Management sophomores David Kleinebreil and Zack Nicols created Time to Apply, a new website that helps students and Valley residents find employment by providing online applications and helpful interview tips.
(Photo by Jessie Wardarski)
Job hunting can be tedious and time consuming, but a website created by two ASU students aims to bring job applications and useful tips to young adults.
Time To Apply is an online database of part-time job applications intended to help students seek employment.
Website co-founders David Kleinebreil and Zack Nicol, both management sophomores with a concentration in entrepreneurship, said the website gives users easy access to applications in 11 different job categories.
Kleinebreil, who came up with the idea for Time To Apply, said his experiences during high school led him to help other students looking for employment.
“While working at McDonald’s, I eventually became a shift manager and a lot of people would ask me for advice,” Kleinebreil said. “I decided to make the website as a learning tool.”
Kleinebreil and Nicol, both from Mesa, were good friends since fifth grade.
They lost touch when Kleinebreil moved to Surprise before starting seventh grade but reunited six years later as freshmen at the W. P. Carey School of Business.
At this point, Kleinebreil, who already had the idea for the website, asked Nicol to join the project.
“I jumped on board without hesitation,” Nicol said.
As freshmen, both enrolled in Semester To Launch Management 494, a course offered to mainly upperclassmen that prove maturity and discipline.
Management professor Sidnee Peck supervised the course, which is designed for students who want to start their own business.
Kleinebreil and Nicol said they were attracted to the course because it connected them with experienced mentors and helped them keep goal setting as their priority.
“Although we usually only accept older, more mature students, they both showed excitement and passion,” Peck said. “They were fun to work with but also had a high level of respect for the course and for me.”
They launched the website, which is a limited liability corporation and legally recognized by the government, in March, while in Peck’s class.
Their prototype took about two months to create and the business plan took an additional six months to design.
Nicol, who is in charge of the website’s content, said they both go to stores, pick up applications and scan them into the website so that they can be printed out by users.
They also have online applications that directly link to the company’s website and can be filled out online.
“We’ve never been turned down when going in and asking for an application,” Kleinebreil said. “We do it all for the business.”
Besides applications, users can also find tips on what to wear to an interview and how to answer frequently asked interview questions.
The website features a video portion where Kleinebreil interviewed Hungry Howie’s Pizza owner Jeff Dorsten on business specific advice.
Nicol said the website will continue to seek professional implementation of in-depth advice and funding.
Kleinebreil said although they are not aiming for the money right now, the little revenue they receive comes from advertisement.
The duo hopes to receive funding from programs such as the ASU Innovation Challenge to help market the website and redesign its user interface without taking out a loan.
Kleinebreil and Nicol also partnered with Mesa Public Schools, the largest school district in the state. Working alongside the career center, they will soon hold seminars on campus.
“We hope to duplicate this partnership with other school districts,” Nicol said.
Reach the reporter at ppineda@asu.edu
