Hi TripleTen community, welcome back from the holiday season. January has ended, and we have exciting news on the current job market as well as another tool that will help you find your dream tech job! Join us as we share insights from resident TripleTen Career Coach, Sharahn.
The current job market
The previous year ended with a bang, as job growth was positive in December for the 36th consecutive month. According to the Department of Labor, the US added 216,000 new jobs in December. This growth capped a strong 2023 that saw impressive job growth relative to historic trends, surpassing economists’ predictions.
Most of these new jobs fell into three major categories. Education and health saw 74,000 jobs added in December. The government sector added 50,000 jobs, and leisure and hospitality added 40,000 jobs.
The growth in these sectors is great news if you are looking to translate your tech skills into a related job. Target companies and jobs in these sectors to increase your chances of landing your dream job.
Making the most of Valentine's Day
Valentine's season is a great time to reflect on finding a job that you love. Be intentional with what you want out of your new role. If you are open to anything and everything, you are liable to get anything and everything. This may not be good.
A crucial tool to avoid a glut of dead ends is a job search strategy plan.
TripleTen’s career prep curriculum helps students approach and prepare this plan to ensure they are defining their priorities in terms of industries and companies when searching for a new tech role. Let us discuss what goes into these plans.
Building a job search strategy plan
There are 3 steps to creating a successful job search strategy plan:
- Consider your top 3 industries of interest
- Look for your dream companies within these industries
- Research these companies and their employees
For our first step, there are a few questions to consider. What industries are you interested in? You don’t want to start working in an industry you have no passion or interest in. Which industries do you have previous or transferrable experience in? Previous experience or knowledge in an industry can significantly boost your employment chances. Finally, what unique insights can you bring? In a world that values innovation, diverse insights and backgrounds can spur growth and development.
Once you know your industries of interest, look for companies. Research the company as well as what its current and long-term goals are. Do they have development plans for junior devs or new products you could grow with?
Finally, research the companies and their employees. This is a great time to look at your current network to identify possible connections and referrals. Or you could pivot and have great informational interviews with current employees to learn who you may be working with. Either way, networking with potential coworkers is a great strategy for landing your next role!
It’s good to be open-minded when approaching your first or next role. However, being open-minded is only a mindset. Having a job search strategy plan will help you stay focused on your next job.
Next steps for landing your dream job
If you would like even more in-depth information on the current job market trends, insight into job search strategy plans, or just data-based encouragement that you can absolutely land that job you’re dreaming of, check out the full video below!
Even when you have a job, your career improvement journey never stops. Stay informed on the current job market and up-to-date on ways to improve as a professional by subscribing to TripleTen’s job market newsletter.