[ermir]

Struggling a lot with the response rate, once I could get one interview in three applications, now it's one in 50. I am hoping that it will pick up this January since everyone is making plans for the entire year. I was told by a manager in a large startup that they plan to complete hiring for the whole year by the end of February, and it might be the case for the entire industry.

[ermir]

For anyone wondering about the best times to apply, conventional wisdom is that January is the best time, since it's planning season for the whole year, and then around August, to get some quick help to reach the end-of-year goals. Of course this is anecdotal and applies in normal circumstances, which I don't think the industry is at.

[busterarm]

A ton of people have the impression that "nobody hires in December" but it's the furthest thing from the truth.

Almost every job I've ever landed I interviewed in December. Just last month I interviewed a dozen people or so for roles in my company. My recruiter friends that I talked to all landed a bunch of offers last month.

Everyone is about to get swarmed with resumes right now but there's a pool out there with a three week headstart and less competition because of the reasoning I mentioned.

[AlotOfReading]

The problem with December is the 2 week scheduling break for holidays as everyone leaves the office. Even if your application is in, you probably aren't scheduling interviews for that whole back half.

[busterarm]

Except we did and all of those employers I interviewed with in December did as well. Not everyone leaves the office.

Late December is a perfect time for interviewing because of code freezes and lack of progress on bigger projects. We had more time to interview than candidates in pipeline during that back half. Plus it's a time of year when generally people are relaxed and in a good mood.

[AlotOfReading]

Your experiences are very different than mine then. I've been interviewing all December and no one was able to schedule for those weeks.

[madamelic]

Did you apply in December?

In my experience, you _can_ get hired but it tends to be much slower. These were all also small companies so only 1 - 2 people were sorting through applications.

[ermir]

Ideally you want to apply all the time, and not wait for the best time. Still, I am hoping that applicants will get some encouragement and try a bit harder in the next few weeks.

[brailsafe]

That's a scary but realistic thought.