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What are some tips one can use to apply to jobs far, far away?
Some of the tips I've seen are for targeted relocations. As in you already have a place you'd like to live in and it's one specific place. But what if you are applying to multiple areas in the country, what can you do?
What if I'm applying to jobs in Maine, Florida, and North Dakota? Texas, Washington, and Illinois? Georgia, Pennsylvania and Colorado?
Some have said you need to move there, take some lower paying local job, then work your way up over a year or two to get a better one. But I don't have the savings nor the experience to even land a "poor" paying job that would afford rent in most places while I found something better in my field. McDonalds won't pay rent, that's for sure. I have college debt, not savings. In fact for many people trying to relocate, those lower paying jobs in the related field are the ones I'm trying to land in the first place. And again, I don't have a specific city in mind. I'd move to Fairbanks or San Juan if it meant getting a job in my field.
I've heard about a PO box. That seems plausible if you have a few cities in mind. The rate for a PO box varies by post office and city. Some I've seen are at $16 for three months, some I've seen go up to $36. Use this to put into the address fields on many job applications to get past the software. Unfortunately omitting address from the resume does not omit the address field they make you enter, even after already attaching the resume.
I feel this is one of those things that is highly variable depending on your field of employment and even among people with similar work experiences and in the same field. I'm in scientific research (mainly academia) and have been able to apply to non-local jobs and get them.
I was living in Pennsylvania and got a job down in Antarctica (company was based out of Centennial, CO). While in Antarctica (address was Pennsylvania), I got a job in North Carolina and most recently, I got a job in South Carolina while living in Arizona. With the last example, I was applying for jobs in New Mexico, Oregon, Kansas, Pennsylvania and South Carolina and had maybe 3 or 4 different phone interviews and 10 or 11 Skype interviews from the 50-60 jobs I applied for.
I hear some people in IT, with the right skill set, can somewhat easily be able to get jobs 2000 miles or more away from where they are currently living. People in healthcare, like doctors and nurses and other healthcare professionals, also probably have an easier time, since their skill set is more in demand than say someone in HR or administration.
I've heard of "using a local address trick" to at least get past the bot that screens applications, but I've never done that. My question to those people who have done it, is what happens when it comes time to interview, if you make it that far? Eventually you are going to have to explain why you have a local address, PO Box or otherwise, and actually live 2500 miles away.
Even if you remove your current address on the top of your resume/CV, what about your work history, do you omit the locations there as well, especially your current place of employment? I think most people would probably be able to connect the dots (from their current place of employment, unless you work remotely) and figure out that a certain person is currently not living near the job they are applying for.
Right now I've got applications in all over the country. Since 2012 I've worked in CT, GA and HI. If they want you they'll hire you. For your part you should do your homework on each area, have enough saved up to make the move and find housing AND you should be able to do so in a reasonable amount of time. Two weeks notice is customary so the hiring agency shouldn't balk at that. With any luck they will give you more time.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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I am in the process of filling two positions, and one applicant is about halfway across the country. Because he is well qualified we will offer a Skype interview, but with this being a lower level job starting at only about $50-60k, it would be difficult for the person to find housing on that here. His current location rent averages half of what it is here. Still, if the best qualified, we would make an offer contingent upon being here within a reasonable time frame. We do not pay for people to fly out except for executive level positions, and in this case I would hate to have the person pay for that, since we have 16 other candidates, making for poor odds.
I just moved from WI to TX, in a fairly in-demand field. The relocation wasn't an issue. In fact, my new job partially paid for my relocation down here to TX.
I find it always helps to make it clear in the cover letter that you are moving regardless of their particular job. Mention casually what part of town you will be living in and some connection you have to that area. You want to separate yourself from the resumes that are blasted to every job on earth.
Some have said you need to move there, take some lower paying local job,
then work your way up over a year or two to get a better one.
But I don't have the savings nor the experience to even land a "poor" paying job...
Then do that skill building where you are now.
When you're actually qualified to do something... the world will look very different.
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