Job Stress

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I've been facing a lot of stress lately. I've been trying to find a summer job at a daycare or camp because my job doesn't pay over the summer. All the jobs I've applied to have required applicants to have a high school diploma and be at least 18 years old. I have an associate's degree with about 57 additional credits and more than 8 years experience working with children. So far I've interviewed at 3 places. One canceled my 2nd interview the day of, saying they already hired someone. The 2nd place said they're hosting interviews all week and would get back to me if I'm the one they want.

The 3rd place was really interested in me at first and my top choice, but the 2nd interview didn't go as planned. I don't drive and I take paratransit everywhere. Today the bus was late and made me late for my 2nd interview. I called ahead to let them know I was running late and they said it was fine and that I could reschedule, but I declined because I was already on my way. Lots of kids from my school go to this place and they all got so excited about seeing me there. I tried my best, but at the end, the director just said she would talk to the classroom teacher about how it went and give me a call. She thanked me for coming. I think I blew it by being late, but maybe not.

It's very frustrating trying to find a job. I have experience and a degree, but it doesn't seem to matter. I might end up working at Good Will making $1 over minimum wage this summer. To top it off, I'm going to be 30 next week which sucks because I'm not advancing with my life. Right now, I'm 2 weeks into a diagnosis of pneumonia, covid, and the flu. I feel better, but I'm still coughing and wheezing sometimes. I think stress is a contributing factor and reducing my stress is almost impossible.

I had a friend many years ago who was looking for summer employment at the university of Kentucky. He was scanning a list of jobs which all paid $3/hr. except one for the biology department at $15/hr. He took that one and then discovered it was collecting rattlesnakes.

If you are excluded from summer camp employment because they are looking for college age staff so they can party, you might be glad to avoid that environment.

You might advertise as a nanny for a rich family that wants someone to take care of their kids for the summer.

If you're in the US, do any of the local public schools hold an "extended school year"? These are generally for special ed kids so they don't lose skills over summer break.

I'm sorry to hear you are having trouble finding a summer job. I wouldn't take it personally, the modern day job market is no longer a meritocracy anymore. Who knows what metrics they are using to measure new candidates for hiring? I've applied to many jobs that I was way over qualified for, only to be turned down for seemingly no reason.

Most places seem to care more about how much they enjoy socializing with you as a co-worker rather than actual skills or performance.

Unless you are in some sort of profession.