One tactic that worked for me in the past: do things to make yourself stick out from all the other candidates.
For example, say you are considering a job doing software at a bank, take a day or 2 and build a demo bank app, and then mention that in the email/cover letter. This will set you apart.
It will also help during the interview phase. You'd likely be viewed as taking initiative, being interested in their field, and having some experience.
It also helps to examine things from the perspective of the person doing the hiring. What do they want? What incentivizes them? They probably have stacks of resumes and they're probably just glancing through them. They might be afraid of making a bad choice. They probably want a safe decision.
One way to make them feel "safer" is to find jobs through folks at meetups or conferences. Your chance of getting hired via introduction/recommendation (warm open) is much higher compared to emailing a resume (cold open).
Hi Joshua!
Thank you for this, it's very helpful! I have been attending more meetups (prior to everything going on right now), and have had a few interviews through referrals from people I've met at meetups so I totally agree with that tip too. I'll look into narrowing down some companies that really catch my eye and see what I can try to build to send with my application, I think this is a really great idea!
Thanks so much!
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Hi Sarah,
One tactic that worked for me in the past: do things to make yourself stick out from all the other candidates.
For example, say you are considering a job doing software at a bank, take a day or 2 and build a demo bank app, and then mention that in the email/cover letter. This will set you apart.
It will also help during the interview phase. You'd likely be viewed as taking initiative, being interested in their field, and having some experience.
It also helps to examine things from the perspective of the person doing the hiring. What do they want? What incentivizes them? They probably have stacks of resumes and they're probably just glancing through them. They might be afraid of making a bad choice. They probably want a safe decision.
One way to make them feel "safer" is to find jobs through folks at meetups or conferences. Your chance of getting hired via introduction/recommendation (warm open) is much higher compared to emailing a resume (cold open).
Hope that helps, good luck on your search,
Hi Joshua!
Thank you for this, it's very helpful! I have been attending more meetups (prior to everything going on right now), and have had a few interviews through referrals from people I've met at meetups so I totally agree with that tip too. I'll look into narrowing down some companies that really catch my eye and see what I can try to build to send with my application, I think this is a really great idea!
Thanks so much!