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Network Early
Not knowing anyone in your field in your new location can be pretty scary. Who do you talk to and how do you start?
Fortunately, we live in a digital world where we can virtually contact almost anyone, any time. If you have questions about a certain position in your soon-to-be new location, dig around the company’s website. See if you can talk to the HR person and start building relationships by sending out an e-mail, scheduling a phone call or even a Skype session. According to this article, “finding an insider at a company to help open doors for you is always useful in a job search.” Using your professional social networks like LinkedIn is a good way to start.
Remember, the more connections you build with employers, the better chances you’ll have at landing your own job in a place you barely know.
Research Your Location
Part of the reason why it may be scary to look for work in an unknown location is simply because of that, it is unknown. There’s no better way of familiarizing yourself with something than by learning everything you can about it. You’ll be able to answer simple questions like: where are the companies I want to work for, how far apart are they from each other, where are the nearest apartments or homes, what’s the weather like, the list goes on and on.
Contact College/University Career Centers
Career centers are a great source for finding out who’s hiring on campus and off-campus. Sitting down with a career center recruiter at a college can be really beneficial for career advice, information sessions with other employers, resume and cover letter critiques, and then some.
If you’re not a college graduate, there are colleges who do help newly relocated professionals in their quest for job search. So, don’t be afraid to step into a higher education career center. It might be more helpful than you may think.
Go Niche
While it’s good advice to look for industry specific job boards in any job search, going niche is something that could also help with your long-distance job seeking. Some of the benefits of targeted job sites include: contact information of hiring managers at companies, job postings you don’t find in generic job search websites, and dealing with less competition due to the specificity of the skills required for the positions.
There’s a lot of work to do when looking for a job out of state, but knowing your networks, your location, and using all of your resources to your full advantage can make the process less daunting and a little more exciting to start a professional journey somewhere new.
Photo Credit: Shutterstock
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