If you moved to a new town, did you have a job lined up before hand? (employment, interview)

[Workaholic?]

I live and work in Washington DC and a group of us bored office workers were talking around the water cooler about how we happened to move to the DC area and if we had a job lined up before we moved.

Nearly everyone who work at my employer did not grow up here. Instead, most everyone moved here from other states, or from overseas.

A good number just moved out here and started looking for work. While others did a cross country job search and spent months and months driving or flying in for interviews until they were eventually hired, and then moved here.

How about you? If you are living and working in a different town than you grew up in, how did you end up working in your current community?
Please answer my poll!

[MSchemist80]

It is very difficult to get a job before you are local. Over 99% of employers simply toss the resumes of people that aren't local. I've had a very low response rate (hovering arround 0) from companies I've applied to outside my area.

[poloi3eai2]

I also work around DC and it's true that nobody is actually from DC or the immediate surrounding areas. I moved to the area with no job lined up BUT prior to moving I was constantly traveling to DC almost every week for interviews. After testing the waters I was confident the odds were in my favor to land a job.

After moving to the area I was able to land a job in a month. I think moving to the DC area really helped seal the deal because I could claim myself as being local. Instead of putting the burden on the employer of "I'll move there if you hire me"

[ShellNic]

Originally Posted by MSchemist80

It is very difficult to get a job before you are local. Over 99% of employers simply toss the resumes of people that aren't local. I've had a very low response rate (hovering arround 0) from companies I've applied to outside my area.

I "tried" to get relocated last year when I lost my long term position. I thought that now's my chance to move to an area that is more appealing to me. I really thought that if I expressed clearly in a cover letter that I wanted to move to that area, that would be enough to at least consider my qualifications.

I flew to one city (dream city) for an interview but I really believe that they had made up their mind before I got there. And I had two calls from other jobs, different cities, but it was after I had already accepted a job in town. They called MONTHS later...I just couldn't wait.

I understand that employers probably want less "complications" by hiring someone who is already there...and that's fair to the locals who need work...but I can't move across country without some form of employment. I think those days are over for the "fly by the seat of your pants"...which is a bit of a shame as I'll likely be in this town FOREVER.

Hey, any worthy jobs in DC???