Reflections on my continuing job hunt

Well, I think some back story is in order:

I graduated Teacher's College in April of 2009 (from Trent University). I am certified as a Intermediate/Senior (grades 7-12) teacher in Physics and Computer Science. I went into Teacher's College with over 10 years teaching experience (first aid, adult ed, ESL)

So, while I was there we knew the Ontario market was poor (or dismal may be better). However, I was always told "Oh, you have physics you'll be ok". Unfortunately, that turned out to not be the case. I think I may have rested on my laurels a bit.

So, currently I am Associate Faculty at Conestoga College (a contractual position), I tutor, teach first aid/lifeguarding and do computer consulting. I have applied to over 80 public school jobs and have received one interview. Don't ask me why I got a job at a college and not in a high school, I don't know either. Lastly, I am currently hunting for a high school teaching position.

So, the purpose of this post is to share what I have learned in my year of job searching:

1. Do not get discouraged. If you want to teach, find ways to make it happen. Tutor, volunteer, blog, teach random people on the street. Make sure you doing what you love.

2. The hardest part for me is being ignored. I wish people would call/email and tell me that they didn't hire me. That would be nice; but that has happened twice. What typically happens is well nothing. And that nothing can be hard to swallow.

3. If you don't know someone in a board, it will be tough. This is my predicament. In chatting with my colleagues at Trent, it seems there are two groups who get jobs: French teachers and those with connections. So, if you are currently connectionless get connecting. For web tools try blogging, twitter and LinkedIn. Volunteer at the school you want to be at. Go to conferences (or better speak at conferences). Call in old favours. You just want to get to the interview, then you can shine.

4. If you aren't getting interviews, check your resume but don't freak out about it. This is what I did, I would constantly re-examine my resume for the tiniest errors. I was convinced my phone number was wrong. Then I realized that in times of job shortages, a resume means nothing if they already know who they want to hire. That being said, if anyone has ever offered to look at your resume, take them up on it.

5. Build your personal brand. This is my latest discovery. If people don't know who you are they typically won't call you for an interview. So, how do you get people to know who you are? The contemporary ways include: volunteering, getting someone to introduce you, or getting a job you don't want at the company (i.e. mail cart person) so you can at least get your foot in the door (does this work outside of Hollywood?). However, with social media, you have new tools that work much faster at your disposal. Start blogging about your experiences getting a job, or your love of teaching, or what you would do if you were teaching. Start using Twitter to connect to other educators (who may know of jobs). Create a virtual resume at LinkedIn which allows you to make connections with people you know and don't know.

6. Do not rest on your laurels. This was my mistake. I felt that by throwing out resumes, people would flock to me with jobs. They didn't. I did everything I thought I could to help me out while at Trent: I gave presentations, I applied for (and won) awards, I took my Senior Math ABQ. None of it seemed to help (well except for Conestoga). If you want to teach, you can not stop actively trying, no matter what anyone says.

Well, this post is getting long (I may have to go for the award of most long-winded blogger) so I will save future ideas for another posting.

Good luck with the search!