Survey Sunday Roundup: The Job Search And What We Hate

So my progeeks, we focused on what you hate in the job search last week!

1. What part of the job search do you hate the most?

  • Making a Resume – 9.1%
  • Making a Cover Letter – 45.5%
  • Actually hitting the job boards and the like – 54.5%
  • The actual interview – 18.2%
  • Submitting/making portfolios and supporting materials – 18.2%
  • Networking – 18.2%
  • All the paperwork no matter what – 36.4%
  • Going through hoops to get the real interview – 63.6%

This was a bit surprising for me- I figured there'd be more hatred of networking and making a resume.  So this gave me some food for thought.

We also had some specific comments:

  • "Difficulty in staying optimistic"
  • "Applying to jobs I know I don't want but I still apply because I need a job."
  • "Going through hoops to restate what's already in the resume." – I get this, some job applicaiton processes are really repetitious.
  • "Waiting to hear back from applications"
  • "actually having to work after getting hired."
  • "The wait for a response is what kills me."

2. What elements of the job interview do you think we geeky types can do better than average – due to knowledge, technology, etc.

  • Making a Resume – 23.1%
  • Making a Cover Letter – 30.8%
  • Actually hitting the job boards and the like – 46.2%
  • The actual interview – 7.7%
  • Submitting/making portfolios and supporting materials – 69.2%
  • Networking – 30.8%
  • All the paperwork no matter what – 23.1%
  • Going through hoops to get the real interview – 7.7%

I really wasn't sure what to expect here, though the high response rate on portfolios and support materials does make sense.

We had one additional comment:

"Research is a big advantage for geeks, and I think it can be leveraged."

Sounds like we might have some specific posts to cover these areas  . . . any volunteers?

Steven Savage