Opinion | Virtual job hunting here to stay

Mady Dever, Opinions Editor

Job hunting is like a video game. Specifically, it’s like that part where you keep getting hit by enemies and don’t have enough time to gain your health back, so you lose and start that same level all over again. And again. And again. 

I’ve applied to so many jobs and internships this year that I had to make a massive spreadsheet to track all of my applications — job type, company, time commitment, deadlines, pay, status of application. But it is a bit discouraging when I select “No” on the “Did I get the job?” drop-down I created. And since I am savvy on Google Sheets, it turns red when I select “No,” which only adds to the discouragement somehow, each glaring scarlet cell more painful than the last.

Another way job hunting is nowadays like a video game? It’s all digital. 

Almost every application is online through a portal. Most interviews are conducted over the phone, Zoom, video interviewing software or even communicating with an AI robot via email. And as much as I like to blame the pandemic for everything that goes amiss, all of these options were still available recruiting methods before COVID-19. 

Recently, I had the opportunity to move forward in an internship application process and received a link to complete a pre-recorded interview. Man, was I nervous. In all honesty, I was more nervous than I would have been with a real person. 

I kept thinking how strange this was and that the pandemic is really changing the way our lives operate. But then I remembered some of my friends who had done this same process years before. 

Pandemic or not, the job market is turning digital. I don’t think that’s going to change anytime soon. I mean, how could it? Especially for major companies like WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS, how else are they supposed to get through thousands of applications? 

I do miss in-person interviews. It’s an all-day process, when the actual interview itself lasts for less than half an hour. I approach it ritualistically. 

I spend hours picking out the best outfit the night before. I set five alarms so I don't over-sleep. I check my Maps application to make sure I know exactly how to get there and avoid traffic. Then the morning of the interview comes and I’m both excited and extremely nervous (the emotions blur at that point). I review my resume, as if I am going to forget about the previous job experience I’ve had. I re-read my notes about the company. And on the way there, I answer fake questions and talk to myself as I swerve around Los Angeles drivers, who are probably doing something similar — rehearsing an audition, practicing a pitch or calling in to a meeting. 

Then I get to the fun part of going into the offices and seeing the work space I might soon call my second home. So many nerves pile up that whole day, but once I’m in the interviewing room, they fade a little and I feel like I can just talk. And if I don’t end up getting the job, at least it was fun meeting someone new. 

It’s funny how the pandemic has caused me to actually miss such a thrilling yet anxiety-inducing day.

It’s not surprising to see a substantial amount of human connection lost on the phone or over Zoom, when jobs are all about interpersonal communication. However, the digital connection is where we’re headed. I’ll have plenty of human connections when I actually land the job, but I guess I'll have to make friends with a few AI robots first.