I built a dashboard to run my job search
Job hunting is mostly a record-keeping problem dressed up as a motivation problem. Early on I would send out twenty applications and then have no idea who had replied, who had ghosted me, or which role I actually wanted. So I built myself a dashboard. It runs on localhost with SQLite and one Python process. Nothing syncs to a cloud, and nobody has my data but me. It is a fork of…
Tackling the job search often feels like a motivational challenge disguised as record-keeping, declares the author. Frustrated with the lack of organization, they crafted a personal dashboard. This tool, running locally using SQLite and Python, remains private and unshared. Forked from Pickle-Pixel/ApplyPilot, the author's version introduces additional features and is available at github.com/msohailse/ApplyPilot.
Each day, the goal is to apply to five jobs. A small header displays progress, like 4/5 with a progress bar, and celebrates completion with confetti. The time taken to achieve the goal is also displayed. Initially, the dashboard had a simple applied/not status, but now it follows a more detailed job progression: applied, interviewing, offer, rejected, or no deal. Deleted jobs are kept in the database but removed from the active list to provide an accurate success rate.
The report tab offers a full overview of the job search journey, including the pipeline, success rate at each stage, and daily application counts. The skills analysis feature highlights frequently mentioned skills and identifies gaps. Tailored resumes and cover letters can be generated for each job application, with a note option at the beginning of the process. Versions for different countries, such as Italy and Norway, can be easily switched.
Additional features include highlights that extract key concepts from highlighted jobs, tagged todos with filters, and inbox insights that match recruiter replies to corresponding jobs using Gmail integration. The author advises fixing data issues before adding new features, as demonstrated by fixing a broken Apply button. The most crucial number to maintain is applications sent, ensuring the dashboard accurately reflects the job search progress.
Written by urgent.news from Dev.to's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
