Stupid job requirements

[bubs]

I've recently been keeping my eyes open for a design job nearer to home as i travel too far and i hate driving. I've come across numerous adverts offering jobs for "designers" where you have to have a degree and X number of years experience in everything from HTML/PHP coding to every Microsoft/Adobe program under the sun AND offering a salary that only someone living at home with mum and dad could possibly live with.
Seems no-one is willing to hire a loyal employee without paying peanuts and expecting them to know things the job doesn't need.

Just feeling stuck!

[dingl2000]

Sadly that's the time we live in, it's like these people that just pass there class 1 HGV you need two years experience before anyone will hire you, which you can't get as no one will hire you.

The worse one is, being told you're over qualified so a job and to give others a chance, I've had that before too

[windrush]

The whole world has change and not for the better IMHO

[tareim]

I've stumbled across this issue many times when job hunting, 90% of the j.d is fine for me but they add 1 or 2 skills that I haven't got a clue about which then rules me out

[bubs]

I've worked for the same company since leaving school 17 years ago. I went for an interview earlier this year doing exactly what I do now but the company was using a slightly different software (corel draw rather that illustartor) I got told I didn't have "the right experience". obviously knowing Corel draw inside out was more important to them than 17 years experience doing the job.

Just gets my goat, feel like all the stuff I can do is wasted if i can't get a fair paid job considering my experience. I would consider going it alone but really have no idea where to start and no safety net should it not work out.

[Billy1mate]

Originally Posted by bubs

I've recently been keeping my eyes open for a design job nearer to home as i travel too far and i hate driving. I've come across numerous adverts offering jobs for "designers" where you have to have a degree and X number of years experience in everything from HTML/PHP coding to every Microsoft/Adobe program under the sun AND offering a salary that only someone living at home with mum and dad could possibly live with.
Seems no-one is willing to hire a loyal employee without paying peanuts and expecting them to know things the job doesn't need.

Just feeling stuck!

Change your 75 for a ZT & you won't hate driving anymore.

[bubs]

if only it were that simple

I've never really liked driving, and the number of morons on the roads seems to increase on a daily basis.

[reworht]

Originally Posted by bubs

I've worked for the same company since leaving school 17 years ago. I went for an interview earlier this year doing exactly what I do now but the company was using a slightly different software (corel draw rather that illustartor) I got told I didn't have "the right experience". obviously knowing Corel draw inside out was more important to them than 17 years experience doing the job.

Just gets my goat, feel like all the stuff I can do is wasted if i can't get a fair paid job considering my experience. I would consider going it alone but really have no idea where to start and no safety net should it not work out.

I think you face a number of problems:

• Colleges and universities continue to churn out designers - in far greater numbers than there are jobs - so employers can be VERY picky and choosy as there are so many candidates.
• Having spent 30 years in the litho printing industry I can't believe how quickly and sharply that industry has contracted. 10 years ago I was part of a franchise which had 200+ outlets in the UK, each with at least one designer in the studio; two competitor franchises would have similar numbers. Now, two of those chains have ceased to exist, and the third one has concentrated on only a couple of major outlets. Independent printers' numbers have also reduced at a colossal rate - again, doing away with designers' jobs.
• The litho print industry grew up on Apple Macs, using Photoshop, Illustrator and either Pagemaker or Quark, or latterly, InDesign. Over the past few years, there seems to have been a major shift away from that software, and things like Corel Draw, Photopaint and even some of the evil Microsoft stuff are becoming much more commonplace.

If you were able to find a slightly old fashioned printer/signmaker/design studio, your particular skills would still be sought after I suspect.

I have to say that I nearly always went for experience and common sense, rather than specific skills on specific software when I was employing - on the basis that if you had the first two, it wouldn't take long to get up to speed on the latter.

[Georgies Dad]

Originally Posted by reworht

I think you face a number of problems:

• Colleges and universities continue to churn out designers - in far greater numbers than there are jobs - so employers can be VERY picky and choosy as there are so many candidates.
• Having spent 30 years in the litho printing industry I can't believe how quickly and sharply that industry has contracted. 10 years ago I was part of a franchise which had 200+ outlets in the UK, each with at least one designer in the studio; two competitor franchises would have similar numbers. Now, two of those chains have ceased to exist, and the third one has concentrated on only a couple of major outlets. Independent printers' numbers have also reduced at a colossal rate - again, doing away with designers' jobs.
• The litho print industry grew up on Apple Macs, using Photoshop, Illustrator and either Pagemaker or Quark, or latterly, InDesign. Over the past few years, there seems to have been a major shift away from that software, and things like Corel Draw, Photopaint and even some of the evil Microsoft stuff are becoming much more commonplace.

If you were able to find a slightly old fashioned printer/signmaker/design studio, your particular skills would still be sought after I suspect.

I have to say that I nearly always went for experience and common sense, rather than specific skills on specific software when I was employing - on the basis that if you had the first two, it wouldn't take long to get up to speed on the latter.

And there you have it from an ex employer in the trade,the last paragraph is the one to take notice of when applying for a job in the future.

The first 2 atributes you cannot learn,anything else providing you meet the criteria of the first 2 atributes you can learn very quickly.
Also first impressions count for a great deal of successful interviews.

[bubs]

I know too well the type of people universities turn out. We have a university graduate here who has a degree in design. They can't use any of the major design software and seem to have no idea to layout the simplest of jobs. What exactly did they teach them for the degree then? Obviously nothing that converts to the real world, they have said to others they have learnt more from me in 6months of being here than they did on the degree course, maybe i should open my own university, lol.

I think i'm just in one of those "what's the point moods" today