Hi everyone..

Been trying to find some temp work but as I'm a student I'm finding that employers (esp. agencies) just tend to fob you off with several different lines, here are the most common;

1) "Ohhh, send us your cv and we'll see what we can do.."
2) "NO! We're no longer registering students with our agency"
3) The most honest answer - "No, I'm sorry we don't really have any positions for students because we've taken too many on so far."

I'm feeling really demoralised as they're up for taking me on after hearing my work history.. until they learn I can't commit to permanent. What's worse is I've been applying for the last 2 months and not getting anywhere with anyone (ohh.. other than stewarding for football matches, something i'd rather not expose myself to - no offence football fans).

Was just wondering if there are any other students in this predicament? Does anyone have any ideas of how to get cash in hand (excluding prostitution!!), or how to get in touch with a good honest agency/employer....OR... if worst comes to worst - do I get my own back, re-arrange my CV and LIE claiming I'm available permanently? As an honest person I'd hate to do this but it's getting to that point, I need to pay my rent!!

Peace:roll:

Look in the Star each week, McDonalds usually take on students, lie to agencies, register for all different types of work through agencies, bar work....

when i was a student (its a few years ago) i worked william hill (High street bookies).

They were always on the look out for students AND you get to be VERY good at adding up in your head..

Yep having the same problem, been to an 'interview' this morning if thats what you call it! Arrogant bloke telling me how great he was for 15 mins then wanted me to go to a 2nd interview for 9.5hrs (no pay!!!)

The best agency Ive found so far seems to be Reed, although I have registered at the Doncaster branch as thats a little nearer for me. I have an assessment tomorrow for on going customer service work and they have a few other things if that doesn't go to plan.
Good luck!!

Yep having the same problem, been to an 'interview' this morning if thats what you call it! Arrogant bloke telling me how great he was for 15 mins then wanted me to go to a 2nd interview for 9.5hrs (no pay!!!)
Good luck!!


Sarah, I would suggest that it's not you with the "problem"

You would probably be far too good and wasted on him anyway... :nod:

i do temping for first contact i know they take on studnets its waitressing and stuff their on matilda street its off the moor near the Dorthey Perkins
xx

Look in the Star each week, McDonalds usually take on students, lie to agencies, register for all different types of work through agencies, bar work....



That’s a good start.

:hihi:

Can't believe you were asked to attend a 9.5 hr interview without being paid (isn't this against the law?)

Me and the b/f applied to tesco, guess what, neither of us were wanted (not like it's hard to work in tesco now is it) you know why - because they want you for life!!! Also.. Mc Donalds and their disgusting food - why would I work there after working at the homeoffice doing data entry for £6 p/hr!? Now that was the life!!

It'd be like working backwards from the things I've achieved already, I want to better myself not lower myself, so I'm prepared to wait. I applied to a Hallam Uni today (after working with their marketing dept and other roles previously) for a £7.69p/hr, I recon I stand a good chance with my experience, CRB check yada yarrrr.. so no offence but tesco, Mc Donalds and agencies can .. well you get the picture.

Can't believe you were asked to attend a 9.5 hr interview without being paid (isn't this against the law?)

Me and the b/f applied to tesco, guess what, neither of us were wanted (not like it's hard to work in tesco now is it) you know why - because they want you for life!!! Also.. Mc Donalds and their disgusting food - why would I work there after working at the homeoffice doing data entry for £6 p/hr!? Now that was the life!!

It'd be like working backwards from the things I've achieved already, I want to better myself not lower myself, so I'm prepared to wait. I applied to a Hallam Uni today (after working with their marketing dept and other roles previously) for a £7.69p/hr, I recon I stand a good chance with my experience, CRB check yada yarrrr.. so no offence but tesco, Mc Donalds and agencies can .. well you get the picture.


nice myspace - you would be wasting your time at tesco/mc D's

Can't believe you were asked to attend a 9.5 hr interview without being paid (isn't this against the law?)

Me and the b/f applied to tesco, guess what, neither of us were wanted (not like it's hard to work in tesco now is it) you know why - because they want you for life!!! Also.. Mc Donalds and their disgusting food - why would I work there after working at the homeoffice doing data entry for £6 p/hr!? Now that was the life!!

.

If any of the attitude expressed in your post came across in your interview its not surprising you didnt get the job, I have attended a 3 hour interview , all day “interviews” are not uncommon for senior positions.

Like I said, tesco want people who can commit their lives to the company. Of course I did not approach the group interview OR the work sample with an attitude. Infact I met the manager after my work sample, who attempted to get me to agree with his comments on the position - "really easy and really boring", I kept it zipped because I'm not yet above working for tesco and didn't want to jeapordise my chances (I certainly am above Mc D's as I don't even eat their food).

I'm sure most people would have absolutely no problem attending a 3hr, 9.5hr or even an all day interview should the job actually have prospects, or more responsibility than pushing a trolley around the supermarket picking peoples shopping!

Anybody can put an act on for an interview, but the longer the interview the more likely it is for you guard to drop, especially over lunch or a coffee break.

Anybody can put an act on for an interview, but the longer the interview the more likely it is for you guard to drop, especially over lunch or a coffee break.

Exactly, I've had all day interview, 6-7 hours and they put you through lots of different scenerios and you may drop something informally over a coffee break. The key thing to remember is everyone is interviewing you, right from the receptionist as you enter the building.

As for working in Tesco or McDonalds, I think the OP was looking for short term work over the summer. If these jobs are avaliable, go for it as anyone can stick them for about 2.5 months. As for "better" position, they maybe avaliable over the summer - I think Shell livewire is still going? Needs more planning in advance rather than now.

Hi

I'm sorry you have had problems with recruitment companies in the past, but I will explain how they work.

Our clients pay us a fee to source candidates which meet their needs.

We have to be very strict when people apply, for instance I specialise in sales mainly business to business, if a client required 2 years B2B experience and I send them a candidate who only has 6 months experience, what do you think the client will say to me? They will reject the CV.

It is a shame that you are being fobbed off, but there are agencies who don't tell the truth, I am always upfront and tell candidates whether I can help them or not.

My advice to you is use your local paper, or only apply for jobs which are with clients direct.

Until you have experience or you are see a temp role or any role which matches your experience I would stay away from agencies as you will unfortunately not get anywhere.

Fish4jobs is mainly used by agencies too, put your CV on Monster maybe you will get people contacting you.

Good luck with your job hunting

Frank

Understood, although it's not like us students apply for jobs we're not experienced for. I have been applying for administrative roles after working in it just short of my 48 week contract at the DWP.

I fully understand that temp roles are harder to cater for, and stereotypes about students are often true, but it would be nicer to be treated with a little more respect. I'm glad that you are upfront and honest about candidates you cannot take on Frank, it's just a shame that out of all the agencies I spoke to it was only Office Angels who actually spent more than 1 minute on the phone to me explaining her reasoning!

I'm sure the right role is out there somewhere, thanks for your support people.

just keep searching, like I said, it is sometimes easier to go direct to companies rather than using agencies - there are a lot of sh*t agencies out there that give the ones who work hard a bad name.

Good luck!

Not sure what kind of work you are looking for but I have temped for several agencies over the last 5 years and my vote definitely goes to 'The Agency' on High Street. Very personable, not false and pretentious and don't mess you about.

Ring Carol on 281 4190.

Thanks for the leads people, I just secured myself a nice temp position today, all that searching did pay off in the end! Good luck to others in this situation, I fully sympathise and hope it doesn't affect you too much.

Hi everyone..

Been trying to find some temp work but as I'm a student I'm finding that employers (esp. agencies) just tend to fob you off with several different lines.



I agree - some Agencies are really crap.
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What annoys me is the people you deal with at some agencies are terrible at their job! How do they even stay employed?

Experience doesn't seem to matter either, I have driving experience and have still been looked at as though they've found me on their shoe.

It is a shame that you are being fobbed off, but there are agencies who don't tell the truth, I am always upfront and tell candidates whether I can help them or not.

One agency I dealt with got me to write a covering letter to go with my CV for a job i had seen. When I ranged her to confirm she said the job had already been offered to someone else.

A good agency I have dealt with is Mortimer Spinks.

Its better off to be deal directly with the company ie NHS, Councils, and South yorkshire police are some places I have applied to and got interviews.

Personally I think agencies are a big joke. They have not got a clue what they are on about

Call companies directly whether they advertising or not or pop into places on a regular basis, be proactive. Companies would much prefer this as it saves them a massive fee to an agency!!! Plus with a typical high street agency you are putting your application in the hands of someone who has probably registered 10 people + for the job and is only going to put people forward who have loads of experience to increase their chances of getting a placement. These days a degree doesn’t mean very much unfortunately (everyone has one), people look for experience

Recruitment Agencies are only okay really if you are looking for temp work: so administration, call centre, customer service, sales or if you want a job in recruitment. Also be aware that probably 5/6 agencies will probably all have the same position from the same company, as it maximises the companies chance to find staff. Read between the lines because agencies tend not to give out names of the company, if you do manage to find the name of the company before they submit your CV scrap the agency and apply direct.

hi

im really interested in what your saying about applying directly.

i need to temp due to the creative nature of my REAL (Actor) job.Do you think it would work the same with temp positions..ie approaching companies directly?

cheers

Read between the lines ..

This is true, you should be wary about most aspects of the Recruitment Agency. I've had a few problems with communication, pay and other niggles with some agencies..although..

The good agency I've worked for is Huntress (based in Leeds); good at communicating, decent pay, nice workplace and very friendly.

Hi Frank.
Its sound advice you have given Figsta but I must admit that in my experiance she has a very valid point.
I left my previous employer in Nov last year to look for a fresh challenge in a senior management position within the automotive sector. I find myself either too well qualified or dont fit the clients profile perfectly, what ever happened to training? Generally I find that most agencies make this decision based on my CV alone without picking up the phone and finding out in person. Their is only so much information you can put in a CV.
What would really make things easier is if the joib description/qualifications/people spec was actually better qualified in the first instance. I am fed up of applying for positions which I feel match my skill set perfectly based on the job description only to be dissapointed time and time again because the client always wants something else, according to the agency!!!
It is very frustrating believe me.
I have now taken to ringing the agency and TRYING to speak to the consultant direct, but their very seldom in or return messages?
Regards
Bob