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As someone who is currently applying to jobs, this is a very important question and the answers are, unfortunately, exactly what I expected: everyone's experien
by ragnese 9y ago
As someone who is currently applying to jobs, this is a very important question and the answers are, unfortunately, exactly what I expected: everyone's experience and suggestions are totally different.
Which sucks, because I really wanted to figure out what I'm doing wrong. I'm still fairly new to the field, and I don't have a vast network to tap into (which is what it seems like most people here prefer to do).
So here I am, thinking that my resume/CV is actually starting to look nice (PhD in a hard science where I spent the whole time doing/writing Monte Carlo simulations and analyzing data, plus 1.5 years at a tech startup doing backend and Android dev, plus proficiency in many languages, SQL, etc), and I'm getting almost no interest in my applications. I had one local guy contact me and one corporate job that made me take an SAT-style online test and a "personality test" that I guess I failed because I haven't heard back after that.
I think I've sent out nearly 30 applications in the last couple of months. I've been mostly sending them out via Indeed and WeWorkRemotely.com. Is this field really that competitive? I'm not even getting to the "perform like a trained monkey" interview questions- I don't get any responses at all!
I can't imagine that my cover letters are all _that_ bad. I mean, I try to customize them to each job. I try to keep them brief.
It's just all really, really discouraging.
- user5994461 9y agoWhere do you live? Would you mind to tell more about you? If you do heavy maths like what you appear to do, I'd suggest you go for a finance company to become a quant.
- ragnese 9y agoWell, my location is definitely a limiting factor. I live in Florida- and not even Miami. That's why I've been mostly trying to find remote postings. I'm a great remote worker- my PhD work was as part of an international collaboration where I mostly worked with a few people in California and Texas, and my current job is remote. Finding a quant position is probably what I need to do. Any suggestions on how to break into that?
- user5994461 9y agoFirst thing first. It's time for you to consider moving to a larger city. There are only a few places in the world that have companies in need of these skills. I'd recommend you try to get in touch with finance companies through either your university network, job fair or acquaintance. If not possible, try to go through recruiters or apply directly.
- nanospeck 9y agoI recommend you try to remove the PhD from your qualification and apply for some jobs. I know a friend who concealed that he has a PhD. He wouldn't get a job because he is overqualified for most of them (and companies think they have to pay him a lot). Just give it a try.