[notsurenymore]

> Do people really apply for hundreds of jobs?

I’ve done it twice. The first time was when I was 18 or 19 trying to get my first job in the industry. I put in a ton of applications, and while it felt tedious, it only took around three months at the end of the day.

The second time was this time. I’ve probably put at least 100 applications in over the past year, and it’s been very hit or miss on whether I get interviews. I don’t bother researching and applying for the few jobs in interested in, because I’m usually not qualified for them. Most of my recent job applications have been exclusively ones that looks like they’re relevant compared to my resume, and some that are different from the work I’ve done in the past, but utilize tangential skills.

[MattPalmer1086]

Yes, I can see that working early in a career. Now that I think of it, my best friend did exactly that too when he was 19, and he managed to get his foot in the door.

For what it's worth I think your current strategy of applying for relevant jobs is the right one, particularly if it's a difficult market where you are. Tangential skills are also good possibilities. I hope you find something that works for you.

[bluGill]

When you are fresh out of college you don't stand out. A few months ago we had 100 applicants for an entry level programming position. Every applicant was finishing their bachelors (a couple in CS, the rest in computer engineering) in June. They all had done some internship (in a not very relevant area but that is expected) and a class project. Almost all of them were Eagle scouts (until recently scouts only allowed boys so this is indirectly an assessment of boy/girl ratio of applicants and thus illegal for me to care about). It was really hard to filter down who to interview because they all look the same and we only had one position. As such spaming your resume is the best bet when fresh from school.

When you have been our of school for a while we get a few resumes with interesting experience that can make a few people stand out. Most probably have standout experience, but it doesn't come out in the resume.

[MattPalmer1086]

Most people are terrible at writing resumes. We used to joke that we would throw half the resumes in the bin immediately on the grounds that we didn't want to employ unlucky people!

The biggest mistake I see for people with experience is that they describe their role and responsibilities but not what they specifically contributed and why they are awesome.

The best advice I was ever given is that your resume is a marketing document. It should contain things you would like to be asked about in an interview. Cut out everything else.

[BeFlatXIII]

> It was really hard to filter down who to interview because they all look the same and we only had one position

Did you make up some BS metrics, or did you do the honest thing and draw résumés from a hat?

[MattPalmer1086]

From my experience, when you have too many similar resumes there are no useful metrics you can define. You just have to choose some to interview and bin the rest.

[BeFlatXIII]

That's pretty much what I meant by "do the honest thing and draw some from a hat", thanks for the information.

[bluGill]

That was my bosses problem. If we have more than 10 résumés he filters them and tells me. He used to be technical so he can filter well enough and I can focus on real work not hiring.