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Job seeking has gone mobile. I'm sure most people must have that memo by now, but what does it mean for job seekers and how can you use mobile job search apps to your advantage? Here are some of the basics to keep you at the top of your game:

 

1. Job Seeking on-the-go

 

So what's so great about job seeking on your mobile? Well frankly, what isn't? It's discreet; you only have to shield your mobile screen from prying eyes, which makes it a lot easier to do some sneaky job hunting on the sly. It's convenient; mobile apps use the power of your mobile data plan, meaning you are no longer confined to a computer or a train with Wi-Fi.

Best of all? It allows you to break up your oh so boring job hunting into manageable bite-sized chunks of time, so you don't go completely crackers. If you have a spare five minutes here and there, just tap, and away you go! If you're job hunting in those tiny nuances of time where you wouldn't normally be doing anything, it feels like a win; because we all know how exhausting job hunting can be, when you'd rather be doing ANYTHING else.

 

2. Save your Searches.

 

"So instead of having to get my head around jobs websites on computers, which can be confusing and unclear at the best of times, I now have the added trial of doing it in miniature; am I missing something here?!"

Yes, indeed angry job seeker, you are missing something. Everything to be exact. Mobile job search applications have streamlined the job seeking process so that a user will only be faced with things they truly need, namely, the job search. And what's more, the ability to save your searches means that you can keep your keystrokes to a minimum, just set up your criteria, and tap once to repeat. Simple.

 

3. Stay Ahead with Job Alerts

 

One of the key advantages to mobile job search has to be the ability to receive new jobs to your mobile. Different applications will handle this differently, whether offering you a 'push' notification service, which will make new jobs appear in your notification bar, jobs by email or perhaps even jobs via text; but the outcome is the same, you get the info you need as soon as it's available. If you're dream job gets posted, you'll be the first to know, putting you in a great position to prepare to apply.

 

4. Stay Smart with In-App Advice.

 

A good job search application will not only have created an all-singing, all-dancing job search for their users to enjoy, but they will also have added handy little features such as mobile job seeking advice. Use the mobile job advice section to ensure you feel confident about nailing that interview. If you're going to write a job application when you get home from work, why not browse the article on job applications whilst waiting for your bus?

 

5. The Cost of Job Hunting

 

"All this app business sounds expensive. I've just shelled out a small fortune for this whizzy 'Smart' phone and now you want me to spend even more money so I can find a new job?!"

The great news is, you can save all your pocket money for [insert popular paid for app here]. Job search apps like allthetopbananas.com are completely free to download and use, the only thing you will truly need to get started is a working mobile internet connection, so your app can find those all-important vacancies online.

 

Download a job search app today and go mobile!

 

Job Search Links:

 

For Android
For iPhone

Continuing with my graduate themed blog week, I have scoured the web leaving no virtual stone unturned, to give you my top 5 unmissable additions to your job hunt:

1) LinkedIn- This site is a great way to connect with people in the business world. It combines all the best bits of a social networking site and delivers them in one shiny neat package for the professional market. It's sort of like Facebook but without the 'which powerpuff girl are you?' quizzes and the unflattering drunken photos tagged of you. LinkedIn gives you the opportunity to network with business people and you can search and invite them to connect with you; contacts that may even lead to securing you your next job. You can add your blog and even create a business bio to show off your skills, talents and educational achievements.

2) Twitter- What's this? Twitter for a job search? Surely not, I hear you cry. But don't underestimate the mighty Twitter and it's ability to help you in your job hunt. The recruitment industry is never one to be left in the dark when it comes to embracing new technologies and popular social mediums, so it was only a matter of time before recruitment agencies, job boards and other recruitmenty individuals divebombed with full force onto the Twitter bandwagon. Thought only by some to be a faddy micro blogging phenomenon that will be forgotten when 'MyFaceReunited' brings out some other uber trendy social platform; but Twitter has already established itself as an ideal place for the job market to infiltrate. You can search for jobs on Twitter, follow your favourite jobsite to see their latest vacancies and even get jobseeking tips tweeted to you, if you follow the right accounts.

One jobs website that uses Twitter particularly successfully for jobseeking is AllTheTopBananas.com, who have set up over 200 Twitter handles for specific location and industry based job searching. By looking at the following list of @alltopbananas you can decide which of their accounts to follow and receive job alerts straight to your Twitter account in a direct message. The DM feature of Twitter allows you to keep your job search entirely private, so no-one can see these tweets. For more information on how to jobseek with AllTheTopBananas and Twitter, you can check out the Twitter Page on their site.

3) Boris might have 'just the job'- OK, some of you might have the impression that Boris Johnson is nothing more than a random tory loon with a penchant for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. But despite any reservations you may have over the wispy haired oddball, he has come up with a few less than hair brained ideas- and some of those might even help you find a job!

Boris has come up with a site specifically aimed at getting graduates into work, and displays over 500 vacancies in and around the London borough specifically for you lot, you lucky bunch! The site also has careers advice and information on upcoming recruitment events in London to boot, so it is definitely worth a look.

4) Try on a career for size- Graduates of 2008 and 2009 should take a look at newly launched site Graduate Talent Pool; a website dedicated to pairing graduates up with internships and placements. The site has over 3000 vacancies which can be searched by location, career, start date, duration of the placement and whether you require a paid or unpaid vacancy. Its aim is to ensure graduates have the opportunity to gain work experience to make finding their next job that bit easier.

5) FreeMyCV.com- Ok so no jobseeking list could be complete without mentioning the very best site to aid your job hunt!! A shameless plug you scream? yes, yes it is- but at least I didn't put it at the top of the list! For those of you who may have come into the wonderful world of my blog and managed to completely bypass the other pages of this site- FreeMyCV.com is a free CV distribution service that aims to make the jobseeker's life a lot easier. Rather than spending ages filling out the same information on various different websites so that you are registered and thus can actually apply for some jobs, we ask you to fill in this info only once, and we'll do all the legwork for you! We'll register you on different jobs websites that match your skills and provide you with these registrations so that you can then go on and job hunt more efficiently. We will also give them your CV so that employers can contact you directly if they have a vacancy that matches your skills. Simple!!

Happy Job Hunting!!

Jobseeking...

1) Be flexible- You may have a very clear idea of what field you want to work in, and you might even know down to the specific job title you want to secure, but that 'r'' word has come to cast a cloud over your best laid plans- meaning it might be tricky to slip into your ideal career straight away. Be prepared to look further afield, outside of your desired career if necessary, it doesn't have to be for long term but it will reward you with some experience and money. You can always change career paths- you're a shiny new graduate, you have years to settle into your dream job, and just because you don't start there doesn't mean you never will. So don't be afraid to divert away from the grand plan, if only in the short term.

2) Be... more flexible- Of course it's lovely to come home from uni and have your clothes washed and see a fully stocked fridge again; but being prepared to leave the nest for a second time might just secure you an amazing job. Why not cast your net a bit wider and consider other locations? Being unrestricted by location allows you to have your pick of the job vacancies, which also means you might not have to settle for a job outside of your desired field. A friend of mine spent most of last year despairing about his lack of post-graduation job prospects until he broadened his location horizons; he now no longer resides on the couch in front of diagnosis murder, he secured himself a great job in Dublin, with a pretty nice wage packet to match!

3) Smart interview clothes- check, CV- check, thick skin-...check?- Even before the media started frightening us with recession horror stories, jobseeking was no picnic. There's one job and there's certainly more than one applicant, so there are going to be disappointed candidates. Jobseeking isn't easy, you do get rejections; and it is heartbreaking. That one interview you managed to line up just didn't go to plan and you feel like screaming, crying and curling up into a ball all at once. Be resilient, be tough and be prepared for some knockbacks- people say it's character building, I say it's an unfortunate, crappy part of the jobseeking process, but eventually things will go your way. With enough determination and resilience- some interviewer somewhere will see your passion and know you are right for the job.

At Interview...

4) Be prepared- Ok so this isn't boy scouts but it is still a good motto. Doing your research pre-interview can help you get the edge on your competition. Research the company: their values, key clients, it's structure, etc and demonstrate your knowledge when asked. This will show enthusiasm and that you have put the time and effort into your interview preparation. Reading around common interview questions can also be helpful so that you don't get caught out by a tricky question. Long interview silences are something you should avoid experiencing at all costs.

5) Dazzle the employer with your attributes- You're fresh out of uni and although you've got tonnes of knowledge swimming around that brain of yours, you might not have the 'experience factor' which often leaves graduates feeling like they've earned a direct ticket to the bottom of the job pile- do not pass go, do not collect 100 pounds. The most important thing to remember is that everyone has to start somewhere. You may not have experience in the job role, but you do have an interview, which is the perfect opportunity to show off your enthusiasm, your drive, your flexibility and your commitment to learning the new skills that will help you succeed in the task at hand. Just because you don't currently possess the right skills doesn't mean you won't work damn hard to get them, so let that show at interview, and prove that the 'x factor' doesn't always win!

Congratulations...

6) Finally all of your resilience and hard work has paid off, landing you with the graduate's holy grail- a job!! ...But what if it's not ideal?

-You may have been offered a job in Central London, but you'd rather work in Surrey.
-You may have been offered a job that's in a completely different field than the career you want to pursue.
-You may have been offered a job that's at the very bottom of the corporate ladder.
-Or you may have been offered a job with a slightly lower wage than you'd hoped for.

BUT: Don't despair yet! Remember the old adage that a dog is for life and not just for christmas? Well the exact opposite is true for jobs! There is no harm in accepting a job that you may not see yourself doing long term. Times are tough and riding the recession may mean that you start in a job that isn't perfect. Any experience is better than none, and taking the job just might open your eyes to new prospects, things you hadn't considered before, and if nothing else will reaffirm that the 9-5 is the right choice for you.

So there you have it, my top tips for beginning your job hunt. But they don't end there, so check back for more advice soon! Now it's up to you, so dust yourself off and prepare for your jobhunt- you're a graduate, you're amazing and that perfect job is out there, you just need to dig that little bit deeper to find it. And if you still need cheering up, take a look at this really cool Pepsi Max ad, you never know, maybe one of your friends will do this for you!

We've all heard of some rather absurd lawsuits that get filed- they often sound so ridiculous that it's easy to doubt their legitimacy and believe it is just escalated pub banter. You must have heard of the people that sue fast food chains because they get fat, or the burglar that sues his victims because he injured himself exiting the property... there was even an American man in 2006 who filed a suit against Michael Jordan, due to emotional distress caused by looking like the famous basketball star.

The latest lawsuit to catch my attention comes from a Miss Trina Thompson, a 27 year old new graduate from New York's Monroe College. Thompson is claiming $72,000 compensation from her college, to reimburse her for tuition and to cover the damages of emotional stress that has resulted from her inability to find a job, 3 months after graduating.

Thomson claims that the career's service 'did not try hard enough to help' the struggling graduate, who has received minimal attention from the many employers she has contacted since leaving the school.

The CNN website reports that Thomson has even gone so far as to encourage other students to do the same: "It doesn't make any sense: They went to school for four years, and then they come out working at McDonald's and Payless. That's not what they planned."

A spokesperson from Monroe College has retaliated by suggesting that Ms Thompson's lawsuit is "completely without merit", which, let's face it, is most definitely fair!

My least favourite phrase is about to come out of my mouth and I'm sorry, but unfortunately in the 'current climate' it is a tough time for jobseekers. Not only are a new batch of fresh faced, budding graduates being added to the already dwindling job market every summer, but they join those that have been jobseeking for a long time, along with the victims of recession- those who have been made redundant due to companies going into administration, or cutting back on costs to avoid the looming business bankruptcy.

The tough reality is that at a time of recession, there is inevitably a shortage of jobs, especially in sectors which may have previously housed an abundance of opportunities for graduates. Graduate programmes are more scarce, and opportunities in retail and other areas have been suitably affected by the fact that people are keeping a closer eye on their money. Graduates have every right to feel frustrated by the tough times ahead, coming out of uni poor and penniless and then trying to find an opportunity that you feel your degree has earned you; it's not easy!

I have friends clinging on to part-time work post-graduation, others that have been looking for jobs for a long time... I even have some that have so little faith in the job market that they have gone back to hide in their uni bubble for a bit longer by doing post-grad courses; just to escape the harsh jobseeking reality. Graduate or not we know times are tough, and yes it is frustrating, and maddening, and pretty darn unfair.

It might be all of those things but the fact remains that a University or college education doesn't guarantee you a job- especially not in a time when jobs are far more oversubscribed than usual. So Miss Thompson's lawsuit allows her to unfairly blame her place of learning for something that is so far beyond their control! There is no fast-track to a great job in a... [ugh that word again!] you guessed it, 'recession', and jobseeking will require extra effort, hard work, and a lot of patience before things come to fruition. This certainly doesn't mean that a degree is pointless, or a waste of time... far from it! There is a lot to be gained from a degree, far more than you'll see written on your diploma in the end. So graduates keep your chins up, and before you start reaching for the yellow pages to find a solicitor, why not check out my jobseeking tips on this blog to help you sharpen your jobseeking techniques.

My mantra for this week is how to turn this story around- instead of spending time moping, or filing lawsuits, what positive action can be taken to find your next job? If the old method of bombarding employers with your CV just isn't working, how can you utilise social networking to your advantage? If your local paper is full to the brim with jobs you've crossed out, where else can you look for vacancies?

All this and more will be answered by my next blog post, so keep reading, stay positive, and happy job hunting