Nobody Wants to Hire Me

[Anonymous]

Register for linkedin... find your friends.. ask them for introductions

[Anonymous]

I find it interesting that no one mentioned that if you worked for the government in a specific job for at least 3 years, you can return to the government at the same grade level as when you left. Have a friend who was a SAHM for 16 years. It took applying to a bunch of jobs, but ultimately got hired in a very good position at the same grade she was when she left 16 years before. She went from no salary for 16 years to making six figures (no kidding). Only in the government....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that no one mentioned that if you worked for the government in a specific job for at least 3 years, you can return to the government at the same grade level as when you left. Have a friend who was a SAHM for 16 years. It took applying to a bunch of jobs, but ultimately got hired in a very good position at the same grade she was when she left 16 years before. She went from no salary for 16 years to making six figures (no kidding). Only in the government....

She got lucky. I know one person who did that (maybe the same one!) because their old group needed someone with her specific specialized skillset and remembered her.

You can apply for the same grade, but it would be hard to be hired in once someone saw your resume.

[Anonymous]

With a new masters and a negligible gap (left job when I finished grad school), AND referrals, it took me probably 300 applications, four months, and five rounds of interviews to get ONE offer.

The job market isn’t as hot as they say. I’m sure a lot of it does have to do with the AI screen, but the fact is that professional jobs are competitive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that no one mentioned that if you worked for the government in a specific job for at least 3 years, you can return to the government at the same grade level as when you left. Have a friend who was a SAHM for 16 years. It took applying to a bunch of jobs, but ultimately got hired in a very good position at the same grade she was when she left 16 years before. She went from no salary for 16 years to making six figures (no kidding). Only in the government....

She got lucky. I know one person who did that (maybe the same one!) because their old group needed someone with her specific specialized skillset and remembered her.

You can apply for the same grade, but it would be hard to be hired in once someone saw your resume.

Nope, went to a new agency. Applied through USAJobs. Go figure.

[Anonymous]

OP lacks ambition and that is why she SAH in the first place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:With a new masters and a negligible gap (left job when I finished grad school), AND referrals, it took me probably 300 applications, four months, and five rounds of interviews to get ONE offer.

The job market isn’t as hot as they say. I’m sure a lot of it does have to do with the AI screen, but the fact is that professional jobs are competitive.

Congrats on being persistent!! What was your Masters in and what’s the new job?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Register for linkedin... find your friends.. ask them for introductions

Yep. No one enjoys the networking grind but it works. I got my current (awesome) job through an acquaintance that I reconnected with. I had a SAHM gap, although it was only 2 years.

Also I would put your grad degree back on. There may be resume filtering software that is weeding you out.

[Anonymous]

White collar, masters educatde dad here. I took three years off to be a SAHD while my wife and her colleagues started a successfull business.

When I tried to get back in it was almost impossible- took almost 1.5 years to find something even below my skillset.

Everything you've heard about how hard it is is true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that no one mentioned that if you worked for the government in a specific job for at least 3 years, you can return to the government at the same grade level as when you left. Have a friend who was a SAHM for 16 years. It took applying to a bunch of jobs, but ultimately got hired in a very good position at the same grade she was when she left 16 years before. She went from no salary for 16 years to making six figures (no kidding). Only in the government....

She got lucky. I know one person who did that (maybe the same one!) because their old group needed someone with her specific specialized skillset and remembered her.

You can apply for the same grade, but it would be hard to be hired in once someone saw your resume.

Nope, went to a new agency. Applied through USAJobs. Go figure.

That’s luck. You can theoretically re-enter because you are vested in federal service, but it’s not a thing people just do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I think I’d be hesitant to hire a person who has been a sahm for 10 years part time. I’d assume they don’t share responsibilities equal with their husband (hence the part time) and would always be asking off work / being late / constant sick appointments. Full time I think it would be different.

+1. As an employer I prefer someone who has zero learning curve with Outlook, Zoom, project management software, etc. I don't want to spend 3 months training you on how to work in an office again after a decade long absence, when there's a relatively high risk that you're going to back to your comfortable SAH life.

How hard it is to learn outlook and zoom?

DP. Outlook is a piece of garbage. I've been using it for years because I have to but it's beyond inferior to other tools like G suite. I always think of organizations (such as mine) that use Outlook as rather stodgy, bureaucratic and in catch-up mode when it comes to tech.

[Anonymous]

No one is going to hire you because of the remote requirement - everyone and their cat and dog and mother and pet Guinea pig want to work from home and you have no history with any employer. It took me years to get full time remote and be secure in my job.

[Anonymous]

OP, I'd look on Upwork.com for something specifically related to the skills that you developed getting your Phd (statistics, copy editing, translation, etc.). Even if you end up taking projects where you don't work much, you will get some recent work experience.

I'm a consultant who started using Upwork to build experience using a totally new skill set. The first project I took was at an hourly rate about 1/8th of my normal rate. It was humbling, but I told the hiring manager that I was looking for experience, willing to take a low rate and mostly interested in getting positive reviews. Within two months I had an offer for a long term, fully remote gig using the new skills at an hourly rate equal to my previous highest rate.

I'm not saying that you'll be making big bucks in two months after a 10 year layoff, but you can get some experience for sure.

[Anonymous]

This OP. Thank you all for your responses. To answer some of your questions…

- I have a chronic illness which prevented me from working at all while raising my 3 kids (I had trouble even doing that) so a part-time gig is all I can handle.

-The remote requirement has to do with the above, as well.

Working on my PhD was possible because the pace was pretty slow and I could set it in ways that worked with my health issues. Mothering was tough and I did have to have some help because I was sick so much of the time.

My youngest just started school this year and know I can meaningfully contribute to the workforce. I know there are many people who are entirely well and vying for the same positions. I can be just as productive if the conditions are right.

I know it’s asking an employer a lot to give me a chance, but I doubt one will. It’s like being disabled but with a chronic disease it is an invisible disability.

[Anonymous]

Given your super specific situation Op, I would go with, dare i say, an entry level job (like a customer call center or if your illness allows you to be on your feet as a peeschool teacher, Instacart, or the like)? They will hire you (thats a huge advantage for you).Then you'll have your chance to shine, out perform, it'll be easy to go over expectations, etc.

If anything, use that as a stepping stone for something more serious . It'll highlight your awesomeness to your next employer once you start applying again.

Your huge gap and needy requirements are like threading a needle. I'd take what I can get.
Your PhD is obviously not holding its weight nor have you done anything with it so it really doesn't set you apart from other applicants who may have less, but are more recent and ton of experience (and won't ask for a "PhD" salary)