If it were up to employment specialists, no one would ever have a job

[EstimatedProphet]

I just met with a supposed 'science' specialist for an employment firm. God was it frustrating.

I have a background in fishery biology, which I consider my specialty. however, in the process of getting my credentials, I gained other skills too. I'm really good at stats, I know aquatic ecology, protozooan parasites, helminthian parasites, water chemistry, Good Laboratory practices, all sorts of biological laboratory methods.

So, I talk to this employment specialist, and she starts going on about how there's not much fishery work here. I said I understand, I also want to explore the possibility of laboratory work. this could include biological labs, water quality labs, environmental consulting-all sorts of things. She then says that if I have a specific region of the country that would be better for fisheries. I told her a few, and said, remember, I am also looking for laboratory work. She said she would refer my resume to other offices too, for fisheries. Again, I also asked about lab work here-no response. I simply could not get it through her head that I have skills other than specifics to fishery biology, even though I have them delineated on my resume and specifically told her what they were!

How do you deal with things like this? How does someone go about getting a job, even if they're qualified for it, if the people working in employment can't think outside the box enough to understand that people pick up a multitude of skills that they keep?

[EstimatedProphet]

1. Had to vent, sorry

[Droopy]

3. No need to be sorry

I know how frustrating it is trying to get a good job. I looked hard for about a year before I found my best job yet. I try to improve my situation every time a switch jobs. I got to the point where I was looking for exceptional and not just a run of the mill trucking job. I'm highly qualified, safe, and dependable with 9 years experience. I still had a rough go of it.

[EstimatedProphet]

5. Yes, it's very frustrating

Especially so, since I have a lot of qualifications, but I can't seem to get anyone to recognize that.

[Droopy]

2. I don't know man

I'd ask to speak to her boss if you can.

kick

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. "Human Resources" people are tools of Satan.

They screen applicants for jobs they don't even understand. I think the only way to get past that firewall is if you know someone else on the inside who can get a resume to someone who actually comprehends what the job involves and what qualifications are required. At least, that process can work at my job -- they just hired a guy whose resume I brought to a manager, who decided he wanted to interview the guy, so the HR people never had a real chance to screen him.

Some colleges actually offer degrees in human resources, but I can't imagine what they are teaching them. Do they end up being Catbert, the Evil H.R. Director?

[XemaSab]

6. That's rough

Sorry to hear that your job search is frustrating.

[Sannum]

7. Tell me about it...

I think that recruiters are evil. I am extremely well qualified for some of the positions that they have, but every time I call them to check on something, they claim "would you be interested in temp"? Today I got a horribly rude reply because I was overqualified for something I did not even apply for. My educational background is in Marketing/PR and I have worked for everything from high end Fashion Houses, to State run non profits.

Don't even get me started with the "skills tests" some of them demand. I have trained with Word and Excel for years at a high level, but those tests are so horrible and bug filled that I am lucky to get four questions right.

I think that I would be a kick-ass recruiter though. I would actually pay attention and give a fuck about the jobs and the employees..NOT just the client.

[EstimatedProphet]

9. No kidding

And the fact is-I need to find a job! Yet, because I have a Ph. D. I am 'overqualified' for everything, according to these paople. I'm not overqualified to be out of work!

I don't care whether I take something that is specifically what I trained in right this minute. I still need a job. The specific career positions can wait, but I need to find something to tide me over.

[Sannum]

12. Exactly

My education is based on an industry that relies on a good economy. Since said economy has been in the toilet for years, nobody is looking for my exact, exact, exact skills. I have improvised and built a background that is incredibly varied and skilled.

I could probably do any job if put to the test, excluding law and medicine;). These HR people just get paid by the contact. They don't care about what is on the resume. They are vultures. They are the used-car salesmen of the corporate world.

[Nikia]

8. Everyone seems to want cookie cutter people now

How desperate are you right now? Look for ads for the temporary lab positions paying $9-$10/hour. I cannot get $12/hour jobs doing basic lab tests on paper or metal because my background is in food. When I say that I wanted to try something different, they say "Well we really wanted someone with specific experience in that area."

[EstimatedProphet]

10. The temp positions were what I was asking about!

That's what pissed me off so much!

[skygazer]

11. It's very frustrating

I've worked so many different types of jobs and in every one, I've learned skills that weren't necessarily part of my specific tasks. For instance, I can run just about any kind of heavy equipment there is, partly from a road construction job where I had to jump on whatever rig we needed and partly from a farming/logging job where we used loaders and backhoes, along with farm tractors (and if you can run a farm tractor, you can run a lot of things). Still, it's very hard to get anyone to give me the time of day for that kind of job because my job description was never specifically "operator", though I have references and letters of recommendation for it. :nuke:

Being female doesn't help, either, I'm afraid. I can't count the number of times I've been called "little lady." :grr:

[Blue Diadem]

15. Skygazer have you tried the OE program?

With your background it might be easier for you to get into the program and get your journeyman status.

My son's an apprentice right now..entering his final year. Work may not be steady but he makes more in 1/2 yr than my DH makes in a full year.

[Ivan Sputnik]

13. My sympathies

Things are so tight now. If you don't have >exactly< the background and qualifications they're looking for, forget it. That's been my experience with the HR bots. It's like the concept of transferable skills no longer exists.

[Deja Q]

14. If it were up to corporations, nobody would have a job.

[Patiod]

16. wow - you sound like a friend of mine who works for PA EPA

Except you're way more qualified

[asthmaticeog]

17. That's something that's bugging the shit out of me lately.

With 8 years in publication design, if I want to change jobs (I'm not there yet, but I feel it starting to creep up sometimes) nobody's going to want to hear about it unless it's another print pub. And even then people have ridiculously specific expectations. A few years ago I spoke with a book publisher about doing cover art on a freelance basis, and he declined to even discuss it with me much because "book cover design is a different skill-set from magazine cover design." WHAT. THE. FUCK? My first job (not counting paper routes) was as a dishwasher in a Chinese restaurant. The way some of these hiring dolts think, I should "logically" still be doing that. :grr:

[EstimatedProphet]

19. Exactly

I was hoping it would be better than with the feds. With them, you're not at all qualified for a job unless you have worked that EXACT same job already!

[EstimatedProphet]

21. BTW if I ever get my novel published I want you to do the cover art

[asthmaticeog]

22. Deal.

[DS1]

18. Because they're all self-absorbed douche-bags

I went to a corporate recruiter type a few months ago, I could tell from the moment we sat down that she thought she was doing ME a favor, then she called me up while I was driving home and said she'd knocked 25% off the hourly rate she said she'd sell me for, because my skills "weren't that strong" - despite never having actually seen anything I've done.

So I got a real job, and a few weeks later she calls up with a contract position somewhere, says if I'm lucky I might be able to find a temporary job at best, maybe something entry level. It was ~~very~~ good to tell her to jam it ( or words to that effect ) but "sure, keep looking, I'm always open!" :D

Good luck finding something, you sound like a smaht dude!

[EstimatedProphet]

20. When it's dark, sometimes a ray of light shines through...

I was doing a search on a job website when I came across a job at a zoo for someone to maintain it's aquarium systems. As it happens I have done just that in a previous job. Maybe this will lead somewhere.