[and my cat's stopped listening]

i don't know if i'm just being too hard on myself, or maybe it's because money is tight these days...

so after years and years of working one job i hated after another, i went back to school to finish my degree. i never thought it would be a magic pill to get me my wonderful oh my god im so happy i never thought this could happen to me dream job. hell, i went back and finished with a b.a. in philosophy.
i have friends who i talked this over with, and they are the types to take a decidedly more practical approach to school, which i respect. but a degree in marketing or accounting just wasn't for me.
so i took my last final dec 21st. given the requisite 'nobody gets shit done during the holidays' approach to looking at things, i gave myself off until january 3rd. i thought i deserved it, having busted my ass and had 14 non-school days for the entire year. it didn't seem unreasonable.
but now it's january 26th, and i've been literally applying to maybe 3-4, and sometimes 5 jobs a day. so far i've gotten 2 resonses [non-automated]. one was a 'thanks, but no', and another was an email from one of the hr people to say thanks for submitting my resume and they'd take a look. so basically a personally written automated response. in addition, most of the places i've applied to are these conglomerate owned smaller entities, like publishing houses, with the 'absolutely NO phone calls' caveat tagged onto the end of their job posting. thanks, but we'll call you if we're interested.
so i've basically spent the last 3 weeks getting either the cold shoulder or no shoulder or whatever the hell you want to call it.
i think this is really getting to be damaging to my psyche. my ego's not feeling too bruised by this b/c i know my resume is far from stellar - my experience is all over the place, but i've done my best to tailor it to look at least respectable and highlight those things that i think any employer could be looking for.
but to not get a single hit in 3 weeks and dozens of resumes sent out is starting to take it's toll. some days i can't even bring myself to leave the house, half out of complete depression and half because i'm terrified that i might not be online scrounging for work and miss a golden opportunity because i wasn't right there on top of it and somebody else got there first. seems like paranoia to me.
so i'm not looking for any answers, and i don't even think sympathy in my case is worth a damn. it's not like somebody died. i just needed a random space to vent, and my journal is already filled up with my 'jordan catalano' missives.
ugh.

I feel for you. I've been working in the corporate world for over 10 years with absolutely no job security. That's why I decided to go back to school and get a degree as well. I, however, elected to join the medical field for various reasons, one of them being, job security, etc. I just can't deal with the uncertainty of the corporate job market anymore.

I worry about job security everyday. Of course, surfing the internet all day doesn't help my cause. If I had the money and/or credit, I'd start my own business asap.

Job hunting is not fun....it took me about 3 months after I "finished" school to find a job and, 4 years later, I'm working in a semi-unrelated field. Sometimes you have to just go for a job you might not want the most, then hope it turns into something rewarding down the line - or just build up more experience, and search for a new job on their dime...

Suck it up, Holmes. And don't forget to network.

I feel your pain. Scouring the 'Net, newspapers & any other job-related resources gets really old fast - especially when employers aren't taking the bait. Here's your fail-safe. What really kickstarted my search was softcore networking. I targeted an industry I wanted to work in, contacted everyone I knew working that sector, then proceeded to ask for names of employees in their company that might be of greater assistance. Eventually, you'll speak to the 'right' person, who might even invite you to submit your CL/CV. Ostensibly, you're interviewing the employees, so try to extract as much pertinent company info from the subject as possible.

The only necessary tools you need is a telephone, elbow grease & a whole lotta grit to make those cold-calls. BUT, once you do land something worthwhile & not just your run-of-the-mill cubicle shantytown type of corporate gig (not that there's anything wrong with this environment, just ain't for me) and you tuck gainful employment under your rawhide belt, you'll be a happier Jesus, not to mention one that enjoys his work. And don't get me started on all the character you'll be building.

Good luck out there.

Dude I feel you pain. My Poly Sci degree didn't help in the job search. Once you get a job it ain't much better. Instead of spending all your time desperately seeking a job you spend your time loathing the job you got.

Ah, the siren call of poli sci...i fell for it too.
Well, NFWTJ, the non-profit world is always looking for people....

If you can find a phone number to any of the places you applied to, you should follow up...

DOn't just send a resume, and sit by the phone...

Call them. confirm they got it. ask what their time frame is for hiring? can you provide any other info for them? stuff like that...keep em on the phone and make em know your name...

gotta consider that they get alot of resumes and stuff. do what ya gotta do to make yourself stand out a bit more...

but saitting by the phone waiting for them to call is not really productive.