0. Applying to a Job
How do I find a job to apply to? How do I get an application? What are some tips for applying?

1. How Do I Find a Job to Apply to?
There are various ways!

2. Look Around You!
Look around you! Look around the area where you live or go to school. Are there any places near you that you would be interested in? Be on the lookout for “help wanted” or “now hiring” signs.

3. Ask Around!
One of the best ways to find a job is to get referred to one by a friend or family member. They can even give you insider tips on what the job is like and how you can put your best foot forward in the application process.

4. Go Online! Many jobs are posted on sites like: Craigslist Indeed
Monster
Simply Hired
Career Builder
Feel free to use the filter functions on all of these sites. These are some tags that you may want to use when you filter: customer service, food service, child care, PCA (if you are certified), retail, part-time.

5. How Do I Get an Application?
There are 2 main ways.

6. Ask for One! -You can visit the place you are interested in.
-Try to visit during a non-busy time.
-Ask for the manager.
-Introduce yourself and ask if they are hiring.
-If they are, ask if you could apply, and then follow their instructions and thank them for their time (they may hand you a paper application or let you know that you can apply online).
-Alternatively, you could do this over the phone.
*A lot of places use online applications, but it’s often helpful when the hiring manager has talked to you in person, and has seen that you are polite, professional, and interested. It may make them keep an eye out for your application.

7. Go Online
Once you decide where you would like to apply, visit their website and look for an application. It may be called something like:
-Apply Now
-Job Opportunities
-Employment
-Join Our Team!

8. Tips for Filling Out an Application

9. Give Complete Answers
-Make sure that you answer ALL of the questions. When you think you are done, go back over the page scanning for any blank fields.
-If there is a question that you can’t or don’t know how to answer, you can ask someone (a teacher, a friend, a family member) what they think. If there really is no answer, type N/A (not applicable, no answer).

10. Be Professional
The application is the hiring manager’s first impression of you. You want to show them that you are professional and serious about this job.
-Use correct spelling, grammar, and language.
-Avoid text speak (IMHO, Gr8, etc.) or abbreviations.
-Capitalize letters that require capitalization.
-Use punctuation when appropriate (e.g. dashes in phone numbers).
-Do not lie. Just like with a resume, you will want to show your best side, but you should not lie in order to look better. If you don’t know how to answer a question truthfully, ask for help from a teacher or parent.
*You can always ask someone else to look over your application for any errors before you submit it.

11. Be Available
-Most employers are looking for someone who will be able to work frequently and on certain days of the week/weekend.
-On most applications, they ask you to indicate which days and hours you could work. Try to include ALL days and hours that you can work (outside of school hours). They won’t schedule you for all of those slots, but they want to know all of the options.
-Remember that they schedule in “shifts”, which are usually morning, afternoon, and evening (e.g. 9-2pm, 2-6 pm, 6-close). So for example, if you are only available beginning at 12 pm on a Saturday, they may have a hard time fitting you into a shift, and may be less likely to hire you.

12. Those Pesky Personality Questions!
Many online applications include a section of personality questions. They can be tough to answer, so here are some tips.

13. There is No Right or Wrong Answer
...kind of. A human being does not look at each one of your answers. Your answers will be put together by a machine, and the hiring manager will then read a description of your personality based on your answers.
Because of this, each single question will not make or break your chances.
What the hiring manager wants to see is that you are generally:
-Friendly
-Reliable
-Professional
-Capable of performing the tasks
-Genuinely interested in the job
As long as the majority of your answers represent the above qualities, then you should be fine. If you feel like you do not have some/any of the above qualities, you can ask for help in developing them from your teachers, parents, or friends.

14. Use Your Gut
These questions are designed to be answered very quickly. They do not want you to think too long or hard about your answer. Also, usually there are a LOT of them. So unless you want to be working on that application all day, just go with your first instinct.

15. Have Patience
These tests will ask you the same question in various ways multiple times. This is because the test combines all of your answers together. Since you might answer slightly differently depending on how a question is worded, they want to get “the gist” of what you think.

16. Don’t Lie
The tests usually have a little mechanism built in that will tell the hiring manager if it seems like you’re not being totally truthful. So don’t try to answer every question the way that you think they want you to. The test will recognize what you are doing. Just show the best honest side of yourself.

17. What Do I Do Now That I Have Applied?
Your job here is not done yet!

18. Follow Up
-Be reachable. If you put an address on your application, make sure you’re checking that address. If you put a phone number, make sure you have that phone near you.
-Be proactive. If you don’t hear back in a couple of days, give them a call (during a non-busy time), ask for a manager, introduce yourself and say that you recently applied, ask if they received the application, say that you are very interested in the job, and ask if you can provide any further information it this time.

19. Then What?
-If they offer you the job: Hooray!! Excellent work! Congrats!
-If they offer you an interview: Hooray!! Excellent work! Feel free to get some information about interviewing (e.g. you could read the next file titled “Interviewing 101”).
-If you do not hear from them: You can try following-up again in about a week. If you don’t seem to be getting much communication from them, they might not be ready to make a decision yet, or they just might have found a different person for the job (sometimes jobs give you an answer, and sometimes they just ignore you; it’s awful, and they shouldn’t do that, but that’s how it is). Either way, continue applying to other places, but be prepared if they do get back to you with an offer.
-If they turn you down: You still did an excellent job and put in a lot of work to apply. Pat yourself on the back for having done it. You may ask them if they have any feedback for you (maybe you missed something on the application, maybe your hours of availability didn’t work for them, maybe you need more experience) so that you can prepare better for the next application. Either way, thank them for their time, and continue applying elsewhere!

20. If you have any questions, or would like any help, feel free to set up a meeting with your Ms. Alex, your Workforce Coordinator.