Saturday, January 23, 2010

The Shipyard Job Fair

As a lot of you probably know, I've been having quite a bit of a hard time finding a job. I've tried everything from things I'm qualified for, to local grocery stores or variety stores. I've had a couple of bites, but no official job offers. It is very frustrating on several different levels. I'm not used to not having a job & I am tired of constantly looking for something and getting nothing from it. A couple of months ago I decided that I might need to widen my search to things I'm not really comfortable with. I started to consider some trade jobs at the shipyard. I am completely unqualified for anything like this, but in a lot of situations they are willing to train you.

They have a couple of programs at the shipyard where they train you and pay for your education to get the education needed. Friday and Saturday they had a job fair for all the trades positions they hire for. I was very uncomfortable and nervous (due to feeling out of my element), but I went anyways. It was a little crazy. Something I've never experienced before. When I got to the location, there was a line the wrapped all the way around the building. Lots of people, all there for the same reason. Luckily the line went quickly. Being the shipyard, there was a metal detector that we all had to walk through and of course security people that checked baggage.

Once we got in, the warehouse was completely packed with tables and exhibits to help people understand what each department does. I was able to give my resume to an HR company, apply for their programs, and visit a couple of their booths. Due to my math classes being over a decade old, I get to take a test to prove I have the math skills to take their training classes. It won't be a problem. I took one of their practice tests and decided they need a math person to help them. Several wrong answers on the answer key. Oh, well.....the actual test is given my the local community college, it shouldn't have a problem. There were two areas that actually fascinated me. I guess we'll see if anything comes from it. Even if nothing does, it was a fascinating afternoon!

2 comments:

Packrat said...

Hi - I hopped over from your mom's blog. Belated happy birthday! Also, good for you for going to the job fair. Hope a job opens up for you.

Miriam said...

Sounds interesting, and scary. But, like they say: if you always do what you always did, you'll always get what you always got. Good for you for stepping out of your norm.