Advice on breaking out of long-term unemployment

ok387

I'm late twenties and I've barely worked, due to mainly an anxiety disorder (I've had treatment for it now). I've been in college for the past few years, about to get my degree. I've tried to get work during the summer for the past two years, but haven't got anywhere. Most of the time I get ignored, I'm pretty sure it's my CV, one look at my terrible work history and it's in the bin. When I do get interviews I'm probably not great at them.

I'm starting to get really depressed about my situation, I'm considering lying on my CV which I obviously don't want to do. But I'm sort of desperate now to get out of this situation. Any other things I could do? I'm assuming that applying online probably won't get me anywhere, due to the lack of experience. My confidence is really low. I'm intelligent, honest, hard-working, but I can't even get a dead-end job. I've worked really hard at my degree, but I'm starting to get really depressed that I'll be one the dole forever. What can I do? I know I've made big mistakes and it's my own fault (believe me, I know).

uck51js9zml2yt

What area of work do you want to be in?
Can you get on a job interview,/CV prep course through social welfare.

Airyfairy12

I was in your situation for years, what really helped me was doing lots of volunteer work and getting connected to different people who in the end really helped me out by giving me great references and a few of them even passed my contact information onto people they knew who were looking for staff which landed me (temporary) jobs but they were very valuable as they provided me with experience and I still get texts from some of them asking if im available to work over summer ect or theyre looking for staff, some of the jobs were related to my degree, some weren't but you take what you can get.

Upskill with evening and part time courses, you could do a Celta or Celt (cheaper version but just as good) and you'll walk into a job teaching English. The main thing though is to get connected with people as it seems like its the only way to get employment these days.

Can you try and get into a CE scheme or fas course?

Its not your fault, its more common than you think.

ok387

tatranska, I'm looking for any work at the minute, mostly retail or restaurant work, I'd take anything just to get my foot on the ladder. I've done courses like that, so I think I'm ok with CVs and interviews.

Airyfairy12: thanks for the advice on volunteer work. I will try to get some, it's just annoying you can't volunteer on JSA. Did you mean volunteer work specifically related to your field of study? About getting a job through connections, apart from mentioning that I'm looking for work to people I know, I don't really know how to do that. Friends have offered to give my CV to their manager etc but that got me nowhere.

I don't want to do a FAS course, I think they're a waste of time for the most part, and wouldn't help me right now. Thanks for telling me I'm not the only one is this situation, because I really feel like I am.

Loveinapril

ok387 wrote: »

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Airyfairy12: thanks for the advice on volunteer work. I will try to get some, it's just annoying you can't volunteer on JSA. Did you mean volunteer work specifically related to your field of study? .

You can volunteer for a few hours a week without it impacting your JSA and at least you will have a professional reference out of it. It is hard to guide you in the right direction without knowing what you are studying. I have nearly always volunteered while working full time so it is doable.

Did you do a degree that leads you into a job/career you want to do, or was it a hobby/interest degree? If it's the first, then I'd be applying for internships.

Airyfairy12

ok387 wrote: »

tatranska, I'm looking for any work at the minute, mostly retail or restaurant work, I'd take anything just to get my foot on the ladder. I've done courses like that, so I think I'm ok with CVs and interviews.

Airyfairy12: thanks for the advice on volunteer work. I will try to get some, it's just annoying you can't volunteer on JSA. Did you mean volunteer work specifically related to your field of study? About getting a job through connections, apart from mentioning that I'm looking for work to people I know, I don't really know how to do that. Friends have offered to give my CV to their manager etc but that got me nowhere.

I don't want to do a FAS course, I think they're a waste of time for the most part, and wouldn't help me right now. Thanks for telling me I'm not the only one is this situation, because I really feel like I am.

I was on jobseekers for years, some of the volunteer work was related to my degree area but most of it wasnt, a lot of it was volunteering in centres answering phones and doing receptionist duties and making tea for people but employers are always impressed by it and ask more about my volunteer work than my employment history. You can volunteer on Jobseekers.

You make connections through volunteering and odd jobs, you become known to people who run the centres and the agencies, if you make a good impression they'll remember you and have no problem helping you out in the future. You wont need to seek them out, you'll meet them when you volunteer or work small jobs and you'll interact with them regularly. Thats how you make connections.

ok387

Basil3 wrote: »

Did you do a degree that leads you into a job/career you want to do, or was it a hobby/interest degree? If it's the first, then I'd be applying for internships.

It was a 'useful' degree yes, that can lead to a job. However I'm intending to do a masters to further specialise, so after that I finish that I can definitely build a career directly related to my studies. That's why I would like to get a non-professional job now, just so I have some recent experience on my CV to bridge the huge gap when I do start to apply for jobs related to my field of study. I'm just feeling terrible because there's plenty of work out there, in so called 'dead end jobs' which I can't seem to get. So any advice how to get jobs in shops, supermarkets, office jobs etc would be really helpful to me.

ok387

Airyfairy12 wrote: »

I was on jobseekers for years, some of the volunteer work was related to my degree area but most of it wasnt, a lot of it was volunteering in centres answering phones and doing receptionist duties and making tea for people but employers are always impressed by it and ask more about my volunteer work than my employment history. You can volunteer on Jobseekers.

You make connections through volunteering and odd jobs, you become known to people who run the centres and the agencies, if you make a good impression they'll remember you and have no problem helping you out in the future. You wont need to seek them out, you'll meet them when you volunteer or work small jobs and you'll interact with them regularly. Thats how you make connections.

How did you get volunteer work like that? The volunteer centres around the country? I would love to do something like that actually, not just working in a charity shop or whatever.

Loveinapril

ok387 wrote: »

How did you get volunteer work like that? The volunteer centres around the country? I would love to do something like that actually, not just working in a charity shop or whatever.

So many charities need people to help as they are underfunded. Check in with cancer, MS, suicide, children's charities etc. Places you may have an interest in. Explain your skills and the things you can help with. I am in social care, and got a volunteer position on a helpline loosely linked to my job and ended up doing admin stuff for them too. It was a great experience and was discussed at length in the interview for my current job, even though I had way more paid experience. People who volunteer are often seen as really motivated and driven.

Airyfairy12

ok387 wrote: »

How did you get volunteer work like that? The volunteer centres around the country? I would love to do something like that actually, not just working in a charity shop or whatever.

If you ask in your local volunteer centre, most towns have Foróige centres and other youth clubs, theres organisations that have befriending services so you'd be contacting elderly people and checking up on them, homeless shelters need volunteers to work on reception, art centres and galleries use volunteers to work at exhibitions, centres for people with disabilities and eldery people require someone to work on reception and to help out.

Whats your degree in? could you use it to run your own classes or contact places related to your degree and ask for an interview or unpaid work experience?

redshoes15

First thing you need to do is get some type of work experience on your CV. Any prospective employer will look immediately to your most recent job. In my experience all the degrees, diplomas and so on count for nothing if there is no work experience. I echo what Airyfairy has said above, get some volunteer experience if you can't get paid work. It will at least provide you with a reference who can be contacted should a potential employer wish to do so. The days of sticking down a teacher or priests name as a referee are over. Employers want to know how dependable an applicant is, how they mix with others, if they use initiative etc.

Please do not lie on your CV, things are checked and double checked. Always best to give correct information and not get pulled up at interview stage.

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

CroFag

"Please do not lie on your CV, things are checked and double checked. Always best to give correct information and not get pulled up at interview stage."

Many of the people I know got the jobs by exaggerating, even lying about parts of their CV's. Not saying it's OK, just that it's working for them...

tracey turnblad

Just in the fact you don't want to do a Fas course. I was made redundant after 20 years working in a supermarket. I got on a Fas course 2 months later which included work experience. I applied for and got a job in the place I did my work experience and then applied and got a job in both dcc and civil service I had three jobs to pick from...I don't think I would have got them (or had the self belief to go for them) had it not of been for the Fas course and it showed I only had a two month gap on unemployment in my working life