How long did it take you to get a job in your field?

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

I'm just at the start of applying for jobs. I'm a Pharmaceutical/Analytical chemist from Sweden with good education and work experience. However I've read on here that even qualified ppl in universal fields have sometimes not found work for over a year.

I'm curious to know other VJ'ers experiences to get a bit of a feeling.

1. How long did it take you?

2. What's your profession?

3. Where are you from?

4. Where do you live?

Also interested in general tips and tricks if there are any

[JenniferNangel 137]

My husband is a computer tec (I believe that's what it's called he fixes computers)

It took him 3 weeks to find his current job doing inventory in a warehouse. He(with my help ?)applied at a munch of other jobs online with no luck at all. He never expected to find a in his field and settled on anything mainly because our daughter was due in December. My advice would be to apply anything related to your field,even know my husband was working in a different country he had no work experience here and that's what most employers are looking for.

Good luck

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

My husband is a computer tec (I believe that's what it's called he fixes computers)

It took him 3 weeks to find his current job doing inventory in a warehouse. He(with my help ?)applied at a munch of other jobs online with no luck at all. He never expected to find a in his field and settled on anything mainly because our daughter was due in December. My advice would be to apply anything related to your field,even know my husband was working in a different country he had no work experience here and that's what most employers are looking for.

Good luck

This is the kind of story I've been seeing that has been discouraging me a bit and making me rly worry... Where is your husband's degree from? Don't get me wrong I think it's great that be actually got a job at all for your family's sake! I'm just really set on the kind of job I want and I'm scared I'll be getting disappointed... Before my move ppl were telling me I shouldn't have a problem with my degrees and such... but recently I've seen more of these posts... I guess also it's frustrating to not know what to expect...and im sort of a worrier by nature, I like to be prepared! Hahahaha Edited December 26, 2016 by Suss&Camm

[EmilyW 1,222]

I'm just at the start of applying for jobs. I'm a Pharmaceutical/Analytical chemist from Sweden with good education and work experience. However I've read on here that even qualified ppl in universal fields have sometimes not found work for over a year.

I'm curious to know other VJ'ers experiences to get a bit of a feeling.

1. How long did it take you?

2. What's your profession?

3. Where are you from?

4. Where do you live?

Also interested in general tips and tricks if there are any

1. Five weeks

2. Auditor

3. Australia

4. Charlotte

I made sure my resume was in a US format (including Americanized spelling), networked via LinkedIn (to meet people and to learn what the local job market is looking for / values), and I had realistic expectations (I more aimed for a role in a company I wanted to work for, rather than aim for an equivalent position. I figured it was easier to prove my worth once I was in the door, rather than outside of it).

I also made sure we were living in a location where my skills were in demand. It meant I ended up having a choice between three different offers.

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

1. Five weeks

2. Auditor

3. Australia

4. Charlotte

I made sure my resume was in a US format (including Americanized spelling), networked via LinkedIn (to meet people and to learn what the local job market is looking for / values), and I had realistic expectations (I more aimed for a role in a company I wanted to work for, rather than aim for an equivalent position. I figured it was easier to prove my worth once I was in the door, rather than outside of it).

I also made sure we were living in a location where my skills were in demand. It meant I ended up having a choice between three different offers.

Wow 5 weeks is really great! Your strategy evidently payed off for you... and having 3 offers sounds like a problem I wouldn't mind

Thank you for your answer and tips... I'm gonna work at the resume...seen more ppl offer that advice and back homE we had the long CV's.

[EmilyW 1,222]

Yeah my Australian resume was 8 pages long. Here I got it down to 3 and even 3 is too long, but my particular niche is specialized and I knew from my contacts that my achievements, skill set, experience mattered and needed to be articulated so that potential employers knew I could get the job done.

That's why networking is so important. Each job market / location is different. Meeting people in your field will give you insider information on what they want to see: you can then adjust your approach accordingly. I knew I could get away with 3 pages here in Charlotte, but I may not even get a call in another market.

[dub42 17]

1. Started work 8 weeks after arriving in US. Probably spent 3 looking for work/interviewing

2. Software Engineer

3. Ireland

4. Detroit

Edited December 27, 2016 by dub42

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

1. Started work 8 weeks after arriving in US. Probably spent 3 looking for work/interviewing

2. Software Engineer

3. Ireland

4. Detroit

That was also rather quickly.. I mean I know that with a GC you can work right away but nice to know that you Irish education/work history was considered as good for the US, since Comp. Eng. is also a universal field.

Did you find the interviewing process similar to where you are from?

[dub42 17]

That was also rather quickly.. I mean I know that with a GC you can work right away but nice to know that you Irish education/work history was considered as good for the US, since Comp. Eng. is also a universal field.

Did you find the interviewing process similar to where you are from?

yeah i actually did some ground work before we moved over. i made some connections on linkedin and did some research, applied for roles and did phone interviews from ireland.

in the end the companies that made me offers were ones I didn't apply to until I arrived in the US. I find the process here was a little slow but otherwise it was quite similar to home ( Ireland has a lot of US companies and I have worked for some before). Interviews pretty straight forward, nothing out of the ordinary. I think having US companies on my resume helped me alot (some company told me they wouldnt hire anyone who hadn't worked in america before :S). My bachelors is from a decent university in Ireland but wouldnt be known internationally that much but it wasn't ever an issue thankfully.

I am enjoying the job, people work longer hours here and get less holidays but the volume of the work is the same at home.

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

yeah i actually did some ground work before we moved over. i made some connections on linkedin and did some research, applied for roles and did phone interviews from ireland.

in the end the companies that made me offers were ones I didn't apply to until I arrived in the US. I find the process here was a little slow but otherwise it was quite similar to home ( Ireland has a lot of US companies and I have worked for some before). Interviews pretty straight forward, nothing out of the ordinary. I think having US companies on my resume helped me alot (some company told me they wouldnt hire anyone who hadn't worked in america before :S). My bachelors is from a decent university in Ireland but wouldnt be known internationally that much but it wasn't ever an issue thankfully.

I am enjoying the job, people work longer hours here and get less holidays but the volume of the work is the same at home.

Yes, work-life balance isn't as "balanced" as I've understood. Back home it's more of a "happy employee produces better at work" sort of attitude along with very strong labor unions, which makes for a good balance. I will miss the vacation days for sure, since in Sweden we have 5 weeks payed by law and many jobs have 6 weeks plus payed holidays... I'm hoping the transition won't be too hard

I've been considering the LinkedIn networking route... my concern has been that companies might think this takes up time from them.. How did you go about this?

I have my eye set on a company... that has financial backing and some scientific collaborations with the international company I worked for back home... I haven't applied since I don't have the EAD yet, but I just saw they have a perfect position out... aaaahrrrrggghhh..what to dooooo

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

Bumping for more experiences

[yuna628 9,527]

1) Looking since Feb. Came close a few times, finally found someone serious about hiring him in October (he's been stuck in a pre-employment process since late Dec).

2) Software Engineering/Design/Programming Genetic Algorithms + Technical Support

3) UK

4)MD (but job will be in DE)

My husband has a degree from a good UK university (though it's probably more well known for science/medicine), he's a competent engineer, but he was previously employed at a US-based company in the UK for Technical Support - in 1st level all the way up to manager. I would say in MD the market is saturated for those in the computer field and much are government jobs looking for clearance he can't get. He applied for jobs in three states even that he was willing to travel to, but none were willing to hire an immigrant. We discovered that people didn't seem to 'get' what an EAD was, but when he finally received the green card, people started biting with interest. He came close a few times, but these were jobs all focused in Tech Support, that liked he had previously worked for a US based company. Ultimately though we felt him having a degree didn't mean as much than as the coveted certifications that employers in the US like such as A+/COMPTIA. It did help in proving he was a competent individual. With his new job starting next year, he'll be able to snag those certifications (it's just unfortunate he needs them.. he already knows this stuff). We have found the hiring process slooooow, but getting past HR to get an actual interview even slower. I really pushed him to aggressively follow up with calls to people for this job. My dad was familiar with the place that hired him and he made me aware at how frustrating slow they were in dealing with - so constantly following up was important.

Edited December 28, 2016 by yuna628

[dub42 17]

Yes, work-life balance isn't as "balanced" as I've understood. Back home it's more of a "happy employee produces better at work" sort of attitude along with very strong labor unions, which makes for a good balance. I will miss the vacation days for sure, since in Sweden we have 5 weeks payed by law and many jobs have 6 weeks plus payed holidays... I'm hoping the transition won't be too hard

I've been considering the LinkedIn networking route... my concern has been that companies might think this takes up time from them.. How did you go about this?

I have my eye set on a company... that has financial backing and some scientific collaborations with the international company I worked for back home... I haven't applied since I don't have the EAD yet, but I just saw they have a perfect position out... aaaahrrrrggghhh..what to dooooo

yeah its definitely done here in favour of the employer. you will hear lots of negative talk about unions and low pay workers here. its definitely different perspective than nothern europe but it's America i guess we all know what to expect!

I get one week's holidays in my job until my 2nd year. In Ireland it's automatically 4 weeks minimum and often 5! So yeah that sucks but I am determined to do well and it's a year of sacrifice for a longer term goal i guess, that's how i am dealing with it. Working from home is nice though and I start work at 7am and finish at 3:30pm so i have time in afternoon to spend with family.

Using Linkedin I just added recruiters in the Detroit area and got to speak with them and see what opportunities are out there. I didnt contact companies/HR people directly. They were able to send me to interviews when I arrived and let me know if any suitable roles came up for me, rather than me having to be checking job boards every day (i did this also to an extent)

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

yeah its definitely done here in favour of the employer. you will hear lots of negative talk about unions and low pay workers here. its definitely different perspective than nothern europe but it's America i guess we all know what to expect!

I get one week's holidays in my job until my 2nd year. In Ireland it's automatically 4 weeks minimum and often 5! So yeah that sucks but I am determined to do well and it's a year of sacrifice for a longer term goal i guess, that's how i am dealing with it. Working from home is nice though and I start work at 7am and finish at 3:30pm so i have time in afternoon to spend with family.

Using Linkedin I just added recruiters in the Detroit area and got to speak with them and see what opportunities are out there. I didnt contact companies/HR people directly. They were able to send me to interviews when I arrived and let me know if any suitable roles came up for me, rather than me having to be checking job boards every day (i did this also to an extent)

That is actually a great idea about the recruiters... seems obvious now that you say it hahahaha thanks!

You are right, we need to pay our "dues" in this new country and very lucky you are, to find a job working from home... (lol very Yoda of me).

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

1) Looking since Feb. Came close a few times, finally found someone serious about hiring him in October (he's been stuck in a pre-employment process since late Dec).

2) Software Engineering/Design/Programming Genetic Algorithms + Technical Support

3) UK

4)MD (but job will be in DE)

My husband has a degree from a good UK university (though it's probably more well known for science/medicine), he's a competent engineer, but he was previously employed at a US-based company in the UK for Technical Support - in 1st level all the way up to manager. I would say in MD the market is saturated for those in the computer field and much are government jobs looking for clearance he can't get. He applied for jobs in three states even that he was willing to travel to, but none were willing to hire an immigrant. We discovered that people didn't seem to 'get' what an EAD was, but when he finally received the green card, people started biting with interest. He came close a few times, but these were jobs all focused in Tech Support, that liked he had previously worked for a US based company. Ultimately though we felt him having a degree didn't mean as much than as the coveted certifications that employers in the US like such as A+/COMPTIA. It did help in proving he was a competent individual. With his new job starting next year, he'll be able to snag those certifications (it's just unfortunate he needs them.. he already knows this stuff). We have found the hiring process slooooow, but getting past HR to get an actual interview even slower. I really pushed him to aggressively follow up with calls to people for this job. My dad was familiar with the place that hired him and he made me aware at how frustrating slow they were in dealing with - so constantly following up was important.

ugh the EAD problem again ... I keep hearing about this If I would have guessed before hand when someone said they were from the UK,I would have thought they would love UK immigrants here! The language and culture barrier is so small! Bit discouraging to hear that, but I'll keep my fingers crossed for you for the HR checks...

I'm unsure if there are any certifications that would help me...