Have any out-of-state job-hunt tips? (Seattle, Redmond: school, college, income)

[Drizzly]

To all,

I'm making steady progress on my move to Seattle. While I'm getting close with all the housing details, I still wish there was a job lined up ahead of time. I have been sending out resumes and cover letters, but I don't think I have enough experience for companies to consider me a worthy out-of-state candidate. It looks to me like I will be moving out there without a job and then plugging away until I land a position somewhere.

I am in the Information Technology (IT) field. Being an MCP, MCDST, and one test away from MCSA, are there any resources that I should be taking advantage of? Is there anyone out there who has successfully landed an IT job from out-of-state with only a few years experience? Does anyone have any tips for the out-of-state job hunt in general? Any input is greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much,
Drizzly

P.S. I am not moving to Redmond. I would like to live and work close to downtown.

[tortoisegirl]

I applied to jobs in Seattle from out of state. For me, it came down to a numbers game. I tried to get my resume out for as many jobs as possible. But, it comes down to personal connections many times. If there is any way to can attend a job fair in the Washington area for your field, get a connection through school or work to someone in a company you want to work for, etc, it will probably be your best bet.

Out of all the places I applied to out of college for aerospace jobs, I only heard back from the ones I had personal connections with. Never heard back after submitting my resume online for a job description. Not to say you can't get a job that way, but everyone I know has told me it's about networking.

What about contacting a temp firm and lining up work before you move? Then, you can either move into full time work through that, or keep applying with a local address. Some companies may be more responsive to an in-state candidate because they won't be asking for moving expenses.

If you are going to move out here without a job, which I wouldn't recommend but sometimes it's the only way, try to cut back a lot on living expenses and save up a lot more money than you ever think you'll need. I moved out here with a job but my fiance didn't. I had assumed we could live on one income but it didn't work out that way. We were very lucky we had enough saved to live off of. This area is very expensive.

Best of luck! Hope you find your dream job.

[Drizzly]

Thanks for the reply tortoisegirl. I think that staffing agencies and temp agencies will be a good thing to invest some time in. At least they have that connection to the employer. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good staffing agency? I have looked through many of them and tried to find IT specific agencies but it is hard to distinguish whether they are going to be helpful. I have come across an agency called Business Careers that seems to be helpful. Has anyone used them? The downside is that they want to interview you face-to-face before recommending you to anyone (understandable) and I will not be able to do that until a few weeks before the move. This moving thing is a lot of work.

[tortoisegirl]

I hear you about the a lot of work thing. I took a month off between school and moving/work. Still felt rushed trying to pack everything, take care of things in the old state, the new state, etc. I don't know anything about the IT field--hopefully you can find a board about it?