb 24, 2020 15:51
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MJP posted:My brother-in-law was recently laid off due to a reduction in force and has an interview next week for a position in his field. He hates suits and ties. He hates them to a point where he refused to wear a jacket at his wedding. He wanted to wear khakis to the interview. The company is not the kind of culture where khakis would be considered dressing a step or two up from normal day-to-day wear, like a startup where people wear jeans and khakis and a button-down would be considered dressy. What job and what level? A sport coat and slacks is a step above most people interviewing for a machinist/welder job, but below a lawyer.
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Feb 24, 2020 16:00
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CarForumPoster posted:What job and what level? A sport coat and slacks is a step above most people interviewing for a machinist/welder job, but below a lawyer. Senior quality engineer for X Medical Widgets, one of the two big names in medical widgets. Analyzing reported issues with their Doohickey 5000 Neuro Implant. Mechanical engineering stuff.
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Feb 24, 2020 16:05
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CarForumPoster posted:I assume your applying to tech support jobs? OK, this is good. The work history is a issue because I want to list the jobs and experience, but I also don't want a 3 page resume either. Is there a way to balance that out?
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Feb 24, 2020 16:24
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BigDave posted:OK, this is good. The work history is a issue because I want to list the jobs and experience, but I also don't want a 3 page resume either. Is there a way to balance that out? I guess here's the takaway: Your resume should tell a cohesive story. Since you don't have experience in the job you're applying for, I want to know you understand how being a low level employee works to see if I should invest in the necessary training to get you productive. Indicators for this include work history, long stints at previous employers, good references, learns fast, easy to teach things to, etc. Great, you've been working for 10 years and you mention that you're focused on company success. Good start. ..but uh oh your resume doesnt reflect this narrative If its obvious what they are include no details about them. Just one line with Company name, Your Role, Date, Apple Store, Retail Associate, Dec 2010 - Aug 2012 Bubbas Rib Shack, Server, Jun 2009 - Nov 2010 I don't need details about that job other than those, but its nice to see a progression in someones work and maybe we both worked at the same place at one point. MJP posted:Senior quality engineer for X Medical Widgets, one of the two big names in medical widgets. Analyzing reported issues with their Doohickey 5000 Neuro Implant. Mechanical engineering stuff. I'm a Mech E undergrad and I now hire engineers. They should wear a suit.
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Feb 24, 2020 16:52
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CarForumPoster posted:I'm a Mech E undergrad and I now hire engineers. They should wear a suit. Would a navy blazer, tan dress slacks, and an appropriate tie be sufficient?
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Feb 24, 2020 17:33
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MJP posted:Would a navy blazer, tan dress slacks, and an appropriate tie be sufficient? Yes that is good enough, especially if it fits well. In most but not all circumstances for a QE its not as good as a nice suit. When you want to want them to want you so you can negotiate and its a professional job, dress the part that says "professional and expert". You're competing with others who do.
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Feb 24, 2020 18:38
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Dik Hz posted:Director means something completely different in academic and business terms. In the business world, director essentially means that you lead a program or division, and you manage lower level managers. You're unlikely to get hired as a director (unless it's a start-up with inflated titles) without substantial prior management experience, even with a doctorate. CarForumPoster posted:Yea I think her advice isn't very good here. If you're in the US, unemployment is at record lows. Its an extremely tight labor market. You have a PhD. Go get a decent job (and maybe figure out how to interview without seeming like a dick). Eric the Mauve posted:My guess would be that retail managers can sense before they even sit down for the interview that he is wildly out of his element in the retail wage-slave world, and one way or the other wouldn't last two months if hired. The best/worst thing about being me is that I somehow got the idea from an early age that if you could avoid being nervous at a job interview that you could get the job, so I may be the world's least-nervous interviewer. Turns out that does not help much if you do not actually say the appropriate things to make them think you should have the job.
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Feb 24, 2020 21:46
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Dr. Quarex posted:As Eric the Mauve suspected, I have absolutely no idea what is going on when placed in a world where you are supposed to help a company make money, so I basically avoid applying to private sector jobs entirely.
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Feb 24, 2020 23:20
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I had an assignment due and waited to nearly the last minute and needed help! ('tis extra for this). I had no idea how to go about starting it. Danny helped me out and talked me through the basics...without doing my homework for me! He gave me recommendations on the work that I had, and a general format to follow for the remainder of the assignment.
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Feb 25, 2020 01:07
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uhh what
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Feb 25, 2020 01:28
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