Post College Jobs?

[Jetta]

For those of you employed post graduation, how did you go about obtaining that job? I've been to career fairs, no luck, I've posted on job boards and websites, so far nothing. I've also tried networking and that hasn't helped. Truth is I left my major employer with 1 week notice instead of two weeks after giving birth. They won't rehire me because of it, and I'm sure that's leaving a blemish on my record somewhere even though it was 9 years ago now. My brother who tried to get me back in brought it up and I was told it was affect me for 7 years, and back then I had no plans to return to the work force so I didn't care.

 

What else can I try that I'm not to secure some kind of employment? I have descent references as far as I know, there are 4 of them they can call. I'm just not sure what else to try. I burned a big bridge and I shouldn't have but what's done is done so now what do I do? My record is not pristine, I have filed bankruptcy (5 years ago now), I'm disabled but it's an invisible disability however it still may show up on a background check, so what can someone like me do to find a job in this crappy economy?

[thejigsup]

You have to be near perfect to get hired right now. I had close to a 4.0 GPA from a well-known, private college that is ranked in the top 10 in the entire country. Nothing. I just got my M.A. from another private college. Nothing. I had a lauded thesis, was asked to present it along with only 6 other students from the entire graduating class, high GPA, etc... None of that mattered. I was told to bring my credit score up. I have. I only 60 more point to go before I have "good" credit. I was employed at the time, so I bought a car that is almost paid off, paid off one of my student loans, bought a new couch and paid it off, etc... You may have to do the same.

[dali]

What did you study?

 

If your close with your lectures then I'd contact them and see if they can point you to a job. Their word goes a long way and is highly respected.

[Weeb]

I got my first (current) job out of college by starting out as a temp.

 

It sounds like you haven't had a job in 9 years? That's going to make it very difficult to get a job now, regardless of how you left that job. Even with high unemployment, nobody really wants anyone who has been out of work for more than 6 months. Even 2-3 months is questionable.

[Jetta]

It's been 5 years, minus my internship which was last year. But yeah it's been a long time. That's because I became disabled. I'm looking into the temporary organizations now to get my feet wet so to speak.

[orchidrose]

Dumb question, but instead of focusing on networking, are you applying to jobs that you find on Monster, etc.? I ask because it seems obvious, but you didn't mention it directly in your post. I did a lot of networking and internships in undergrad, but none of those organizations had openings when I was looking. My first job was by applying to a job posting I found online; I had no personal connection to them whatsoever.

 

As far as things leaving a "blemish" on your record, there are no secret employment police. In my experience, unless you're working for a giant company, they're not going to do a background check on your employment history. They will rely on your resume for that, so you need to come up with a creative way to address your gap in employment in your cover letter.