I am looking for a job

[Dominator211]

I am currently 15 years old and i am starting the process of getting my working papers. Im gonna be honest, i dont want to work at a mcdonalds or a place where i might not be happy. There are a few places around where i live that are computer repair places. As far as I know the both arent hiring but if they were tio hire or need help would i be able to work there even though im 15. I dont really care if i am getting paid minimum wage as long as i am doing somthing that i love. I need help from all you older tempers out there!!!!!

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

Most jobs that you likely want to work are going to require either a lot of experience, or various certificates/college degrees, both of which you don't have. Virtually none of them will hire you, unless perhaps you know the owners quite well or someone owes you a favor or something.

Your only likely choice is other shitty entry level jobs, like fast food, grocery/retail stores, working in restaurants etc etc. Your best bet might be getting a job in stores like Best Buy or Gamestop or something, but I'm not aware if any of them will hire someone who is 15.

If all you want to do is work IT stuff, good luck finding anything until you have at least some kind of college or job experience. Your best bet might be to throw up advertisements on Craigslists or the local papers or whatever as a cheap PC Repairman and hope someone gives you a call.

 

[linkinworm]

at your age, you shouldn't be picky, work the crap and get experience where you can, corner shop or anything, unless you're something special you'll find it hard to get anything you "really want"

 

[m_babble]

I never finished high school and have worked for major corporations, recognizable non-profits and reputable venues.
Concepts of conventional success are outdated.
Sure, you'll be at a disadvantage without a formal education in some settings, but most of them would probably be miserable to work at anyway.
It's all about how you market yourself.
You got this!

 

[Stephano]

Getting a job very early in your life is a smart idea. They are resume boosters for getting into colleges and for getting internships later on. Although you may not want to work in retail or fast food, there is no denying that working at those places can be very beneficial. I worked at a Chic-fil-a for 3 years and I loved. It was a great environment, and they only hired nice people so i didn't have to worry about crappy co-workers. I would be lying if I said that that experience I had working there did not help me get an electrical engineering internship.

My point is, you may have to settle for retail or fast food, but i would advise you to find the best place possible to start working. I can already tell you that McDonald's aint the right way to start off. There has to be a place there that you can enjoy working at, it just may not be your dream job.

 

[FAST6191]

Step 1 is best to post things to the right place -- if my potential employee can't follow simple instructions then I guess I will thank them for telling me they are useless in their first interaction with me. In this case site suggestions is not the place for this sort of thing.

"where i might not be happy" and "as long as i am doing somthing that i love"
If you are 15 then you don't have such luxuries -- you presumably have no skills*, probably have school to plan your shifts around, have limits on time you can work**, may necessitate all the other employees have checks done on them (what with you being a minor and all that), may necessitate extra insurance is brought on (my insurance company recognises that while the newly degree bestowed commonly are dumb as a box of rocks they at least have something, 15 year olds traditionally can be assumed to have no such thing at all).
There are thousands of others in similar positions, and more that are more available than you. The only reasons anybody employs people your age is either because they have some sense of community spirit (it is nice to give someone a break from time to time) or because they can pay peanuts and also not have to guarantee a useful/minimum amount of hours.

It is not impossible you get something you are happy/love doing but from where I sit the only way that such a thing is going to happen is if you are self employed or some family/friends employ you.

*it is not uncommon to find someone your age with some not inconsiderable computer skills (software or hardware) or fabrication/building trade skills so some can squeak in that way. Though looking at https://www.youthrules.gov/know-the-limits/hazards/index.htm your options for the latter are a bit limited these days.

** https://labor.ny.gov/ appears to be down right now but from the cached version
https://webcache.googleusercontent....rkprot/hrswork.shtm+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk

The hours that minors can work depend on age, the type of work, and whether the minor is attending school. New York State has one of the strictest child labor laws in the country. The law limits the number of hours that minors under 18 may work when school is in session. To work between 10 PM and midnight on a day before a school day, 16- and 17-year olds need written permission from a parent or guardian and a certificate of satisfactory academic standing from their school.

Minors of any age may not work during school hours, unless they have graduated or withdrawn from school.Home-schooled children may not work during the hours of the local public school.

During weeks when school is in session, minors 14- and 15-years-old are limited to the following hours in most occupations:

More than 3 hours on any school day
More than 8 hours on a Saturday or a non-school day
More than 18 hours in any week
More than 6 days in any week

The law makes exceptions for:

Babysitters
Bridge caddies at bridge tournaments
Farm laborers
Newspaper carriers
Performers
Models

Some try interning, volunteering, apprenticing or similar. All of those are even worse than getting a job but might be easier. If there is a charity around you doing computer recycling (I don't know where in New York you are, various parts of city do have some of the more interesting takes on this anywhere) then that might be a thing, though I hope you like running dban a lot.

 

[Dominator211]

Step 1 is best to post things to the right place -- if my potential employee can't follow simple instructions then I guess I will thank them for telling me they are useless in their first interaction with me. In this case site suggestions is not the place for this sort of thing.

"where i might not be happy" and "as long as i am doing somthing that i love"
If you are 15 then you don't have such luxuries -- you presumably have no skills*, probably have school to plan your shifts around, have limits on time you can work**, may necessitate all the other employees have checks done on them (what with you being a minor and all that), may necessitate extra insurance is brought on (my insurance company recognises that while the newly degree bestowed commonly are dumb as a box of rocks they at least have something, 15 year olds traditionally can be assumed to have no such thing at all).
There are thousands of others in similar positions, and more that are more available than you. The only reasons anybody employs people your age is either because they have some sense of community spirit (it is nice to give someone a break from time to time) or because they can pay peanuts and also not have to guarantee a useful/minimum amount of hours.

It is not impossible you get something you are happy/love doing but from where I sit the only way that such a thing is going to happen is if you are self employed or some family/friends employ you.

*it is not uncommon to find someone your age with some not inconsiderable computer skills (software or hardware) or fabrication/building trade skills so some can squeak in that way. Though looking at https://www.youthrules.gov/know-the-limits/hazards/index.htm your options for the latter are a bit limited these days.

** https://labor.ny.gov/ appears to be down right now but from the cached version
https://webcache.googleusercontent....rkprot/hrswork.shtm+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk

as for my location i am outside of the city. and everything is considered "Upstate" i kinda knew this was gonna happen but ehh money is money I guess
Some try interning, volunteering, apprenticing or similar. All of those are even worse than getting a job but might be easier. If there is a charity around you doing computer recycling (I don't know where in New York you are, various parts of city do have some of the more interesting takes on this anywhere) then that might be a thing, though I hope you like running dban a lot.

 

[BORTZ]

I wouldn't really worry about judging a job by its cover. You have no idea whether you are going to be happy somewhere or not until you work there for a bit. My first job was working at a greenhouse as a laborer. It was AWFUL. I worked 40 hours a week (I was 15, technically i wasn't allowed to work a full time job). It was hot as shit, dirty, sweaty, and my boss was a slave driver. But, I learned a lot of important lessons. I would never want to go back, but I wouldn 't want to work the jobs I have now without the experience I got there.

 

[MikaDubbz]

My favorite job I ever got before college was working at the local arcade part of an indoor waterpark. My job only really amounted to filling machines with tickets, and giving kids things they wanted to trade their tickets in for. Otherwise I was able to use as many tokens as I wanted to play all the games I wanted throughout the day, got to treat myself to whatever candy we had for people to trade in for (had a lot of jolly ranchers and sweet tarts there), and I would always grab a free slushy from the indoor market as well, as we could help ourselves to that. Beyond that, I would often work with this really cool girl that I started to hang out with and eventually dated. All in all, it really was a great job that I can look back at fondly and kinda long for even though I was making only a little more than minimum wage. I say if you can get a job like that, take it. But I've seen other arcades that look way less fun to work at where the employees have to wear lame uniforms, can't play the games, and can't treat themselves to the candy. In other words if you wanna work at an arcade like I did, then try to find one where the employees are free to have fun like I was.

 

[brickmii82]

If you want some tech experience, volunteer to help a church set up their sound and video systems before services. No pay, but it’s experience in a technical field that can be put on a resume. Bigger churches have lighting needs as well.

 

[tech3475]

I would advise checking your local job centre or equivalent as they may offer training services for writing a C.V., interview training, etc.

 

[spotanjo3]

Most jobs that you likely want to work are going to require either a lot of experience, or various certificates/college degrees, both of which you don't have. Virtually none of them will hire you, unless perhaps you know the owners quite well or someone owes you a favor or something.

Your only likely choice is other shitty entry level jobs, like fast food, grocery/retail stores, working in restaurants etc etc. Your best bet might be getting a job in stores like Best Buy or Gamestop or something, but I'm not aware if any of them will hire someone who is 15.

If all you want to do is work IT stuff, good luck finding anything until you have at least some kind of college or job experience. Your best bet might be to throw up advertisements on Craigslists or the local papers or whatever as a cheap PC Repairman and hope someone gives you a call.

You are right but.. Not necessarily. My brother dont graduated from school and he is in 40's. He got no experienced either but he is working for 4 years (I think) and he bought his house and he got his job from fortunate friend and his salary is about 20 dollars an hour. Interesting.

 

[The Real Jdbye]

I am currently 15 years old and i am starting the process of getting my working papers. Im gonna be honest, i dont want to work at a mcdonalds or a place where i might not be happy. There are a few places around where i live that are computer repair places. As far as I know the both arent hiring but if they were tio hire or need help would i be able to work there even though im 15. I dont really care if i am getting paid minimum wage as long as i am doing somthing that i love. I need help from all you older tempers out there!!!!!

What are you good at?
You could always try doing freelance work online.

 

[SG854]

I never finished high school and have worked for major corporations, recognizable non-profits and reputable venues.
Concepts of conventional success are outdated.
Sure, you'll be at a disadvantage without a formal education in some settings, but most of them would probably be miserable to work at anyway.
It's all about how you market yourself.
You got this!

Considering that manufacturing and construction jobs are being replaced with machines, education on how the machines works is necessary. You are not going to go far in life without education. People without High School Degrees earn less, earnings dropped 26% compared to 40 yrs ago. And chances of not getting a job is 20%, which is 400% more than the average. And this will get worse in the future as machines become more advanced.

Grandpa might make lots of money without High School education but thats not the case nowadays. This isn't the 1900's anymore where most work was physical labor. Grandpa worked on cars and refrigerators, but nowadays they have built in computers. You will need to know how sensors work and how they collect data. You will need to know how to fix problems in self driving cars as they start to become more popular which means know how computers and microchips work.

 

[ThoD]

At your age, if you want a job but don't want to be yet another burger-flipper, do what I did (was 16). I got an evening shift at an internet cafe as assistant (was me+the main employee only) where I was helping around and at the same time I was fixing computers/troubleshooting/etc. for acquaintances or friends for a small fee. Made quite a bit and never had to do anything menial, although currently I got nothing (22yo) so looking to set up something on my own.

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

You are right but.. Not necessarily. My brother dont graduated from school and he is in 40's. He got no experienced either but he is working for 4 years (I think) and he bought his house and he got his job from fortunate friend and his salary is about 20 dollars an hour. Interesting.

Which is why I said "unless perhaps you know the owners quite well or someone owes you a favor or something." It's very difficult to get hired for a non-entry level position with 0 actual experience/degree/certification without outside help (or straight up lying on your resume, I suppose).

Though I would argue that someone who's relatively older might not have as much trouble as some 15 year old kid getting some kind of non entry level job, since it's always assumed that if you're >30+ you have some kind of life experience that would somehow translate to job experience (even though in some cases it's just not true).

 

[spotanjo3]

Which is why I said "unless perhaps you know the owners quite well or someone owes you a favor or something." It's very difficult to get hired for a non-entry level position with 0 actual experience/degree/certification without outside help (or straight up lying on your resume, I suppose).

Though I would argue that someone who's relatively older might not have as much trouble as some 15 year old kid getting some kind of non entry level job, since it's always assumed that if you're >30+ you have some kind of life experience that would somehow translate to job experience (even though in some cases it's just not true).

I know and you are absolutely right about very difficult and I just want to share with you all about what I know. No, nothing to do with lying or anything. He dont gave the resume at all either. His friend was also didnt graduated and got this job much longer than my brother is and introduced him to BIG BUSINESS for export/imports and the boss gave him an application and hired him right away. He said that he hate this job but the pay is good. He has no choice, lol!

 

[FAST6191]

as for my location i am outside of the city. and everything is considered "Upstate" i kinda knew this was gonna happen but ehh money is money I guess

http://www.weirdstuff.com/
and


They are in California but CA and NY are the main two places you will find such things, almost anywhere in the world (as an avid collector of electrical, scientific and engineering related junk I would kill for a place even half as good as either of those somewhere in the UK, never mind anywhere near me. Even in Washington, which has a few tech companies too, I had a pretty hard time finding such a place).
I had a quick scan for such things in New York but it was hard filtering out the general computer recycling and the CA one was the only one I knew the name of, I do however know there are those sorts of places there as I follow a few different people with similar proclivities. More did seem to be in the city, or south thereof, but as such things only require a box van and land is a tiny bit cheaper outside the city you can probably still get a bit done.
Most of it will be stacking shelves, maybe pulling things apart to get cards/parts out, said running dban and then dealing with ultra nerds but said places will probably also allow a bit of time to research some of the stuff they have on the internet and that can be fun.

 

[Sicklyboy]

Getting a job at 15 is going to be very difficult. A lot of employers try to avoid hiring anyone under the age of 18, because minors bring with them all kinds of extra state Department of Labor rules and OSHA regulations, such as longer/more frequent break periods and types of work that you are allowed to be assigned, as well as the fact that it can be a major hassle to have to schedule around someone's school schedule. If you're set on trying to get a job though, then by all means do not let that discourage you. Just know that you are in for quite the hunt.

As far as getting a job that doesn't suck, as was mentioned before, as a (presumably) unskilled 15 year old (you presumably have no certifications, no college degree, not even so much as a high school diploma or equivalent, or prior job experience) prepare yourself to start small and work your way up. Not all companies are worth taking promotions, because you get a boatload of added responsibilities for pennies more an hour. But ones do certainly exist as well that have advancement opportunities that are worth taking. What I would personally recommend if those computer repair shops don't pan out - look into warehouse work. Depending on whether it's a small or large scale operation, you could become the local "computer guy", not really getting paid any more but you have found yourself working with all of the computer systems in the building, or some companies, actually hired into the building's IT department. Warehouse work in general usually isn't -terrible- either, as long as you do what you are supposed to be doing and don't fuck around too much, generally you won't run into many issues.

This is all not taking into account NY state's minimum age to work. https://www.labor.state.ny.us/workerprotection/laborstandards/workprot/wptypes.shtm you have to get a permit to be able to work. Warehouse work, you might not be able to do until you are 16. There is a newspaper carrier permit that you could get though, if that is an option.

Long story short though, IMO you are at a position in your life where you shouldn't worry so much about trying to build a career, but instead, not worry at all. I think you'd be best suited enjoying your childhood while you've still got it. You've got all of your adult years ahead of you to worry about stuff like this. But if you do want to press on and try to get a job, don't focus on doing something you love. Do anything, stick to it to show that you can commit to something and be responsible. Use it to pad out your resume a bit, and at the same time, make a little bit of spending money.

At your age, if you want a job but don't want to be yet another burger-flipper, do what I did (was 16). I got an evening shift at an internet cafe as assistant (was me+the main employee only) where I was helping around and at the same time I was fixing computers/troubleshooting/etc. for acquaintances or friends for a small fee. Made quite a bit and never had to do anything menial, although currently I got nothing (22yo) so looking to set up something on my own.

Problem with this is that internet cafes aren't so common here in the US.

 

[GameSystem]

Long story short though, IMO you are at a position in your life where you shouldn't worry so much about trying to build a career, but instead, not worry at all. I think you'd be best suited enjoying your childhood while you've still got it. You've got all of your adult years ahead of you to worry about stuff like this.

This exactly.
Enjoy your youth. You don't need money yet.
If you want an easy entry to the tech field, wait 3 years (or however long until you hit 18) and then join the Air Force or Navy for a tech job. Leave after 3 years and get paid 60K a year starting salary basically anywhere. You also get crazy perks with 3 years of military service, to include veteran's preference and GI Bill for education.