Applying for jobs can be a huge drain on self confidence. After many, many applications that go nowhere, doubt creeps in. Is it me? Is my resume not good enough? Is there a typo in my cover letter? Is all of the experience I’ve accumulated just not enough for this position? Am I such a colossal screw up that no one wants to hire me for anything?
Or is it just that I’m not in the right location?
In the past couple of weeks, I have been applying to many jobs. Nearly all of which are out of state. I’m young, and while I am fond of my home state (North Carolina makes some pretty messed up decisions though), I want to experience something new. Something with fewer pine trees, maybe. Certainly less Cheerwine (I think I’m the only NC native that just can’t stand the taste). I want cities. I want history. I want change.
More importantly, the type of jobs I am looking for (assistant editor, copywriter, content creator, digital editor, really anything with words) are not found in great abundance here. There are a few positions in bigger cities, but certainly not any in my home town. And most of those positions want 5+ years of editorial experience, which I don’t have (even if you count all those internships and jobs, I’ve only got about 3 years under my belt). So I’m looking far beyond these roads for my dream entry level position: in New York, in Washington DC, in Charleston. But I’m not hearing back. And I doubt myself.
It’s hard not to doubt your own abilities when you are sure you are a good fit for this position… and that position… and certainly this one here. (You say you want someone with some InDesign experience, who has knowledge of HTML and can write? Um, hello! Perfect candidate here!) Yet, even though I think I’m perfect, hardly of the HR departments agree with me. I lost a lot of drive for the job search with so many non-responses.
Then, I caught a post on Penguin Teen’s tumblr that said, “It can be difficult to get an interview if you don’t live within reasonable commuting distance to New York, yes.” Which is definitely disappointing, but not at all surprising. There are a multitude of reasons that companies don’t want people who live hundreds of miles away interviewing for their jobs. According to an about.com article on the how-to’s of long distance job searching, “Employers save on relocation costs and interview travel costs by hiring from their local area. ” And an advice article from LiveCareer.com outright states that “employers often hesitate to make offers to applicants if their acceptance will be contingent on a complicated relocation process.” Location definitely matters. According to Forbes.com, location might matter even more than degree in determining how much you get, and new companies are more likely to start in locations where there are already a lot of jobs. Which means: 1.) No innovative company is going to start up or relocate to a small town even though they have fewer taxes and less competition, and 2.) As an entry level candidate, I’m qualified, but I’m certainly not worth paying money to move to the company’s location – there are plenty of recent college graduates in the area, and it’s not that hard to train someone.
So what should a job applicant like myself do in this situation? Leave my address off of my resume? Move to an expensive city without a job and hope one comes? Explicitly state on my resume and in my cover letters that I will relocate at my own expense, and hope that companies don’t think I am desperate? Only apply to job openings in North Carolina?
I’m not sure. There is a lot of conflicting advice about what you should do if you are long-distance job searching. Penguin suggested internal referrers, which is great if you know people in the field or have connections through alumni and friends. I don’t. And experience is great for showing that you would be valuable. But for entry level workers, it’s difficult because we don’t have to “real world” experience that companies would pay relocation fees for. But a lot of articles (like this one from Northwestern) seem to agree that you need to network (oh joy), state that you are willing to relocate, and really take the initiative in following up.
I guess that is the advice I will be following. Does that mean it actually was my resume this whole time?
My Life in Stasis 