I'm. So. Tired. Of this.

The BBQ Pit
1

I’ve been unemployed for a few months.

What doesn’t help is that I live in the state that apparently has the highest unemployment rate in the nation, and right next to the state that has the second highest unemployment rate in the nation.

It also doesn’t help that I’m an audiologist, a fairly narrow field with only so many new jobs in that area to go around.

Nor does it help that I’m relatively new to the field…got my master’s degree in 1999, and my certification in 2000.

But goddamn does it have to be so fucking hard to get a new job in this field?

Today I just found out that a job I applied for in Vancouver, WA was filled a few weeks ago…the application deadline for that job was May 15th, and I sent mine in when the listing was first posted in February. I called them today to inquire when they might be doing interviews, since the deadline has now passed, and find out instead that the job had already been filled for some time.

Every job application I complete is met with total silence. It’s this silence that is so frustrating, so annoying. I’m sure that what’s burning me is my relative newness to the field, and that virtually every job I apply for has another applicant that has been doing it for longer than I have?

Can’t get the job without the experience, can’t get the experience without the job. Possibly the nastiest catch-22 I’ve ever faced.

In the last month or so, I’ve applied for jobs in Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis, New York, Tampa, Orlando, Cincinnati, and Washington, D.C.

Result: silence, and it’s really getting old.

What was the point of me working my ass off in college and graduate school? What was the point of working my ass off in the internships and clinical fellowship, if only to be ignored so utterly when I was done? What, in short, is the point of trying? At the risk of sounding immodest, I’m good at what I do, but I’m not being given a chance to prove it.

I’m tired of this shit. Tired of the stress, tired of the insomnia, tired of spending hours every day hunting for new listings on the Internet, tired of being fucking ignored.

Fuck it all.

2

I know you don’t want to hear this when you spent all that time and money on your education, but take another job in another field, just to keep your sanity! Even temping would give you time to job hunt while still working at SOMETHING…just so’s you don’t go nuts.

3

Ya got my sympathies, man.

Should we have a “Drown Atreyu’s Sorrows PortaDope?” Me and Bumbazine and Czarcasm will get you good and liquored up, and you can tell us all about it.:slight_smile:

4

First question, did you research the job opportunities and pay scales for this career before you went to school for it? I know it might be cruel for me to bring it up but too many people fail to do this.

Second, it has been my experience that people are too narrow focused to their degrees when they get out of school. A very wise person told me when I graduated that “There are many jobs out there that you would be good at AND YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW THEY EXIST AND CAN’T IMAGINE WHAT THEY WOULD BE”. I know that turned out to be true for me. Look for related jobs that you can ‘spin’ your expertise into being given a chance. This is hard but it can be done.

Also, I’ve had some luck sending off resumes into the void but only after I’ve racked up some experience. The best offers came from hearing about it through other people in the field I’ve met while working. The firing off resumes into the void needs to be done but you can’t rely on it. Visit places you’d like to work and ask for ‘informational interviews’ where you can pick peoples brains that do what you want to do or would be in charge of hiring. I’ve had people do that with me and I love talking with them. Some times, I will know of openings and will inform them and get them together.

It’s very hard, ego-bashing, disgusting and all that, but it needs to be done.

5

The first reply said it and it’s true, in fact it should be advise given at University or College or whatever…

no matter what you’ve studdied, no matter how well you did. the first thing you do when you leave is get ANY job! THEN start looking for your radiology job. That is the normal way to do it.

It is downright silly to be unemployed and to be looking only for jobs in the field you were educated in. my uni friend is doing it, I keep on telling him “just get ANY job! and then look for a ‘proper’ job”.

I got a degree in Software Engineering, then I moved to the Isle of Man and got a job as a shelf stacker! Then (after I could be arsed to look) I got a really good job in a flash! An ideal job in fact.

Shopping centres, factories etc… are all full of people with qualifications who are just there while they look for a proper job.

(not that menial jobs aren’t ‘proper’ jobs. I quite enjoyed my time as a shelf stacker)

6

NOTE-The following is an attempt to cheer somebody up with cheap laughs. The advice contained therein should not be taken seriously or internally.

Attreyu, you're missing the obvious. You've got a bizarre degree. You feel ignored by society.  Have you considered becoming a supervillian?

      Just spend some time in your basement ranting and working on schematics. Vibranium is great when designing sonic weapons. The government tries to keep it locked up. But you can occasionaly get a chunk at a yard sale or thrift store. 

  Think up a name. Design a costume and series of crimes based on that name

 Super villains pay no taxes and have a good union. I hope this helps.
7

DocCathode is thinking the right way. Come on…a DEAF audiologist, who can’t get a job? The bitterness and frustration driving you to the edge of madness? I’m sure you can whip up a sonic blaster or something, and of course you’ll be immune. And of course your arch-enemy will probably have super-hearing. After you get a costume (concentric circles work well for sound-based villains), all you need is a hideout. Then work on your dialog: “You LAUGHED at my theories! But now who’s laughing? FOOLS! I’ll destroy you all!”

8

Ummm… does the college you graduated from have placement assistance? I checked out the job listings at this site and there seem to be plenty of auiologist job openings all over the place. www.audiologyonline.com

Some jobs that state “experience” as a must have can often be won with a personal visit (if practical) and some personal salesmanship emphasing your dedication and “can do” spirit. Maybe it’s different for medical related occupations however.

9

I’ve got a Master of Urban Planning degree. That is a specialized field.

10

Is there such a thing as a Master of Rural Planning degree? :cool:

Hell, I got by with a political science degree. :wally

11

I feel you Atreyu, I went through the same thing after graduation. And I hate to tell you this, but it took me over a year before I was in a job that was even remotely related to my degree (Visual and Written Media–could I be any more pretentious? :slight_smile: ) I’d echo everyone else on the take what you can thing. Jobs are like boyfriends–as soon as you have a crappy one, all the good ones start coming out of the woodwork.

Also–are you sure your resume is top notch? In order to compete with others who have way more experience than you, you’re going to have to make the best impression possible with your resume. Check and double check spelling and grammar, choose a layout that stresses those areas you feel strongest in. If your only work history involves college part-time jobs and paper routes, for example, you’d be better off focusing on academic honors, volunteer work, or whatnot. After you send it to a company (always send a paper copy unless they specify not to) call or e-mail a week later to “be sure it got there” and to stress, in person, how much you look forward to an interview. If you get an interview, follow it up with a thank you note. Anything you can do to make yourself stand out of the crowd is a bonus.

You’ve probably heard all this a million times, but I thought I’d try to be helpful. Job hunting sucks. It’s frustrating, humiliating and stressful—I suggest you let Ferrous and crew take you out to get shitfaced. :smiley:
Good Luck,

bella

12

lemme guess you live in oregon? yeah I live in washington and have been out of work for over a year. and to make it more fun I have a back injury that really hurts my ability to just go get any old job that rolls around.

seriously though grab any job you can tolerate and it will do wonders for your attitude.

13

EchoKitty: I have seriously contemplated getting a job outside my field. I just feel that if I do so, it will mean admitting defeat on my part with regards to getting a permanent job in the field that I trained for, and honestly love doing. I figured out when I was a teen that it would be important for me to find a career that I would genuinely love doing, and I found it. I don’t want to leave it for too long.

Ferrous: If you’re up for a get-together, I’m game. Just name the time and place. The only hitch is that for a few days after Memorial Day, I’m going to be busy spending some time with my dad and stepmom, who are going to be visiting from Denver.

BlinkingDuck: I did look into job opportunities and pay scale, and neither aspect concerned me. At the time that I was in grad school, the economy was humming along. Now it’s in a recession, and the timing sucks. As for the field of audiology in general, I’ve read in more than one place that it is supposed to be one of the top fields for the next twenty years in terms of needing more individuals.

lobley: Shelf stacker, eh? Well, there are certain limitations that I’m dealing with here. First, I’ve got a significant college loan to pay off, and the monthly loan payments aren’t cheap. Between that and my living expenses, I pretty much need a full-time job that pays more than an entry-level position.

DocCathode: Has there ever been a deaf supervillain? I ask this in all seriousness.

Lemur866: :slight_smile:

astro: I’m quite familiar with the website you linked to in your post…it’s been bookmarked on my computer for years, and it has been one of the sources for job listings for me. An even better source has been websites like HospitalWeb.com and HospitalSoup.com.

elmwood: I’m at a loss for words. Really. At my alma mater they had a pretty sizable Urban Planning school, and I’ve always wondered what students did with those degrees. Seriously, I’m not being snide or anything…

belladonna: I’ve gone over my resume with a fine-toothed comb to make sure there aren’t any embarrasing errors in it. I always print it on high-quality resume paper. As for following up after sending in resumes/applications, I’m going to start being more aggressive in that department…if only they will ANSWER ME.

Critical1: Yep, I’m in Oregon. As much as I love Portland (I’ve lived here for 18 years), it seems certain that I’ll have to move out of state for my next audiology job, and that will suck.

14

Lemme see-
The Pied Piper IIRC- A rich, deaf man tries to invent a way to hear. His study of sounds leads to the creation of all kinds of bizarre flutes.

 Shriek-Dr Shreeve hearing is destroyed in his first fight with Batman. He later modifies his battlesuit so that he can hear while wearing it. Out of the suit he remains deaf.

I’ve gotta check the Vibranium entries.

  Blindness, however, is common amongst super villians. Crazy Quilt, Snowblind, The Mole Man, Castenado, etc

   I can only think of one deaf super hero. One of Don Simpson's Bizarre Heroes is a woman with a suit that allows her to see and ride sound waves.
15

Atreyu, isn’t audiology related to speech language pathology? I know that where I live there is a constant need for speech language pathologists in the school systems. I assume they work with kids with hearing/speech disabilities. Have you considered going for one of those jobs? I know that right now (Spring) is prime time for school districts to do their recruiting for the start of the new school year.

Just a thought…

16

greenlady, audiology does have a strong relationship to speech-pathology…in fact, the certification for both fields is handled by the same professional organization, the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association. Dual certification is fairly uncommon, though.

Before I entered grad school, I had to decide which area I was going to specialize in. It wasn’t that hard to decide. Speech pathology, by definition, means that I would be often working with individuals who have disorders of speech or langauge. As someone born with a severe-to-profound hearing loss, I expend enough effort already keeping up with those who have normal speech and hearing.

17

Atreyu, I just wanted to second the advice on looking outside your field. I started out a translator and interpreter, a career I decided on when I was a teenager. I’ve got a B.A. in Japanese, an internship in German translation, a bunch of years working in Japanese tourism, and a Kobe accent. About 12 years ago, I got a job which, in addition to translating communication between us and the home office in Japan, wound up including using and eventually programming dBase, a database language. When I moved back to the mainland several years later, I started of temping doing admin/computer work, and I’m now a software developer and database specialist. I loved translation and still try to keep a hand in, but I love being a programmer even more. There’s also a lot more of a market for programming here than there is Japanese translation.

That said, I do sympathize with your frustration. It took me a year to find my first real job where I could work with Japanese and that was in Hawaii. At the time, I was working for a McDonalds in Pennsylvania.

Good luck!
CJ

18

I agree it totally sucks being unemployed. I went through it after college, and it’s so frustrating.

For what it’s worth, it also sucks to be employed. I hustled for months and got a job. Then I worked for “the man” for five years. The five most freakin’ miserable years of my life.

Anyway, I realize that you didn’t post to the Pit asking for advice, but I’ll throw some your way anyway. Getting a job is like picking up girls. Even an ugly guy can get plenty of girls, but you have to (1) approach lots of girls; (2) approach them in a way so that it’s uncomfortable for them to turn you down. (That means face-to-face, or at least on the phone); (3) act as if you believe you are God’s gift to women; and (4) not be afraid of rejection.

19

I guess I’ll throw my two cents in the pot as well. From everything I’ve been hearing, the markets that are going to explode in the next couple years are markets that are geared to the aging Boomers, and from what I understand, virtually everyone’s hearing gets worse as they get older. If your field of audiology includes geriatric audiology, I would say you will just have to bide your time a little bit until you become a hot commodity. Which doesn’t help right now, I understand, but don’t give up hope. That’s what I keep telling myself; soon these Boomers will all retire, and some jobs will open up for the rest of us.

20

Geez, Atreyu I’m sorry I didn’t see this thread earlier, but I don’t do vanity searches or visit the pit very often, and I’ve been a little pre-occupied lately. You see, I got laid off from my job Mon. morning. And I’ve seen exactly 2 adverts for RPG programmers locally since Christmas, So I could be in a tight spot soon as well. At least I can honestly say “I feel your pain” with some degree of sincerity.
Anyway, my friend, I’d be happy to buy you a brew or two and commisserate, anytime you feel like it. It’ll have to be after Memorial Day however, as I’m booked through then. And my e-mail addy is still in my profile, if you want to vent some more.

Ferrous, Czarcasm, et. al. ? Who’s in?