Job searching (a hindsight)

Finally the time came when I can talk about last year's job searching adventures. It took me some time to get a job in the field. Some numbers first: 60-70 applications in five months; 6 in person interviews; more on phone. In between one PhD application: for ONE position there were approx. 100 applicants, and I've made it to the final four (great right?). Got rejected but was quite some achievement.

There were quite some problems with my applications:

• had little work experience
• my field is very much specialized - space/aerospace engineering + robotics/control/automation/IT
• did a lot of online applications, which were pretty much useless

The positive stuff (why I have had many interviews):

• I did not give up
• I speak several languages, including German
• had a broad experience/education
• a good CV which took many months to fine tune
• and finally got to a conference (self-funded) to meet up with people from my field

Depends were you want to apply, but in the year 2012 and 2013 I have found very difficult to find a job in the space sector. You see, the problem is that today, in Europe, the politicians decide how much money they will allocate to ESA from the annual budget. This money goes into an ESA pot lets call, where every country gets approximately back the same amount. Indirectly, in terms of projects. Till now nothing is new. With the financial crisis in the last years, everybody is pretty much try to get cuts. Where are these cuts done in the first place? In science, education, healthcare etc. Of course it can't be cut the pensions and the budgetary salaries. Of course. So this has a long term effect on the jobs in the space sector. Hiring fresh graduates means that somebody is thinking long term, it is an investment on the people. You need a couple of years of experience to get into the things, especially in the space sector. Miraculously, there are very limited number of jobs out there for people with some experience (1-3 years). Tons of internships at the big companies: a way of doing things is that you'll end up doing a lot of savings if you are a big firm. Hiring cheap labor is not a new idea. Right? So either you try to get an internship at a company, and work yourself in, and hope that there will be a position opening at the right time and place. A lot of ifs here...

Source: PhDcomics

The other option is to pursue a PhD programme. It has its ups and downs: you'll get the experience, but staying in academia was never my sort of thing. I would consider it only when there would be a joint industrial-academic PhD. And anyways, you'll end up searching for a job when you are 30, with hundreds of other people in the same time. The major advantage, is that you'll get a lot of connections in these 3-4 years if you are working with industrial partners. If your aim is to get back to academia (and teach) this is the way to go.

The other option for those who prefer industry, like myself, is to do a Grad programme. ESA has the YGT (Young Grad Programme). Many companies tend to have similar programmes. At ESA, you can stay for a year, after that you will probably not get hired. Cause you need those 5-10 years of experience to get in. Instead you can find a job much easier saying that you have worked for the European Space Agency. At industry you'll end up most probably with a position at the end.

So right now I am somewhere between: I am doing R&D at a big firm. As I have learned recently, there are recruitment freezes across several companies in Europe. So no wonder young people find it difficult to get a job.

Source: 9gag

In China, there is such a though competition for young graduates that some of them having a plastic surgery to increase their chances (source in hungarian).

And the most important lesson learned in 2013 from a job-seeker's perspective: it is all about connections. In my rough estimate 50-70% of the positions in the industry is can be related to "who knows who". Make your homework and keep in touch with old colleagues, classmates, people you've met in conferences etc. You never know when you can help your buddy or you get an offer from your circle.

Some follow up links for those who want to read some useful articles:
No Job Posted...Send Resume Anyway?
Does and don'ts
Crossroads
a sarcastic Hungarian article

Happy job-hunting! And sell yourself, cause you're a piece of meat on the market...