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Well here is my advice from my experience with Staffing Agencies.
I was asked to fill in temporarily for the office administrator at a temp agency and I saw a lot of interesting things.
For starters, you would be surprised how many people out there have no clue on how to make a clean, readable and effective resume. Cover letters are even worse. If you have the resources, please let someone at a Career Center critque your resume and cover letter.
Next, the agency I was working at would extract the resume submissions that it recieved from online sites like Monster, Careerbuilder, Hotjobs, etc.
Let me tell you...those website format those resumes in wierd ways. If you can get accurate contact info, E-mail or Fax the resume (if the company says its ok)...the best thing to do of course, is to DROP IT OFF IN PERSON!!!!!
Also, keep in contact with your recruiter. Either call them or e-mail them to keep fresh in their memory. Dont overdo it though. Everybody in the office will know you're the obsessive guy/girl who wont stop calling and you'll find yourself getting talking to your recruiter's voicemail more often then not.
...and ff you call your recruiter a lot and you find that they tend to "be away from the desk" or are "in a long meeting", this might be cause for some concern if they dont return your phone calls or e-mails. My advice is to show up at the office and approach the recruiter to see if there is a problem. That way they cant make an excuse to avoid you and maybe you can clear things up. It works.
I thought I was being avoided at a staffing agency once becuase my recruiter wouldnt return my e-mails. I showed up in person to find out what the deal was and learned that my recruiter had quite a month ago without contacting anyone. I was assigned another recruiter that same day and was given a really sweet assignment almost immediately.
The honest truth is that recruiters can be great, but they may not always have your best interest in mind, since they are also making a commission. They would ideally like to place you in a position you are qualifed for and peform well in , especially since this makes them look good to their clients.
Also, keep your desperation to work or make money private. Ive seen recruiters exploit employees that they know will work for lower pay becuase they need work.
Personally speaking, working at a staffing agency for those few weeks left a sour taste in my mouth on the way the industry works. I dont know if they're all the same, but always be on your toes and keep looking for work at other sources.
I hope this info doesnt sound too jaded and as always, dont hesitate to correct me or refute anything ive said.
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