Having the worst luck finding employment in Tampa... (Orlando, Brandon: mortgages, refinance)

[Hockeyice]

I understand that you may not be interested in low-wage 'high-school/college student' jobs, but if you are very desperate, look at retail/etc. type jobs. Fact is, as someone else said, jobs are very scarce, so take anyone you can get to hold yourself over for now.

Besides, with the economy the way it is, most companies don't like hiring the unemployed (as crazy as that sounds). So that low-level job may be a stepping stone for you to a better job in the (possibly not-so distant) future.

If you don't like that, then just keep searching for a job of your preference. Good luck!

[Not_liking_FL]

My advise would be to move out of this god-forsaken state. ASAP!!! With the politicians in place now it's going to be a long time before things get better. Nobody is getting to work here!!! go find the work!!! Best of luck.

[forrestgump]

Meeks, you probably don't want to hear this but in this tough economic environment, it'll be very difficult to land a decent job with a degree in Art (or Fine Art). Perhaps getting professional degrees, such as an MBA, might help. Again, even an MBA might not guarantee you a job but at least your job prospects would be way higher than with a degree in Art. On the other hand, an MBA degree won't come free and I don't know if you might be able to take out a loan.

So overall, there are no easy solutions other than keeping on trying to apply for all sorts of jobs. If you can afford it, getting an MBA degree might prove beneficial.

Good luck!

Originally Posted by Meeks52

Hi, neighbors!

I've been living in Tampa for over a year now. I moved here from Louisiana. Here's some quick background on my education and experience:

Education:
- Bachelor's degree in Fine Art
- Master's degree in Art
- 21 hours completed of the Master's degree in Education in School Counseling program (didn't get to complete it since I moved to FL)

Recent employment:
- Self-employed graphic design consultant (ie, I make custom graphics for print and web use)
- Substitute Teacher for Hillsborough County (started Feb 2011)
- Mortgage specialist at JPMorgan Chase (in LA, 2008-2009)
- And a few other small-time recruitment, office-type jobs... nothing too major

My work as a graphic design consultant (sounds fancier than it actually is :P) is seriously slowing down to a near halt. I'm only getting 1-2 jobs per month. It's also not something I want to pursue full-time since it's not guaranteed work with benefits, unlike the usual 9-5 job.

Being a sub for the county is nice... but again, no benefits and I'm honestly not making enough - or working enough - to afford the things that I need to begin paying for. Money sucks, right? :P

I've been sending my resume out all over the place, and I'm having no luck. HSN has turned me down twice and I have no clue why. I thought BrightHouse was going to come through, but after I went through phase 2 of the application process, I've yet to hear anything back from them - and that was over a month ago. I've tried WalMart, Publix even! I've been told I'm overqualified... and then a different company will say that I'm under-qualified and without enough experience. I know the nation in general is having job issues... but good grief, this can't keep on going like this. I've been a FL resident for a year now. Is it seriously time to start looking into unemployment options, if there even are any for me? Ugh, so frustrating...

I'm using tons of different resources for the job hunt, but I'm just having no luck at all! Do yall have any suggestions on what I could do different? Sorry for the big rant - I'm just so frustrated!

[hashbrown]

Originally Posted by Spring Hillian

No matter where you move to, the economy is roughly the same. In the pits. Jobs are scarce.

Not really http://www.google.com/publicdata/exp...00&hl=en&dl=en

[gumbyfly]

Originally Posted by hashbrown

Not really Unemployment in the U.S. - Google Public Data Explorer

It is all relative. Using the same chart that shows California, Texas, and Florida leading the percentage of unemployed people in the nation, you can see that California, Texas, and Florida outdistance the rest of the nation in employment as well.
Unemployment in the U.S. - Google Public Data Explorer

For those areas like Washington DC, where the number of potential employees is smallest and the unemployment rate is highest, THOSE areas are difficult to get jobs in. And it really depends on what type of job you are looking for. Some job skills will always be necessary regardless of the job market and unemployment numbers.

[BucFan]

Saw on national news (CBS, I believe) that there is a large disparity between unemployment and education level. National unemployment rate for college educated is somewhere around 4% while those without a high school education or college education is greatly inflating the national total unemployment numbers. Wish I could find the link.

[MAniacTHW]

Originally Posted by jambo101

I dont understand why people query this and other Florida websites only to be told times are tough down here not many jobs and too many looking for them,yet down the people come by the thousands and then wonder why they cant find a job

Blame the people who come in to the forums to tell everyone how they got a job within a week of moving down. I'm sure, given 20 mins, I could find one of these threads.

[forrestgump]

Bucfan, you're right. I have also seen/read numerous articles and news report showing an inverse relationship between level of education and unemployment rate.
In fact if taken to the extreme, with certain exceptional educational degrees (such as a Ph.D. in Business, Computer Science, biotechnology, MD in medicine), the total number of available jobs sometimes exceed the number of available people seeking such jobs.

However, the vast majority of people do not have these exceptional specialized degrees and hence finding jobs is still quite tough in this economic environment for a lot of people, especially in states like FL.

Also, although you're right that the unemployment rate for college graduates is quite low (perhaps around 4%), the number would vary across type of major and type of college. For example, this number would be even lower for business or computer science majors and higher for say History majors. Similarly, the number would be lower at Harvard or Columbia than at say a very small relatively unknown college.

Originally Posted by BucFan

Saw on national news (CBS, I believe) that there is a large disparity between unemployment and education level. National unemployment rate for college educated is somewhere around 4% while those without a high school education or college education is greatly inflating the national total unemployment numbers. Wish I could find the link.

[Maggi07]

Here's a chart showing how level of education related to earnings and unemployment in 2010: Education pays ...

[panamamike]

Here's the graph showing the statistics.

Education pays ...

Note the unemployment numbers are national and you have to take into consideration.

1: Location
+ Economic factors - Worst recession in our lifetime.
+ Local industries - Gov., Services, ect...
+ Competition - What's the ratio of people with your skills/jobs available in your area.

2: Your skills/education
+ Type of degree - Art degree limits the jobs you can get. If you're an artist, type that can draw, consider Orlando/Disney.
+ Proven productivity - Part of dealing with competition.
o Consider doing pro bono at a local charity

3: Determination
+ Make sure your resume is up to snuff.
+ Be diligent in your job search.
+ Make sure to study up on the job interview process.
+ Network as much as possible.
o Get a Linkedin account.
o Join local job search club
o Get involved with doing pro bono, can lead to real work.

BTW: Sorry to above poster, didn't realize they posted the same exact link.

Mike