Everyone knows it’s a tough job market right now, and there are lots of job seekers looking for their next paying gig, but does that totally explain the fact that “more than 330,000 people have applied for top jobs in the Obama administration so far, in an unprecedented outpouring of interest spurred by excitement surrounding Barack Obama’s election,” according to a story in USA Today ?

Here’s what is amazing about this number: “At this point in President Bush’s 2000-01 transition, there were 44,000 applicants; in President Bill Clinton’s 1992-93 transition, there were nearly 135,000,” according to Max Stier, president of the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service. His group, according to USA Today, “promotes effective government.”

Why so many applicants? The newspaper points out some obvious reasons, including the desire to help the country during an economic crisis and “the pent-up energy of Democrats waiting on the sidelines through eight years of a Republican White House.”  But it also points out a more pragmatic reason that recruiters can certainly identify with—”the ease with which applicants can apply online at www.change.gov.” Clearly, it is a lot easier to apply for government work now than it was in late 2000 and early 2001 when George Bush took office.

Still, people who are applying for a spot on Obama’s team need to take a pragmatic approach and not get their hopes too set on this being their next paying gig, because as the story also notes, “only about one in 100 applicants will get jobs.”

In other words, you need to keep looking for a job no matter where you may have applied, either in the Obama administration or elsewhere. Normally, I tell people that the holidays are a terrible time to be looking for work, at least based on my past experience in both recruiting and job searching at this time of year. But this year is different.

This year, I would advise anyone out of a job (including my son, who has a master’s degree in animation and can’t find work here in Southern California), to keep plugging and push just about every connection and job lead you have. This story from the Seattle Times says the same thing—that you shouldn’t put your job search on hold during the holidays.

When will things get better? Who knows? One thing is certain, though: A job in the new Obama administration is probably NOT something you should be counting on finding in your Christmas (or nondenominational, all-purpose holiday) stocking this year.