I got laid off last week so have begun the dreaded job hunt. Can any of you provide any tips on how to keep track of web sites, searches, interviews, etc., etc? I'm thinking excel, but don't want to reinvent the wheel if I don't have to. Since there's so many on this site, I thought I'd check with my fellow quilters. I would appreciate any suggestions.

First time in 29 years I've been without a job. It's so different now than when I got this job 12 years ago.

Thanks!

Carol, Welcome to my world. I was laid off last week as well. I am keeping track the old fashion way. On a notebook. I have a page and tape there recepits for all the expenses for later use on my taxes. I make a page for each job. write down the dates for interviews, tape the business card of the interviewers and everything related to that job. I use as a header the employer name as well as the job listing # if there is one, or the position name.

This is for my own use, so I don't loose anything I may need later, and I don't apply for the same job twice. I already started the unemployment claim, and since most jobs now a days are applied on line, I have a separte folder on my e-mail for job searches. When I apply for a job on line, I receive back and e-mail comfirming the application, and I save that. The unemployment agency rarely require you show evidence of the job search, but in an audit process you could be requested to show evidence, and I don't want to be caught off guard. In most places you have to register with them as part of the application process, and is not possible to apply for the same position twice.

If you are filling up a Federal application, be prepared for a treat. the process takes at least 1 hour and they need to know everything about you, even if you will never be even considered for the job. The let you know they got the application and that's it. Ah! And for each application you need to fax them your college credit transcript, even though I graduated 26 years ago. I don't think my grade in English 101 matters much now.

I keep one page on my notebook for user IDs and password. Every place has a different requirement for the characters of the password. I had one place requiring a 16 character password using letter, numbers, capitals, and special character.

The process of aplying for a job has been extremely time consuming and complicated. I am 47 yeas old . Who cares which High School I attended and the month of my High School graduation? I don't care to remember which job I held in 1980, when employers mainly care that you have recent experience related to the job you are applying for.

Sorry. I hope I somewhat answered your question and I will get off my soap box now.

When I was job hunting, I had a plain old notebook that I wrote each job I applied for and some info about it on. I included where I saw the job posting, when I applied, website, address, phone number and if there was a contact I sen thte resume to. Then if I got a call about an interview, I had it all right there. I also kept all my application info right in it, such as dates of employment, references, addresses, phone numbers. A lot of that stuff is on a resume, but a lot isn't. I also made notes about if I actually talked to someone and who it was and what we talked about. I could then take the notebook with me if I applied in person somewhere too.

I'm going through exactly the same thing with these places that want ancient transcripts and whatnot. Also, I contracted for a number of years, and do I remember which agency I worked through or the hourly rate for each job? No, and frankly what I was paid is none of their business, but they have you over a barrel when you're applying for a job.

carrieg, I use Excel. Yes, you should keep records, for these reasons:
-- Unemployment requires that you be looking for work. If at any point they question whether you've been doing your part, you need to be able to have the facts ready.
-- It helps you keep all those job descriptions and companies and recruiters straight. Get confused by thinking one recruiter was for the wrong job, and it could lose you credibility, not to mention the job or potential future jobs.
-- It helps you follow up. You can go down your list and see who hasn't gotten back to you and call them.

What to put:
I based by spreadsheet columns on the requirements of PA state's unemployment. The columns:
Date
Company Applied To (if the job is through an agency, I put the agency first, then a slash, then the employer company. You may prefer separate columns for this instead.)
Contact Name & Title
Address
Phone
Email
Website
Job Title
Method of Contact (this was for the unemployment requirement. I don't find it all that useful.)
Results
Other

For Results, it could be anything from a confirmatory email for a web application to a callback, to a scheduled interview, to notification that I didn't get the job. I usually make another row's entry for another contact & just copy the info to the new row.

Other may be notes about the recruiter or manager, any info they pass along, etc.

You may find a different order works best for you or other columns, but this should get you started.

I copy and paste job descriptions into a Word document, which I save in a file for that purpose.

Thanks ladies! It is totally different from the last I looked. At that time I got my job thru the newspaper classifieds.

I have a feeling it will get overwhelming....

My husband has been doing this for over a year. We have a 3-ring binder with all the user names and passwords for the 90 zillion sites he has been on. Also, every actual response he gets has it's own page with all the information on it.

Good luck. It is a mind numbing, disheartening experience.

Welcome to my world too, Carol, which I'm so sorry to see you join.
I've been on unemployment since January '09. Very, very slim pickings in our area.
I'm liking the ideas you're getting, and am going to borrow some of them!
The bestest luck to you!
:)

I've used Excel, too. If you go to the MicroSoft Office website, they even have a template so you don't even have to set one up. If finding a good job were as easy, I'd be much happier!

I'm working part time now, so according to the statistics, I am no longer unemployed, just UNDER employed.

My own job hunting experience has been that ads seldom list company names, and even after interviews, followup is nearly impossible.

Right on my desktop, I keep a copy of my resume, and another sheet with former employers/dates/contact info and school info. Nearly every online app needs the same basic stuff, so I can copy and paste my way through them instead of tediously filling out each one keystroke by keystroke. One site that I've had some good leads from is Indeed.com

Monster and HotJobs are so full of hucksters that they have very little office work for me.

I wanted to add that you could have a special folder in your browser's Favorites section called JobSites where you keep links to the job websites you use.

Like Moonpi, I find Hotjobs - also CareerLink - to be full of scam artists and also people inviting you to interview - for their sales jobs. Often they don't even want to tell you what product you'd be selling, and salary isn't a feature. You either work on commission or you pay for a "starter kit" and then work on commission. IGNORE THESE.

Unlike Moonpi, Monster has always been a major source of job leads for me. My resume is on there (with my contact info set to Confidential, so interested employers and agencies have to email Monster and Monster redirects their emails to me. I can then weed out the junk ones, of which there are few.

How helpful it is for you may depend on your field. I'm in IT, and IT employers are very used to posting jobs and searching for candidates this way. That probably isn't as true for some of the more traditional industries. (Now, having said that, I've gone for months seeing no job posts at all and getting no responses at all when I've sent out feelers. It's been almost 2 years that I've been unemployed.)

Sorry to see you're in Michigan, where things are so hard. You and MollieSue both. What kind of work do you ladies do? And Maride & anyone else?

By the way, carrieg, it may feel overwhelming right now, but once you set up your job hunting system, doing the recordkeeping actually makes things easier.

I was an office manager for a small business, and there's not really been a whole lot, mostly for 15-20 hour a week jobs.
So I'm following this thread for all the great ideas! :)

MollieSue, I'm going to throw out some ideas. You've probably already thought of them all, but in case you haven't...

-- Look at larger companies as well as small businesses. you can be an office manager for a corporation, for one department or whatever.
-- Check colleges and hospitals near you. You might be able to work in the business office, a department office, etc.
-- Consider state government (Civil Service) work. It need not be in office management. It can be anything you meet the requirements for. http://agency.governmentjobs.com/michigan/default.cfm
-- Register with temporary and permanent employment agencies. Try OfficeTeam.com. I don't know where you are, but they have offices in Grand Rapids and K'zoo.

I was in accounting and actually have well-rounded experience - payroll, AR, AP, financial statements. I have only worked for 3 employers in 29 years, so I guess I'm stable. LOL I do know a friend who got a job from monster and I saw a local job on careerbuilder, a site recomended by our tax preparer. The jobskill workshop I went to included a listing of the area's largest employers and their websites, so I plan on checking their sites out for postings. I plan on going to AccountTemps and another temp agency next week.

The news on the radio said jobs were increasing in IT and accounting, so that's encouraging! Otherwise, it's very, very scary. But DH says once he's off medical leave next month, we'll be ok for several months. Nice to have that support.

All good tips! As I am job hunting also, I belong to the UNDER EMPLOYED group, I keep track by a notebook of the who, what, where, when etc details.
Another website to check out for jobs is INDEED.com.
I've not had luck through them yet, but like what they offer better than many other job sites.

Good luck to all who are job hunting.

I am a research laboratory technician. I have done basic research, and supervised an In-vitro fertilization lab. More recently I worked for a major pharmaceutical company as a study toxicologist, basicaly being part of a team doing all the necessary research and writting the reports to present new drugs to the FDA for approval.

I have found tons of jobs in Indeed.com, but many of them entry level, for which I am over qualified. I am afraid of toning down my resume a little for fear of only being offered entry level job, which don't pay enough in science. I already had one interview but they don't want to make it worth. The job is collecting blood from patients with very bad infectious diseases and doing research with the blood, but for too little money. They like the fact that I am bilingual, but don't feel the need to compensate for that too. Right now they have a lot of trouble when a spanish-only patient comes in. I actually helped the day of the interview with a spanish speaking man.

I have also used Medzilla, but no luck yet.

Excel is where I kept mine. It is perfect for putting everything to the phone numbers and dates of interviews, to the results.

Good Luck.

Hi, my name is Sue, I have been unemployed since June 2007 ... I feel like a failure ... does this sound like an AA meeting?

I have been unemployed since June 2007 when the company I worked for closed. I had been their office manager for 15 years. I have looked for a job off and on during the past 5 years. I am lucky enough to have a husband who doesn't mind his "stay at home mom" being a "stay at home wife" - lol. But, that being said, I do miss working at a regular job.

My job was with a school so I was able to drop my children off at their schools, work, and pick them up after school. I had holidays and summers off and I had a boss who understood that family always came first.

I have signed up as a temp for the school districts in the area and have worked very little. I don't think people want to take time off for fear of losing the jobs they have. I did have a dream job last year until I fell down my stairs at home while getting out the door for work and broke my arm. I have spent the past year trying to heal and find another job.

I have a small address book for internet addresses that I keep website information in. I have found it useful to have all my login information in one place. When I apply for a job, I print out the job information and attach a copy of the email I sent when applying. I just keep adding any pertinent information to that.

I have a list of references and job addresses with any information that isn't included on my resume so I don't have to search everywhere for it.

I think one of my biggest frustrations is no face-to-face during the application process - I also resent having to have a college degree to be a receptionist for $10/hour ... really?!?!?

I really have just joined the retired group - I pursue hobbies, volunteer and enjoy being able to do things with my family without having to discuss time off with an employer - do I wish I had a job - yes, but the real truth is I am enjoying not working.

I wish everyone who wanted to work could find a job that would pay a living wage - my daughter lives at home because she doesn't earn enough to support an apartment on her own - she is looking for a better job and possibly a roommate. I will be sad to see her go ... lol

Our son has been unemployed for a little over a year now, thankfully he has skills that allow him to work freelance so he hasn't starved to death yet or moved back home - not that I know where we would put him - now that the kids are "gone" it seems we actually need a bigger house because when they bounce back they bring more stuff with them than they had when they left ...

I am just thankful that we can offer them a roof over their heads when they need it while they get back on their feet.

what was the template called in microsoft for keeping track of job hunts? I've been looking on their site but am perplexed. Ah, i think i found some.