Getting IT work so hard! Advice?

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Had 5 contracts normally do IT Helpdesk or 1st Line Support(long and short last 1 and 1/2 hrs) but haven't worked since start Oct 2006 and at moment nothing on any jobsites or bad luck with companies not having funds etc! Have failed 10 interviews since October.

I have a minor hearing loss in left ear and sometimes feel this holds me back, the hearing aid i sometimes wear isn't the best so in turn get very nervous only at interviews but once secured role i am very confident esp on phone. My 5 contracts gained in past have been via telephone interview never seem to get the face-to-face perm interviews.

Has any other professionals on here got similar disability as wondering best way to overcome these problems?

Can anyone give me any tips as very confident within IT just get very nervous when at interviews. or is there any website that offer support for IT Professionals with minor disability or anything that can help.

Thanks in advance

 

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hello krunchie welcome to cf mate! so u applied for the position at kalamazoo? did u get the job then? iv got an interveiw on monday where they are going to test me for bout 2 hours. how did u do in the onsite test? about ur post regarding face to face interviews just be urself and try to ask as many questions you can think of because this will make you feel more comfortable and the person who is interviewing you will know that you are really intrested in the vacancy. also if you get nervous the best way to deal with this is to tell the interviewer that will make him get the impression your taking the vacancy seriously. this is because people often get nervous if its about something important e.g taking your driving test.

for disability check out this link http://www.drc.org.uk/knowyourrights/definition.asp

 

haven't heard anything back mate, think it was entry level so prob why didn't hear anything, just applying for everything at moment (always hopeful!!!) ! Had interview around 2002 with them, did ok in tests but didn't get 2nd interview!

Had few interviews last few months with Law Firms like Eversheds and job with Fujitsu but heard nothing back even tho the Fujitsu one went very well IMO!

Do you have an msn mate i'll add ya on?

Nice 1 and Good luck

 

if it was entry level u should of heard back from them dont u think? il c how the test goes if i do good in the test then i should get an interview. can u remember what they tested you on?

 

Hi Krunchie - Have you considered a digital hearing-aid? These are considerably better than the old analogue models. These are available through the NHS but there is usually quite a delay, so get your name down as soon as poss. You will need a referral from your GP to your local hospital audiology department.

I recently applied for a job at the local Uni. Minimal experience was required as there was to be on-the-job training given + various training courses provided. It was only part-time (18 hours a week) but I thought this would be ideal, giving me time for my own studying. I'd have been more than happy to give it my best shot. I even had an informal interview with the head of IT, that went very well, and was feeling very positive, exceeding all of the requirements necessary for the post. The head of IT said I would be ideal for the job. Clearly someone else was more 'ideal', I didn't even get a formal interview.

When the application forms arrived the 'rosy glow' soon disappeared, even though the questions were what I had been expecting . The Government 'banging on' about equal rights is ludicrous when job application forms include requests for information that can be clearly used to, even subconciously, discrimate against an applicant e.g. Age, Disability. There were, at the closing date, 35 applicants for this 18 hours a week job, that paid a little over £6 an hour, and they were still accepting applications. At the end of the day I am, if nothing else, a realist, so, deep down, I wasn't holding my breath, despite the positive comments from the Head of IT.

It's quite clear that you have some serious certification under your belt. If you feel that your hearing problem may be an issue then try and get a digital aid. At the very least it will give you one thing less to worry about at your interviews. If you have a real problem with interviews why not contact your local Jobcentre, they may be able to offer some help with interview techniques. Whatever you do, don't be disheartened, it'll all come good in the end. Regards.
I Googled 'Interview Techniques' and came up with this (and plenty others) -
http://www.alec.co.uk/interview/intqask.htm

 

Hi Bob, yeah i have the latest new digital hearing aid my hearing bit weird as can hear lower tones better than higher tones (due to illness i had at 8 made my hearing not very good in both ears altho rights picked up over years)

I have watched 2 videos at place named Platinum training and doing a interview techniques mock next week! I'm hopeful it will come good as fed up of hearing positive comments from the agency etc bout i can be earning this £££ time next year and how suited i will be for role then not getting the job in end

Very fustrating at times, think the nerves before was due to not having a decent aid and worrying about messing up at interview. The new digital one is ok but still have trouble hearing the TV, face to face is better tho! Last interview i had before xmas wore it (1st time) and heard everything off the 3 ladies interviewing me! but didn't get the role!

Gonna keep plugging away been lack of jobs on http://www.reed.co.uk and http://www.jobserve.com at moment!

Can anyone recommend any other decent IT job sites to apply on or any decent agencies to send CV to!!

This site is great nice one CF

Thanks

 

Can anyone recommend any other decent IT job sites to apply on or any decent agencies to send CV to!!

This site is great nice one CF

Thanks [/QUOTE]

you can try monster.com or jobssite.com or go to your local job centre and ask for the latest i.t jobs

 

Personally, I wouldn't care a bit if you couldn't hear normally as long as you could do the job, required a reasonable salary, and were personable. Your hearing's correctable, right? You can hear things, even if not perfectly, right? So in what way is this different from wearing glasses? It's not. I'm quite certain I'm not the only person who feels this way.

Don't *allow* your disability to get the better of you, and don't immediately blame it for your problems. Be sure to analyze other parts of yourself to see if you might have some other problem that is keeping you from being employed. Are your salary requirements too high? Are you easy to get along with? Do you have a deficiency in your technical knowledge? Are you applying for jobs that might be slightly beyond your level of skill?

I can tell you definitively that your nervousness during the interview would cause me *much* more concern than your hearing loss. Relax, and be confident in your abilities... so that the hiring manager can *ALSO* be confident in your abilities. After all, if you aren't confident in yourself, how can they be confident in you?

Hope this helps. Best of luck to you!

 

And bear in mind that finding a job in IT is hard. You need to be persistent and thick skinned. Don't let the failures get to you, it happens to everyone. Your turn will come, just keep on plugging away and we will all keep our fingers crossed for you.

It's way too easy to fall into the trap of thinking you are personally to blame for not getting the jobs. In reality there is not enough jobs of this type to satisfy all the potential applicants, hence the competition is very high. It's as simple as that.

 

Whats the job situation like over in Oz bluerinse?

 

Mate - i know what your going through (kinda)

i suffer from tinnitus, had it since 2005, and it is a right bitch to deal with, and it varys in "noise"...

i have kinda got use to it, but interviews, when the buggers speak "low" and the "noise" is in my ear, i just tell them to repeat the question, which helps me to kinda think of an answer aswell, and i could hear (what i thought i heard) again...

Many employers welcome disability, aslong as you be straight with them... tell them any medical conditions you have... at the end of the day, if your phone support work isn't affected at all, and you can do the job, then you have as much chance as the guy who hasn't got a hearing problem...

btw: lip reading is a good skill aswell, as long as you try not to make it sooo obvious, although at times, i do!

Hope all goes to plan.

 

I dunno really mate, they say on the news that unemployment is low at the moment but as far as IT goes, I doubt there are many vacant jobs around where I live but Australia is a big continent and things are obviously going to vary depending on where you live. All I can say for sure is that whether or not the people here are in gainful employment, the standard of living that we all enjoy, way surpasses that of the UK. I see no poor people at all!

Strange as it may seem, I have never been in a situation where I have had to apply for a job.

 

Aparently "IT Technicians" are on the required skills list in New Zealand.