What Else Could I Be Doing To Get A Job?

[DBR]

I have a university degree, Bachelor of Fine Arts in live theatre production (scenery, lighting, sound, etc.)

I live about a 45 minutes north of Toronto Canada in a small town, but travel is no object.

I have done a lot of physical labor jobs in addition to live theatre.

What about the oil patch? With a degree (any degree, it seems), you likely won't get a bottom of the barrel grunt labour position. It's not for everyone, but you can make descent money while you look for something else. Things should be firing up this fall, apparently.

I'm kind of curious - what are the big companies out there that are looking for jobs?
Didn't the industry kind of collapse in on itself a couple of years ago?

Nothing like the fury of early 2008, but there are several drilling companies employing their rigs right now. Prescision, Trinidad, Ensign, Nabours. Not sure about the smaller guys.

Something like 25% of the rigs in Alberta are operational right now, and its expected to jump to 50-60% by the end of summer. Depending on where Nat gas and oil goes, what kind of winter we get, we could be at 70% by December.

There were only around 80 rigs operational in western Canada this time last year.

 

[Jenee]

Tailor your resume to the job for which you are applying.

Don't lie, but, you don't always have to tell the whole truth.

Do you write the resume chronologically? I'm looking for a job myself at the moment and I was wondering how one would "cover" about five years of studying? There would be a huge gap in my resume if I wouldn't tell the company about my college-time.

There are plenty of ways to get around that. One way is to put down length of time in a job, rather than dates. So, instead of saying 6/2000 - 3/2002, say 1 year, 9 months

Employers get A LOT of resumes and are just looking for a reason to weed out the masses. Don't give them a reason to toss yours

First and formost - spelling, punctuation, formatting - make sure it's correct.

Second, keep it clean - too much is too much. No one wants to read a lot - not even on message boards. So keep it simple - company, title, how many years your were there, brief summary of your duties - keywords are essential. Find out what they are and use them.

Third, research the company and the job and put that in the first line -

Qualification
Summary: Total of fourteen years working in an office environment carrying out numerous day-to-day operations and duties in word processing programs, spreadsheets and databases.

That line is for my present position. They were looking for someone "detail oriented".

Fourth - stand out. What makes you special? Something does and don't say you're a people person. What you're telling them is that you will spend the entire day socializing.

If you're young, tell them you're wanting to "learn from the best". If you're older, cut back on the experience - only show the last 5 to 10 years.

Keep all sentences passive. Don't use "I" or "me".

 

[Danny99]

I don't know the situation in Canada, but in the UK we have lots of local Amateur Dramatic groups who would cry out for your help. It would be voluntary but would look great on a CV and you never know who you'd meet.

I've been part of one for ten years this September. Just for the record.

 

[JiNX-01]

I have a university degree, Bachelor of Fine Arts in live theatre production (scenery, lighting, sound, etc.)

I live about a 45 minutes north of Toronto Canada in a small town, but travel is no object.

I have done a lot of physical labor jobs in addition to live theatre.

OK, could you please elaborate on what exactly it is you do? When you say you do scenery do you mean you are a set designer? Does the "etc." mean you're also a costumer or an actor? Do you have a gift for creating special effects in lighting and sound?

I've never been a designer, much more a grunt labor kind of guy.

I'm no costumer, I can't sew to save my life.

OK, that's too bad. I was going to suggest you do some spec work -- approach a theater company manager with some drawings that would demonstrate what you can do -- so they might give you a shot.

The only other suggestion I can make is to keep pounding the pavement. You might want to see if you can get work with a school. I don't know what the educational and certification requirements are in Canada for teaching but since theater is most likely an extracurricular activity, you might qualify with your background.

 

[K'Ehleyr]

I don't know the situation in Canada, but in the UK we have lots of local Amateur Dramatic groups who would cry out for your help. It would be voluntary but would look great on a CV and you never know who you'd meet.

I've been part of one for ten years this September. Just for the record.

Shit ~ sorry Danny, I mistook Sarek for you as the OP.

Well all those years must count for something. Experience, willingness to help out, and I wish you, Danny, the best of luck. And everyone else out there looking

Although I winge about my job I realise I'm lucky to have one after being out of work for over a year. I never wanted to go back into catering/bar, but could find nothing else. And whilst I cringe everytime I drive into the golf club, I paint on a smile and try and laugh

 

[selina]

Great, thanks a lot Jenee .

 

[Jenee]

Not a problem. Keep me updated - hope the advice comes in handy.