Blogging to Fight Unemployment

Came across an interesting article today describing how blogging could potentially land you a job. Among other things:

• Blogging four times a day on a specific subject
• Contacting potential employers to interview for your blog
• Building a network

Actually, I kind of started this blog for this exact reason: to be more visible on the web. However, I've been using it to make notes about my personal progress in my job hunt, posting pictures of ponies, and not much else. I think I'll work on narrowing the focus to a few topics:

• Mathematics (obviously)
• Math-related topics of interest (numerical computing, financial math, etc.)
• Occasional entries on my other hobbies
• Occasional entries on my job hunt

A cursory Google search reveals I have some tough competition already (Terence Tao, anyone?).

So, starting tomorrow, expect this blog to update a lot more regularly, link to interesting math-related content around the web, and not focus on my personal life but more on my interests. It will be a challenge. I'll have to make my posts a little longer (maybe I'll even start implementing "breaks!"), improve my writing style (read: make it more professional), and just put more work into it in general.

It could be a positive force. It could have a net zero effect on things other than being my own little corner of the web where I spill my thoughts. It could be terrible. No matter what it becomes, it will be a journey.

Won't you join me on it?

(h/t Lifehacker)

Ups and Downs [UPDATED: Spoke too soon!]

Didn't get the viagogo position. I've been searching for a job since...March? So far: countless applications, 5 interviews (2 for full time, 3 for temp), and 1 job offer. Yes, that's correct. I got a job. It's a barista position at a local Safeway paying slightly higher than minimum wage. Woohoo. At least now I have a measly income stream.

It's just frustrating that after 4.5 years of school, 4 fairly decent internships, and a very decent collection of academic experience, there's still nothing. That frustration is compounded by seeing most of my friends start their careers. I'm overqualified for McDonalds and (it seems) under qualified for everything else. I've pulled on every string, called on every connection I could think of, but no one has been that helpful. They're a good source for advice but I don't need advice right now. I need a job. Full time. Preferably using mathematics. Preferably in finance, government, or technology. Preferably NOT requiring a 3.0 GPA or strong programming skills. Is that so much to ask? I guess so.

I'll continue to push forward but the temptation to give up grows stronger by the week.

UPDATE:
I guess I spoke too soon. Got a call from a company I interviewed with a while back. Any guesses? Anyway, they are actively trying to create an Operations Research position for me with an opportunity to help their China business. I'll hear back next week hopefully.

viagogo Interview and more FSOT

Well, finished my viagogo interview. I think it went pretty well, especially considering I'm one of the only non-Bay Area candidates they are interviewing for this job. It was pretty standard: areas of interest, long term goals, etc etc. I'll find out their decision in 1-1.5 weeks.

Also finished my registration for the Foreign Service Officer test today. I ended up choosing the Economic cone because Public Diplomacy is very competitive. Registration for a specific date and testing location will open up beginning in September. So I have 3 months to study. To that end, I ordered three books to start:

• The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know
• Career Diplomacy: Life and Work in the US Foreign Service
• Inside a US Embassy: How the Foreign Service Works for America

I also ordered the official FSOT Study Guide, written by the Department of State. I'll take the practice exam first so I know my weak points and can prioritize my studying in the relatively short time I have. I'm also going to start practicing my Chinese again because it is a Super Critical Needs Language. This means [assuming I get past the FSOT, QEP, OA, etc etc etc] I get an extra 0.4 on my Oral Assessment score if I pass a speaking test. The scale is out of 7. That's the difference between 1xx/xxx on the register to 4x or 5x/xxx (where your number indicates your place in line). For reference: above a 6 is quite rare.

As I said before, my pursuit of the Foreign Service is a side project, something I'd like to do but realistically don't have various qualifications for it. Many of the applicants seem to be late-20s through 40s so I could be pursuing this for a while....

Mind the Gap

Apologies for the gap in my writing. It's been about a month even, so I thought I'd start this baby back up again. Updates will be coming more often, trust me.

News on the job front:

• Interviewed with Under Armour. It went OK but it was an "exploratory" interview and hence not for a particular position. Going to call them next week to see what's up.
• Interviewed (2x) with Teavana at the Towson mall. Didn't get it due to another employee transferring in. Oh well.
• I have an interview next week with viagogo for a Business Analyst position. Will report back on the other side.
• I have an interview with Bankers Life Insurance next week for.... not really sure what. I think it's for an insurance sales position but I'll wait to pass judgement.
• On Fri., 8 July, went to a CAPAL-sponsored career fair at JHU SAIS. Submitted resumes to the NSA, NGA, CIA, Deloitte, and spoke to a recruiter from the State Department. Which leads me to my next point:

I think I'm going to take the Foreign Service Officer Test in October. Here's a link to the process. Since I've made this decision so late (for context, some other folks have been studying since January for the Oct test), I'm going to study what I can but basically expect failure the first time around. It's free to take and it's administered/graded by the ACT folks (yes, that ACT). You can take it once per year. I'm not really expecting it to go anywhere unless by some miracle I pass it, pass the Qualifications Examination Panel, and get accepted for the Oral Assessment. Then it'll become serious. For now, it is merely a hobby, a nice thought, a distant way for me to get back to China.

Math Ponies

Taking a break from the heavy-handed topic of job searches, I stumbled upon this Tumblr that combines two of my favorite subjects: My Little Pony Friendship is Magic and mathematics. Example below:

(Image via MathPonies)

Math Jobs 101 (Part 2)

So in my last post, I went over what criterion I was using to discard job ads I came across in my search. In this one, I'll cover what I have been doing.

Let's start with the word "analyst." Many of the jobs I've applied to over the past few weeks have involved this word in their titles. Examples:

• Business Analyst
• Data Analyst
• Derivatives Analyst
• Junior Analyst
• Quantitative Analyst
• Operations Finance Analyst
• Analytic Science Consultant

The list goes on. These jobs have been in everything from marketing to finance to various tech companies. Speaking of, what industries am I interested in? Well, the two I have been focusing on (since there seems to be a lack of focus in job function) are technology/engineering and finance. These are still very broad categories but thankfully, many of the jobs requiring a mathematics degree are in these areas. Also, most of my experience has been in these areas (save for the one summer I did construction management work and the other one where I did math research).

It's been tough (and very discouraging) to find job advertisements which I really fit well. However, my approach has been to carpet-bomb the job boards and see what comes back. This isn't exactly endorsed by various career blogs but the analytical side of me says it's a game of chance and therefore by sheer volume of applications, someone is bound to interview and, hopefully, hire me. Even if it's 1:1000.

Math Jobs 101 (Part 1)

The hard question I've been asked and been asking is, "What can you do with a math degree?" Usually, I augment this question to read "What can you do with an undergraduate math degree?" The reason behind this is that at the post-graduate level (i.e., candidates with a M.S. or Ph.D.) the job market for mathematicians opens up dramatically. Especially in education and finance, the need for both Masters and Doctoral graduates is quite high.

Anyway, back to us Bachelors. My job search over the past year or so has covered just about every industry I can think of. To get an idea of how many positions require some sort of math skills, go to a job site like Indeed or Monster, type "mathematics" into the keyword field, and press enter. Even after eliminating all the ads for post-graduate candidates, that's still a lot of jobs! With everything from sales/marketing to programming to logistics coordination, I have to narrow down my search a bit. OK, let's use process of elimination to do this.

Out:

• Programming/software engineering - While I have some academic experience in this area, it's quite limited and certainly not at the level needed for these jobs. I could teach myself to program (working on it) but I really need a full time job starting in the next 4-6 months. For now, these ones are out.
• Education w/ certification - There are some grade schools that will accept candidates with a B.S. but most of them understandably require some sort of state certification. Again, finding a job in a timely manner is critical right now so these are out. However, programs not requiring certification are still in.
• Actuarial work - Same problem as teaching + lack of academic experience. The actuarial exams require 8-10 weeks of preparation and the passing rate is only 30%-40%. That time could be better spent looking for other work.
• Finance w/ certification - See actuarial work. Sub in CFA and FINRA exams for P/1 and FM/2.
• Sales/marketing - Unless it's a very quantitative position, these are out. My previous summer job experiences in this area have not been pleasant. 
• Jobs with GPA requirements - I'll put it out there: I don't have a 3.0 GPA. Not even close. While those older (and theoretically wiser) than me tell me the job search is not completely a numbers game, I can't ignore the evidence gathered at 10 semesters worth of career fairs. The #1 takeaway from many of the recruiters at these events has been, "If we specify a 3.0 and you don't have a 3.0, don't bother." Granted, many of these are larger corporations who have to go through thousands of applications but the lesson was well-remembered all the same.
• Entry level positions that aren't truly entry level - What I mean by this are job descriptions being filed under "Entry Level" and still requiring 3-5 years of experience. My search is strictly limited to jobs accepting candidates with 0-3 years of experience and preferably ones with the phrase "new grad" in the title.

So what does that leave us? Actually, while it seems like I'm being picky and taking out huge swathes of jobs, there is still a lot left: analyst positions, business development, etc. Basically, if the job description specifically mentions mathematics as a desired major (and sometimes if it doesn't), doesn't require a post-graduate degree, doesn't fall into one of the categories listed above, and I have a remote interest in it, I'll pursue it.

In my next post, I'll detail what I have been pursuing and the industries/jobs I'm interested in.

First!

Dear Reader:

I'm setting up this blog for a number of reasons:

1) To document what has inevitably become a long, arduous, and increasingly frustrating search for a job that utilizes my shiny new Bachelors of Science in Mathematics. Posts in this vein will talk about jobs/companies I have applied to/for, careers I'm interested in, as well as my progress (and, when the time comes, what I end up doing).

2) To talk about maths-related topics. Posts in this category might cover textbooks I'm reading, interesting maths-related articles I've found while crawling the net, and interesting academic papers being published in the various areas of mathematics.

3) To cover any random topics I choose to write about. These may include but are not limited to: amateur radio, my struggles to learn Chinese, music, literature, &c &c &c.

Hopefully, the writing will be interesting, fairly light when not covering heavy duty maths topics, and maybe even entertaining if I don't ham fist it like the last time I had a blog.

Enjoy!