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Why Getting a Job is So Difficult

The Life of a Student

By Daniel EvePublished 6 years ago 5 min read
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You can't live without money and to make money, you need a job. Well what if you cannot get a job?

At school, we are told we need "qualifications" and I quote that because having qualifications is poppycock. People do not care about qualifications, they care about experience.

I've been looking for a job now for two weeks straight. Every day I have been on job-seeking websites, I've applied in store, I've done research on what I can do for money but I still do not have a job. A lot of the time, my applications do not pass the first stage and that is sending an application form and CV. I have constantly been unsuccessful - meaning they get viewed but then ignored because they think I do not fit their criteria, or they think I do not have all the skills that they are looking for.

The first job that passed the first stage was for Greggs, that place where they make freshly cooked sausage rolls and other pastry goods, and I was sent an e-mail asking if I could attend an interview. I thought it was going well but then the interview date was on a Tuesday.

Every day of the week, I am usually free, except for Tuesdays and Wednesdays because I'd be at college (but now I have finished). In the e-mail, they left their contact details which included a telephone number. I spent numerous attempts trying to call the number, but I was not getting through. So I left them an e-mail explaining that I'm at college and it's my final week, and I asked if I could be interviewed at another time but they did not get back to me.

I continued to apply for jobs on-line and in stores, and then my next successful application was for Hollywood Bowl. They e-mailed me saying I had been successful and they wanted me to come in for an interview, so I dressed up in a suit and wore smart shoes that blistered my feet and when I got there, there were a few other people whose applications had been successful and we were all waiting to be seen to. I was speaking to everyone to prove I have communication skills and I brought over a jug of water for everyone because I was thirsty and I thought it would be selfish to not offer everyone else water, so I got a jug looking back, I have proved to have people skills and that I care about others. I was taken away from everyone and I had a one to one with an assistant manager (or something like that) and he asked me questions like "what's your long term career goal?", "why did you apply for the job?" and I answered them. I left thinking I did well, that I had the job - but a few days later, I found out I had been unsuccessful.

Shortly after that, I received a call from Debenhams and I was confused because the lady on the telephone said "Is this Daniel? You've recently applied for a role at Debenhams..." and I was confused because I didn't remember applying for Debenhams, so I went along with it and said, "yeah, I did" and then she said I had passed the application process and then she did a telephone application. The telephone interview went well and then afterwards she said she would like to interview me in person and we arranged a date and time. A couple days later, I went to Debenhams. The e-mail said to go at the woman's till and ask for advisor - so I went there ten minutes early and I waited in a queue of two people - didn't think it would take long, but the people on the tills were being awful. It was like they didn't know what to do. There was so much kerfuffle and when I eventually got seen to, I was five minutes late to the interview. The lady at the till didn't know what to do, she didn't know what I was talking about, so I showed her the e-mail, she took me upstairs to the staff area and then I waited around for another five minutes. She tried to get me to sign in but my name was not on the register and then finally, my interviewer walks in and calls my name. And then she said, "I didn't think you were coming today?" - why on Earth would she think that after we agreed to meet at 11 o'clock on whatever day it was and she sent an e-mail to confirm that as well. And by the time I was interviewed, I answered the questions and then soon after I received an e-mail saying that the interview process was not successful. Everything she asked me in the interview was everything she asked me over the phone - so why was the phone interview successful and the in-person interview not?

I continued to look for jobs and after finding out Next was hiring, I applied there. Like with Debenhams, I get an unexpected call and an immediate telephone interview. The interview was successful and then an in-person interview was arranged immediately. Maybe they liked me and liked what I had to offer, so they wanted me to come in ASAP - or that's what I thought. The boss asked me questions and I answered everything honestly and it went well. Then she made me do a task, to see how I'd get on with it and she was assessing me, and in the meantime we were having a great conversation and we were laughing, it was great fun. After a successful hour or so, she said that there were other candidates and she needed to give them a chance, and she said that she would get in touch by next Friday via a phone call. Well Friday has been now, and I haven't been told anything. I hope I have been hired but it seems like I have not.

I continue to apply for jobs and I continue to fail at passing the application stage. I was hoping to have a job before June, but it looks like I have failed to do that.

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