Applying for Jobs on Craigslist?

Anything to do with the traditional world of get a degree, get a job as well as its alternatives
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TopHatFox
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Applying for Jobs on Craigslist?

Post by TopHatFox »

Honestly, Craigslist seems like a better way to apply for a job than a mainstream online search engine like Indeed or my college's online job database. I don't know of a single peer that would apply for "real" summer jobs through Craigslist. At the very least my resume and CL would be read by a real person with much less volume to sort through.

Thoughts? Cautions? Validation?

jacob
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Re: Applying for Jobs on Craigslist?

Post by jacob »

I got my copy-editing job via craigslist. Wrote an email. Had a phone-interview (if you call it that) about an hour later.

I guess the only caution is to use common sense. If the job is to drive to Mexico and pick up a package, you should probably stay clear.

Also, craigslist is evolved to different levels of materuity in different places of the country. For example, chicago.craigslist is much worse than sfbay.craigslist. In some places in the north east, craigslist is practically nonexistent. This one was sfbay.

PS: I also got a volunteer "job" through freecycle.
PPS: I have never gotten a job through a regular online application at the company or via an database like monster. On the other hand, I don't recall having tried much at all.

bottlerocks
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Re: Applying for Jobs on Craigslist?

Post by bottlerocks »

I got my first engineering job off of craigslist so +1 to good experiences. I caught the listing 30 minutes after it was posted and interviewed for the position (phone and in person) that same day so I think some luck played into it. Wasn't having any luck with Monster/Indeed/School Database etc. even though I put out >50 applications. This was 2010 though so the entry level job market was worse than it is now.

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Slevin
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Re: Applying for Jobs on Craigslist?

Post by Slevin »

I'm +1 on the online applications not getting me anywhere. It seems far more successful on CL due to the fact a human who is likely not an HR rep is getting a look at your resume. From my conversations with hiring managers, the HR reps and online application sorting mechanisms seem to be an annoying road block for everyone and disqualify many good candidates (but hopefully loads more bad candidates). Human Connections and human interactions seem to be the best way to get an "in" to a job.

Tyler9000
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Re: Applying for Jobs on Craigslist?

Post by Tyler9000 »

Slevin wrote:I'm +1 on the online applications not getting me anywhere. It seems far more successful on CL due to the fact a human who is likely not an HR rep is getting a look at your resume. From my conversations with hiring managers, the HR reps and online application sorting mechanisms seem to be an annoying road block for everyone and disqualify many good candidates (but hopefully loads more bad candidates). Human Connections and human interactions seem to be the best way to get an "in" to a job.
Very true. I've had 9 jobs at 8 different employers, and 7 of them were a direct result of personal networking. I've found big sites like Monster to be mostly useless from a submission standpoint and even LinkedIn to be a mixed bag for everything but contacts for the purpose of networking and the occasional good recruiter who cold-calls you. My hits with online submissions are most likely due to the fact that I knew the industry in question so well that I understood how to beat the filtering system and pretty much guarantee at least a call, at which point it became a networking challenge again. I haven't applied to anything on Craigslist, but it strikes me as a better source for freelancing opportunities than for full-time work. I could be a little out of date on that opinion, though.

llorona
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Re: Applying for Jobs on Craigslist?

Post by llorona »

Depends on your industry and location but CL should be fine for an internship or first job. Just make sure that you're dealing with a legit company, not some fly-by-night operation.

As you move up the career ladder, you'll obtain jobs by networking or being recruited, assuming that you're good at what you do and develop a professional reputation for excellence.

SimpleLife
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Re: Applying for Jobs on Craigslist?

Post by SimpleLife »

Got my first "real job" via craigslist, however; have generally had better luck and better pay via job boards like Indeed.

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