The average job search takes 3 to 6 months.
It took me 3 months to land my fellowship while I was in my MPH and 4 months to land my current role in 2020.
About 53% of college graduates are unemployed or working in a job that does not require a bachelors degree.
Even when the unemployment rate is low (4%), it is hard to find a job in public health.
It is common to have a hard time finding the right job in public health after graduating. If this is you, you are not alone.
Feeling Defeated After Not Getting A Job
Whether you are a recent bachelors or masters graduate, your goal was to get a job upon graduating. It has become increasingly hard in this economy to land the right job.
This is all while there are magnitudes more public health graduates today than they were when I graduated in 2019. This is all while the 5-year CDC funded the Public Health Infrastructure Grant was awarded. One of the strategies focuses on increasing the public health workforce.
It is natural to feel defeated. The important thing is: 1) you detach the job search from your worth; 2) you create a job search plan.
It may take longer than it did in the past to get a job. Especially, if it’s an ideal job position. Remember that they are numerous companies that are posting ghost jobs – not ones they are actually trying to hire for.
This makes it all the more difficult, but I got some solutions for you.
Applying to Jobs is a Numbers Game
Job candidates on average get 1 interview from 6 job applications.
- 1-10 applications, gives you a 61.7% chance to get an interview
- 21-80 applications, gives you a 81.8% chance to get an interview
- 81 or more applications, gives you a 85.2% chance to get an interview
You will need to send at least 21 applications in order to get an interview and have a high likelihood of getting a job offer.
The sweet spot for getting a job is in the 21-80 job applications submitted.
Your likelihood of getting an interview and subsequently a job increases with the amount of applications sent. Optimize your application to position yourself to be a strong candidate.
No matter where you are applying, you will need to have a plan.
(Join The Public Health Community)
State of The Job Market
We are in a blue collar boom and white collar recession.
While US unemployment is historically low, at 4%. There is a recession occurring for the most educated workers, and a job boom for the least educated.
This may explain why it is even more difficult to get a job if you have a bachelors or masters in public health.
In June 2024, there were 8.1 million jobs available in the US economy. There were 6.6 million unemployed persons in the US. There are currently 1.2 jobs available per unemployed person in the US.
The population with the least education has seen the steepest growth of employment (5.7%). Compared to 2.5% for those with Bachelors degree or higher, -0.4% for Associates degree of some college, and -1.4% for high school graduates no college.
Public Health Job Market
Public health job hiring is still happening – I’ve seen at least 15 celebrations of new jobs in the past week on LinkedIn.
What’s happening, is it is likely to take longer than it did in the past to land a job. And even more-so, for your ideal job.
Remember there continues to be a shortage of governmental public health workers. While these jobs are available, governmental public health jobs are notorious for taking longer than other jobs for hiring candidates.
Interested in governmental public health jobs? Check out:
Your public health skillset is valued in so many fields outside of traditional public health. So be sure to keep your eyes open to non-traditional positions you can apply your expertise.
Resilient Job Hunting
55% of unemployed adults say that they were burnt out from job searching.
Increasing to 66% for younger generations reporting burn out at 66%.
Burnout can happen to any of us. Developing the right skills and coping mechanisms to combat burnout is essential.
Burnout can result from:
- Chronic stress
- Work overload
- Lack of control
- Lack of support
- Imbalance in work-life
3 Ways To Beat Burnout On Your Job Search
1. Create Your Structured Plan
- Reflect and develop a clear job search strategy
- Set your goals and timelines – choose how many jobs you will apply to per week or how many hours will you work on job applications
- Decrease overwhelm and increase your motivation by breaking task into manageable steps
2. Prioritize and Schedule Your Self Care
- Incorporate breaks into your routine – breaks should be a fundamental part of your plan
- Engage in activities that recharge you – exercise, hanging with friends, hobbies, meditation
- Schedule your sleep so you get 7-8 hours of sleep and maintain a healthy diet
3. Cultivate Your Support System
- Connect with people that offer encouragement and advice
- Join online communities for networking
- Get professional help if you feel overwhelmed or stressed
By following these steps, you can effectively manage burnout and stay motivated throughout your job search. Remember, taking care of your well-being is just as important as finding the right job.
4 Mindset You Need On Your Job Hunt
Embarking on a job hunt can be a challenging and emotionally taxing experience.
To navigate this journey effectively, it’s essential to maintain the right mindset. Use these four key mindsets that can help you stay true to yourself and resilient throughout the process.
1. Know You Are Enough
Despite how you may be feeling in this moment, you as a whole person are enough in this world. This circumstance does not define you and was not because of you. It may seem tough right now, but you will get through it. Lean on friends who raise you up. Take breaks and be kind to yourself.
2. Know You Are Not A Failure
The systems around you have failed you. Schools should be preparing graduates for the career afterwards. I created this platform because I believed there was so much about public health career development that I did not know and had to find out on my own. School is hard enough on its own, schools need to support students better…especially at the cost of higher education. You got where you are despite these challenges, you are strong and will make it through.
3. Pause and Reflect
Get the negative energy out of your life. Negative energy and sometimes people do not serve you and who you want to become. What did you enjoy doing during your journey? Can you do more of that, even in an internship or volunteer level. Practice your hobbies. This is a great time to develop happy habits for yourself. This will also help you realize that you are more than just a job.
4. Detach the Job From You
In life, you are more than your job title. Your value exist as a person outside of any job you work in. People often conflate their value from the job we have to our personal value. Thus when have no job, we devalue ourselves. Stop that! You are so much more than the job. The quicker you are able to detach yourself from the job, the better you will be. Jobs are important; You (as a whole individual) are more important.
Embrace these four mindsets so you can maintain your self-worth and resilience during your job hunt.
You are more than your job title, and your value as a person transcends any employment status. Stay positive, stay true to yourself, and trust in your journey.
Public Health Job Searching Tips
Here is an outline that you can structure your job searching process on.
The 5 step method you must focus on in your public health job search are:
- Goals
- Optimization
- Brand & Network
- Intentional Application
- Prepare for Interviews
This method will set you up for success in the long run.
1. Goals – Set goals and have a plan
Start by reflecting. Reflect on your experiences, on your ideal job roles, on the knowledge and skills you’ve acquired. What locations do you want to work in? What’s your non-negotiable salary needed? What’s the ideal company culture?
Before applying to jobs you should have an idea of what you want to do. You should know where your knowledge, skills, and experience make you a strong candidate. Also know the skills you want to develop and strengthen in a new role.
Set goals for how many jobs you’ll apply to per week. Alternatively, you can set a certain amount of time you’ll work on researching, tailoring, and applying each day/week.
Track your job applications. Save them into a folder so you can recall their roles and responsibilities in-depth before interviews.
Find accountability partners that you can lean on when things get tough or you lose motivation.
2. Optimization – Optimize your resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn
Optimization is a must to get a job in 2024.
Start by creating a draft “master resume” you can use to tailor to specific job applications. You should also draft a cover letter that you can use as a template.
The most important thing you can do is to optimize for the key words in the job description. Optimize it in your resume, cover letter, and in a broader sense your LinkedIn profile.
Build a strong 2-page or less resume (unless applying to federal jobs). 90% of HR professionals believe a CV should not be more than 2 pages (regardless of how much professional experience you have).
Always submit a cover letter (even when jobs don’t ask for one). Cover letters aren’t as important as your resume, but can be a differentiator between two matching candidates. Don’t rehash your resume. Instead focus on: relevant achievements, qualifications, why you are a good fit, and why you want to work at that company.
Your LinkedIn profile should have the key words that most often come up in the job applications you apply to.
3. Brand & Network – Build your brand and develop your network
Many jobs are secured through some form of networking. Networking is the art of building genuine relationships with people with similar interests and visions.
While LinkedIn is a good tool to grow and engage your network, your network is offline too. Develop your network by:
- Do informational interviews
- Join professional organizations
- Connecting with likeminded folks
- Attending online/in-person events
- Researching jobs and making connections
- Intentionally create and share content online
- Utilize your alumni network and other networks
Your brand is how people think of you when you are not in the room. Your brand is how people feel when they interact with you.
Whether you like it or not, you already have a brand. So it should be on you to ensure you build the brand that you want people to know you for.
The easiest way build your brand is by sharing content on platforms like LinkedIn. Utilize LinkedIn to build your brand while expanding your network.
(Join The Public Health Community)
4. Intentional Application – Research jobs and apply with intention
From the goals developed in part 1, outline your intentional application process.
Apply to the jobs if you meet 55%+ of the job description.
Stop applying through LinkedIn, Indeed, and other job aggregator sites. Start applying through the company website.
Use LinkedIn to search for alumni and other people in your network that work at companies you are interested in working for. Connect with these people and have an informational interview to learn more about the company and role.
See if they can connect you to the hiring manager or someone on the team you are applying to. This is how you not only network, but is a step towards intentionally applying.
After interviews, follow up with the interviewee.
5. Interview Preparation
It is better to be over-prepared than ill-prepared.
For the interview process, you want to:
- Research the company
- Understand the role
- Prepare your answers
- Practice and prep your delivery
- Prepare to ask thoughtful questions
Familiarize yourself with the company’s mission, vision, values, services, and the broader industry.
Review the job description to highlight the key responsibilities, skills, and knowledge required. Match your skills and be prepared with examples to talk to any of these.
Practice common interview questions. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure behavioral focused interview questions. Work on technical questions specific to the role you applied to, if applicable.
Do mock interviews to best prepare yourself. Pay attention to your body language – make good eye contact, have a confident handshake. Practice clearly communicating your points – try to reduce filler words.
Prepare and write down the questions you want to ask the company. Have at least five, but prioritize ones most important to you. Focus your questions on: company culture and work environment, role specific questions – such as success metrics and day-to-day responsibilities, and learn about professional development and growth opportunities.
Last Piece of Advice
Your past does not define you.
There are no failures. Only lessons or redirections.
Every hard struggle starts off tough – think about the hardest hike you did, was it not worth it?
If you are not getting call backs – which is common – redo your resume and cover letter optimization. Focus on sharing the outcomes from the work you have done.
Give yourself grace. The job market is a tough one. Keep your head up and follow your plan.
(Join The Public Health Community)
