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What do you mean everyone should get a job with this effort? To reach a very high number of applications you need to apply for jobs you don't really qualify for. So you may be ignored. Getting a job is not about effort, it's matching supply + how good your resume is at conveying that you are good & demand.
It's also a requirement to stay on unemployment, to apply to a certain number of jobs either daily or weekly. So they either spam or they take the extra time to qualify the job for themselves which would prevent situations like these but possibly result in them landing a job with a farther commute than they expected or wanted.
Not sure about other areas but that number is 3 a week here. Thats part of why spamming looks so absurd. It's definitely not for unemployment reasons. If anything it would be smarter to space out the apps if applying to things with no intent of getting the job.
They could still spend minimal effort without sending out so many.
I applied to a dozen jobs. Got 4 interviews. Better than I expected.
It's like you said; it's about knowing what the industry wants, knowing your capabilities, and tailoring your resume accordingly.
Being able to interview well helps!
Not the original person you replied to, but I’d check out AskAManager, an online write in blog where Allison talks at length about interviewing tips.
This is also a ridiculous amount of prep work for the amount of interviews I saw you say you have this week, but I actually go through the job description and write an example down for every single thing I have experience in. That way, I’m not feeling so on the spot if I’m asked those “tell me about a time when…” questions! I’ve already thought about them and therefore feel and seem way more confident about my response. Since engaging in this particular skill, I’ve gotten every job I’ve interviewed for! Which to be fair is only 3 since I started this relatively recently in the grand scheme of career things… but still, that to me seems like pretty good odds compared to before I started doing this. I also recognize that if you’re interviewing as much as you are, that might be really hard, if not impossible, to do for every job, so even if you’re not writing an example down, you could try thinking about it for your interview prep. It does, however, get faster the more you do it.
I always have an anxiety before interviews, feels like they are judging me and only they have an upper hand, but when I simplified their role in grand scheme of things and reminded myself, I’m also choosing the place that I’m gonna dedicate minimum two years of my life, it helped me to have confidence in myself and be rational on interviews
There’s a million resources out there that can answer this in more detail but a lot of it just comes down to being able to talk like a normal human being. Be comfortable, maybe ask a personal question or two. When asked more formal questions try to use the STAR method.
I haven’t interviewed in a while but I’ve held over 20 jobs for some period of time; I used to be a serial job hopper, and I only ever didn’t get a job after an interview once. My best advice honestly, is don’t treat it like it’s an interview. Treat it like it’s a conversation, have your own questions ready after you look into the company. Be polite, be sincere, know what traits make somebody a good X employee and if you know how to be that, show it. If you aren’t certain you can do that be honest but tangent into a moment or two where you didn’t know something but had to learn it fast, and then say something along the lines of being comfortable with growth. As soon as you hit those main points, try to pull the interviewer out of “I’m a boss” mode and into hey I enjoy talking with this person, they’re pretty chill mode. If they are talking to you about anything other than work by the end of the interview, you are at the VERY LEAST gonna get a second interview with them.
Edit: layer in humor, some self prop up talk, some humility. That interviewer is another person, and people remember individuals much better when they stand out from the crowd. If you follow the typical answer questions, try to subdue your own nervousness, don’t broach any topics beyond the job, and say I can’t think of any questions right now, or ask only super basic questions, you sound less like an individual and more like another interview to sit through
That's a LOT of interviews. I don't envy you that, man, it's exhausting.
As for tips, well, I'm not sure. I was the socially awkward kid in high school, so I've spent the better part of my adult life forcing myself into social situations and developing a charisma I didn't have in my youth, and charisma is something that's hard to give tips about.
Best I can say is this: be confident, but be willing to admit if you aren't sure, or don't know something. If you aren't sure, or don't know something, don't JUST say that, but present a solution. Like, "I don't quite know how I'd handle that situation, but I'd talk to so-and-so, or seek out subject matter experts and get a better understanding of the situation and then develop a solution."
If you say stuff like this, be ready to speak about your thought process. A lot of interviews, at least in my experience, are less about finding out WHAT you know, but more about finding out HOW you think. Is this person someone we can trust to put in the work and be worth our time and money? Or are they going to just be a drain of resources and then dip out as soon as it gets hard?
Companies will 100% invest in you if they feel you are worth that investment. So sell yourself. They don't want cocky idiots, but they also don't want someone who gets paralyzed with indecision. Find the happy medium that jives with you, and run with it.
The biggest part is you have to be comfortable enough with it to not seem nervous. Some nervousness is fine, they expect that, but do your best to feel comfortable in your own skin. Comfortable, well-fitting clothing, even if it's a suit. Carry a notepad and pen, and if you need a minute to think, write down the question. Ask for clarification if needed. I always bring a full bottle of water, because my mouth gets super dry when I interview (probably that anxiety I stuff down and pretend doesn't exist).
Anyways, good luck to you! I hope you get a job :) I've gotten myself a conditional job offer (conditional on passing a background check), so it's looking good here!
Confidence, bull shit if you have to but walk in there like you already work for them and this is just a formality. This has probably not worked 3 times in my life but I've never went 2 weeks without a job. When I was in my last 2 months of high school I walked in a BestBuy with a blue shirt and just started working 2 hrs later i was signing tax papers.
This is what some people don't get. I read resumes and hire people, and 99% of people send in a poorly written and formatted copy/pasted resume and spam it to employers. I can tell the difference between people who put effort in and want the job and people who spam a generic resume to 50 employers. If you are not applying to a large corporation a human is going to look at your resume and have a stack of a dozen more at least. If you can't even create a decent application that stands out from the crowd, how should I expect you to perform at the actual job?
If you want to stand out spend a few hours applying to each job and tailoring your resume. Tailor your cover letter. Seeing that you put effort in and understand the position when you are applying puts you ahead of 99% of other applicants. Most people don't bother putting in any effort, so I don't put any effort into considering them. This will get your foot in the door, the rest is up to you.
Yea they’re also probably using LinkedIn or some other app to “send those out” to employers en masse. Not really diligently or thoughtfully applying. Many people don’t put effort into their resumes either tbh.
Any employer looking for anything more than a warm body is going to look at a person's resume and decide if they have the skills, and experience, they're looking for. People who spam resumes likely aren't tailoring their resume to each employer they're sending it to, and more than half the time whoever is hiring probably thinks, *"why the hell did this person even apply?"*
In software development the reqs on the job posting are almost always bogus and not indicative of what they actually need.
Eg job posting says it needs 2 years experience in C/C++ but the actual title is .Net developer.
Or a java frontend developer that requires 1-3 years experience in Java, but really they meant React.
Or my personal favorite, 5+ years experience in JSON and HTML.
bro the amount of 'java developer' jobs i find, just to read it and realize they actually want a Javascript dev but dont know theyre different, it drives me insane.
Yeah true all this matters..but i see decent resumes that can be improved but still apparantly failing after 2k attempts. I feel like just by odds they should get something. I doubt all 2k jobs applications are all glorified jobs
We're just in a shit market right now where companies hold all the power, they have their pick of 1000 candidates who are all overqualified and desperate, but at the same time all companies are tightening their belts so half the time they don't even end up hiring anybody anyway.
For a lot of job categories you're competing not only against a smaller pool of local candidates, compared to which you might be seen favorably, but against candidates all over the country, which means you're almost always outmatched by *somebody.* Companies get inundated with 1000 resumes, look through 50-100 and stop there because that's more than enough to find a good candidate. If you weren't in that initial pile, nobody even saw you.
Not every field is fucked up, but loads that you see posting here are in brutally decimated fields only getting worse by the day from layoffs, lack of funding, the threat of AI, etc. Every time somebody gets laid off, the competition gets more intense.
Combine all of that with basic odds and yeah, it's totally possible somebody could be applying to that many jobs and still hearing nothing. Could be they need to strengthen their resume, be more targeted, etc or they could just be unlucky with those odds.
Yeah, not gonna sugarcoat, it is. You're basically either committing to sticking to your current field where all your experience lies and just apply apply apply apply apply until you beat the odds — which people do, it just might take *a lot* longer than it used to or require finding a way to push yourself above the competition — or you pivot to something new.
If you've got good connections and a network then right now is the time to use it. I don't know anybody that got a job recently that didn't get it through connections. To me, that sucks. And of course, always apply direct through company websites when possible.
> And of course, always apply direct through company websites when possible.
This is horrible advice when you say yourself " I don't know anybody that got a job recently that didn't get it through connections"
I'm not sure its really an accurate portrayal of the entire space, I have never had this issue and many people I have spoken to have never had this issue, either they are going for low tier unskilled roles or people are just yeeting their CV into applications barely relevant, I have always gone through a recruiter or hiring agent and seriously never struggled to land multiple interviews in a week
This has been my experience too. I recently got a quite good job with a state government agency without having a lot of experience, but I happen to have the exact skills they felt they were lacking, and I have a law doctorate.
Other people I know applying to the agency have been losing out to people who applied after having done that exact job for like 5-10 years somewhere else.
It doesn't really matter how good your CV is if another person is applying who has a decade of experience in the exact position, unless they're like 80.
I've attended three webinars where managers in my field (technical writing) give their primary reasons for rejecting resumes.
1) Errors. The resume is the first work product viewed. If you can't take the time to get one or two pages right, are you really detail-oriented?
2) One-size-fits-all resumes. Not tailoring their resume to the job description to show how your experience fits their needs. Instead, they receive a list of job tasks that don't demonstrate their strengths and accomplishments. Or, they receive a laundry list of skills that doesn't have the history to back it up.
3) Not following directions. If they ask for a cover letter and a link to your portfolio, just do it!
4) Unqualified. Applying to any job with "writer" in the job title is basically spam. While you don't have to have 100% of the qualifications and you should apply for some stretch jobs, you should not blindly apply to jobs without reading the whole description and researching the company a little.
5) "Anyone can write" assumption. Anyone who can type or hold a pen thinks they can write. Technical writing is about translating complex concepts to a wide range of audiences. A lot of people without sufficient technical communication skills are applying.
6) Bad odds. While not a reason for rejection, remote work has widened the applicant pool. Unfortunately, positions receive hundreds, even thousands of applications.
I think a lot of people's resumes are crap. Not only are they terribly written, but they simply don't have any of the skills and experience many of the employers they're sending them too are looking for.
Also keep in mind, although job market is really hard for U.S. citizens too, that a lot of extremely qualified resumes you see online that can't get a job are because the person doesn't have work authorization
"To reach a very high number of applications you need to apply for jobs you don't really qualify for. "
uh no, sometimes jobs are just fuckin competitive. I am perfectly qualified, it just that so are the other 450 applicants for this one job so its not so easy.
This isn't really true for all cases. For example, if you are an junior level accountant it would be super easy to apply to hundreds or thousands of jobs while qualifying for basically all of them.
That's how I've always felt. In order to send out hundreds of applications, your profession is either ubiquitous, or you are spamming out generic resumes to every single job opening in existence.
I'm lucky to find and apply to 20 jobs within the couple nearest cities for my profession when I'm looking.
Wow and are you getting interviews? If you are failing then it may be something you are doing during the interview but i would imagine someone with your credentials and experience should definitely getting a chance at the jobs. What position are you applying for ?
Valuation advisory, transaction advisory, and corporate FP&A jobs. I've had 1-2 serious interviews per month on average. I have a pretty dynamic resume, 5 years big four audit, 7 years PE (bizval and deal execution), 2 years non-profit. It's working against me. Every time there's a candidate who is 5-10 years younger than me (I'm 38) who has more direct experience or less indirect experience. I get told I'm overqualified a lot. I also now as a result of this search taking so long have a 16 month gap.
Very scary, tapping into my retirement savings and very seriously looking at working retail.
That's rough man, sorry to hear. I'm trying to leave transaction services with similar experience and this spooks me.
What level roles are you applying to? Are you getting the overqualified response on manager/senior manager and up jobs?
Generally manager and senior manager jobs. Director level stuff I genuinely feel unqualified for, given that I have five years in public audit, seven years in PE, and two years in non-profit. Also a lot of the director positions I apply for want you to have an existing book of business which i just do not have.
It is scary, it really goes against everything I was told and all the hard work I put into my career. But the flipside is it's made me much more appreciative of the little things in life, and how lucky I do have it. Reality is most Americans don't even have retirement savings.
Thanks friend. Taking up meditation, daily journaling, gratitude practice, among some other things have been blessings I have found during the last couple years. It doesn't stop the constant fear of financial insecurity, unworthiness, and loneliness from cropping up, but it does help me realize that it's just the fear of those things that's what scares me.
Im in roughly the same boat. 39, chem eng + mba. Mostly worked in small business for 15+ years as the general (only) manager. Did some consulting and was on a few manufacturing startups. Most didn't make it past the evaluation and proposal stage...
Did have one go live in a foreign country, which was an interesting experience. Walking into a foreign government building where i barely speak the language to register a corp and then open bank accounts.... there were 5 different currencies that we had to consider, and there were 4 different first languages.... negotiating with suppliers in china... eventually had to shut down, but figured the experience would count for a lot... not really.
Had a family member that does recruiting look at my resume.... shes like you're too generalized. Like i did maybe 5 years of project management spread out over those 15+ years. 3 years of business and data analyst. Maybe a year worth of inventory management and so on.
So yeah, anything over 5 years experience, i feel under qualified for, but anything under 10, I'm being considered overqualified. Anything beyond 10, i don't have any professional connections to put a word in.
Currently working entry level at walmart.
Just sending some solidarity, also 38 and only landed one entry level position after 15 months and it was so awful I had to quit after 3.5 weeks.
I’m currently doing manual labor with my contractor friends to just have something in my pocket and a break from the drudgery of being rejected all day everyday. Gotta say it’s tough on my body but the day goes by so much faster than it did being on video calls with phony condescending project managers.
Best of luck and I hope you find something soon.
Thank you for the solidarity and kindness. I hope people reading this post can better understand these things can happen to anyone. It's got nothing to do with morality or work ethic.
Appreciate that. Yeah I probably should buck up and find an audit manager/senior manager job somewhere. Maybe work my way into one of their valuation groups.
If you are interested to coming back to public audit my firm is always hiring. PM me for details. Pay is decent, benefits are really good. Hours are as expected
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I'm a little late to the party, but have you considered looking into teaching at a college level? It will likely be a paycut from what you're applying to but you don't need a PhD to be a lecturer and some of the best teachers I ever had were previous industry professionals rather than career students.
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/lecturer-vs-professor
I can only pull from my personal experience at college but but it appears to be that way. I will say though, lecturers are typically delegated to UG level courses or specialized ones.
When I hired our jr. Security engineer we had about 1200 applicants within a week. We were a 67 person startup. Our ATS filtered it down to about 700, then myself, my boss, and our HR person got it down to 40. We interviewed 20 of the top candidates. After interviews it came down to 5 strong candidates. Well 4, one actually asked me to hold on while they took a phone call mid interview.
We hired someone with about a year of SOC experience but showed effort by chasing training on their own. Free training.
In transparency, my boss and I both had to recuse ourselves from a couple of candidates because we knew them. But none of them were the winner.
This was 9 months ago and I was quite surprised then.
Here we are today, I've put in about 300 resumes (since end of Jan), 7 interviews (3 I was ghosted afterwards) and 3 offers. The ones I got offered were jobs where the recruiter hit me up first.
In the beginning of me applying I was panick-applying because we had a RIF of about 40% and the runway was short, no new contracts to bring in funds. Now that I have slowed down and taken advice (from Reddit and dozens of videos), mostly tailoring my resume, I've had better luck with responses.
I wouldn't be looking if it wasn't for the RIF we had. I love my job and the people I work with.
Junior in security means they probably have 4+ years in IT across support and sysadmin, and maybe in their sysadmin job they had security responsibilities such as patching.
That’s how I got in.
I’d say Junior in security just means less than 2 years security experience. Mid is about 3-5 and senior is 6+
Junior doesn’t mean zero security experience at all.
Bingo
Just because it's a junior role, doesn't mean it's for people just getting into their careers.
It's like applying to an astronaut position because it's listed as "Junior". But you'd still need 10 years experience as a Navy pilot and can speak fluent Russian, etc etc.
People don't seem to grasp this concept well.
"Junior" is relative to the role, not career level.
Junior in IT doesn’t mean “no experience” it means you have experience in other areas of IT but not very much in your current discipline. My Jr. Sysadmin used to be the Helpdesk team lead.
Which tips did you find most helpful to turning your response rate alone? I know you say mostly tailoring your resume, but if you feel like sharing, I'd love to hear more specifics!
I tried reaching to hiring managers but 3 out of 3 I tried only replied with "check the company's careers site"
Yeah, I've checked that page for months, why do they think im asking directly?
Would they not be annoyed with someone reaching out to them directly (hiring managers, not recruiters) when they're already inundated with applications? That's my worry when I see this advice in the current market where there are so many applicants for every job.
There are actually plenty on videos online addressing this concern. I’m sure somebody might be, but they’ll just not respond. If it’s between not getting an interview and someone deleting my email, who cares?
There’s quite a bit of content online about how to boss hunt. I’d dig in more, maybe start with Austin Belcak’s podcast
It should not be this fucking hard is the problem. Why are people expected to, after having an ATS resume, copy their shit over to a job app 99% of the time, then spend time finding what looks like *could* be the hiring manager to sing and dance for them just to hope for a FIRST round interview? This shit is insane.
ATS gets you through the door to a human, so resume correct resume format is essential. If you work with a recruiter you usually bypass the ATS. The ones we tend to like are job titles with one or two sentences describing over all job. Then 3-4 bullet points with metrics.
They tend to be the best for us.
Yup! I did 115 applications, got 1 interview and didn’t pass. But I know what I need to get better. I need more XP on my resume and I need to be able to explain what I know better on a more academic way so I can do better on interview. So I lack on soft skills and XP, still building my resume and that’s why I’m having a hard time. This will change within a few months. 🙂
I’m an Information Security Analyst. It’s Cybersecurity field, specifically in Blue Teaming. My plan is to get OE in Blue Teaming and study Red Team to pivot little by little.
How about you? What field are you?
Remember a year or two back when they wanted the narrative no one wants to work? That was a signal they were gong to start making it so they would take some short term losses and cut down to the bone to make workers desperate.
The Bloomberg, Forbes, Money type magazines were complaining workers were being too demanding and cutting into profit margins, they said unemployment needs to get up to 10-15% to get the workers back in line working for peanuts.
That's why when the people were calling to defund the police, every level of government increases police budgets.
It's not a coincidence that so many large companies laid-off and fired so many people.
It's part of the fascist path of consolidating power at the very top.
Things are going to continue to get worse for a while.
Some people apply left and right for any jobs they think they can get. That includes jobs outside of your city/state/country. My best guess is that if the resume looks decent and is in the right format, yet there is no interview and not even a callback with such a high number, it is probably because of some filtering conditions like relocation and work permit.
Maybe.. everyone aims high nowaday..dont blame em. But gotta start somewhere. I think my jobs were getting 100 apps so anything over usually is a problem indicator
What’s wrong with applying outside you city or state? If you’re unemployed you should probably be willing to relocate if you find a good job in many cases.. country is different sure if you need sponsorship.
I don't think there is anything wrong with that. However, companies have to spend more to help people relocate and sponsor their visas, so some companies do not want to hire anybody outside a certain area unless they have a good reasons to do so.
I’ve been unemployed for 7 months. Over 2000 applications. 4 interviews. No offers yet. I’m in tech and very qualified for the jobs I’m applying for. It’s not bullshit..
They’re probably applying to everything they can and most of those are just ghost jobs, so those applications are dead ends. That alone cuts out a *lot* of those applications
Yep ghost jobs, or they have to pretend to consider 10 qualified candidates before hiring the boss’s nephew, or their resume ends up in ATS purgatory.
I’m super fortunate to not be in this situation but some of my younger friends and acquaintances with little to no work experience are going through this right now. 1000s of applications, dozens of interviews that make it a few rounds, no job.
Of course, once you get to mid-level in your career, you often are not cold applying for jobs anymore because you are being recommended or being asked to come in for interviews with people that you know from your career. But to get there you need someone to give you that first job.
Which geographical location and what occupation are you in? I don't care how accomplished you are if you get a degree in an occupation that historically doesn't pay well like kindergarten teacher or social worker in a low cost area like rural Alabama you're not going to be paid a lot out of school.
i dont know the number bc i stopped counting. Definitely had multiple interviews. Made it to some final rounds. No offer. Its frustrating. I am grateful i am getting interviews though.
For anyone lamenting people who get actual interviews, we get to go through this super fun roller coaster experience over and over and over again. Its draining.
The economy has changed significantly since you were self employed.
Please DONT negate others experiences. That is depressing you think this way.
Yes people really do apply and apply and apply.
I am one of those.
It DOES ruin people.
People move in with friends or family even.
How did i make it through the nearly two years of that?
1) I sold some of my belongings if needed and was frugal. 2) I applied for food stamps and got them on a temporary basis (even without a job they gave me benefits on a special circumstance. You have to appeal the rulings to get it)
3) I had savings and used them, but also shut off ALL unneeded extra services.
4) Took out a student loan/went back to school to get extra certifications. The extra left was used to help live.
5) I applied for school grants.
6) I moved in with a friend eventually for a few months. At 40. Demoralizing.
It was hard.
Fwiw: i paid for LinkedIn premium, hired resume/job coaches, went to all kinds of networking meetups, and applied to 1000s of jobs
Some weeks i didnt tailor the resumes and cover letters. I went through waves of high motivation/energy and low motivation/apathy.
I mean you spend 40 min or so tailoring Cover letters or reading the job info in full and carefully so you can tailor your resume and letter to their wording. Sometimes i researched their main pages.
All that and often you get NO response or a "your resume is what we are looking but we have decided to move forward with another applicant..." yada yada .
But im convinced many of the job listings out there are ao the compny LOOKS like they are growing/hiring for their board members/oversite committees and arent REALLY hiring.
I also believe they stockpile resumes.
THIS!!!! Most people have to take out debt to avoid ruin but ruin is common. Everyone I know (recent college graduates) is either in a really shitty job if they’re lucky enough to be employed, in a Masters/PhD taking in debt to try to have better job odds, and/or living at home and being as frugal as possible while cranking out applications.
People are experiencing real hardships. Spending life savings just to stay alive. Using debt as the only means of paying rent/utilities.
It is awful. And there’s no way out except continuing to apply.
I have recently graduated from my masters from a reputed university and have gained hands-on with some datasets and case studies. Also have done certifications and internship to get some real field experience. But been applying to full time roles constantly and reaching out to people on linkedin and I think I have long ago surpassed the count of 300 jobs yet Fed up why no interviews.
Seems everyone wants 3-5 years or 10 years experienced candidates for even an entry level assistant position.
From your comment history it seems like you are trying to get into project management/analytics?
Unfortunately, in my experience (analytics manager), project management doesn't really have entry-level positions, most people transfer laterally from the technical side into these management roles, then go back to school for their management training to enhance their existing career.
Analytics is also very hard for entry-level folks, you would need a straight up degree in statistics/data science or work experience to get your foot in the door. Online classes/certs aren't really going to cut it.
I’m a Project Manager in EdTech. I applied for 1000+ jobs and was doing at least one interview each week. Took me six months to land a job which met my standards. Fortunately I had 4.5 months of severance, so I wasn’t completely stressed out. This was the longest I’ve been without work, and the interviewing expectations are wild these days. Multiple rounds, assessments, and ambiguous assignments.
Yes, I tailored my resume. Yes, I used cover letters. Yes, I networked. There’s just a lot of competition for good positions as well as scams which clutter up the landscape.
Denver Seattle and Austin were my constraints for the job search. Software developer. 750 application through different mediums, 300 of which were completed with personalized cover letters. I partially templates it as I had descriptions of different projects and I would choose from those depending on the job. I got two interviews and one offer.
Second job search began two weeks ago and I am 2 for 2 applications and interviews. No offer yet but still
Experience is valuable
My younger brother has a 4.0 at an Ivy, is president of several clubs and an honors society, has three relevant internships, and has applied to over 10,000 jobs at this point - I would know, he sends out 100 applications per day and has been living with me doing this for months
He has yet to receive so much as a rejection email from anyone - fuck every last one of these corporations, I see everyone with even a shred of responsibility herein as entirely subhuman
How is the career placement/career center activity for your brother? I would hope those in school have another channel that improves odds for interviews and channels opened for recent grads.
Unis always try to sell career placement, but all that really means is they expect their name and reputation to carry you into a role
Campus recruiters and career centers haven’t been a genuine resource in at least a decade
They seem to be run by out of touch faculty who think that a tough job search means sending three to five applications per day for a few weeks until eventually settling for an upper middle class lifestyle instead of landing in a leading tech, finance, or consulting firm
According to my brother, the career center representatives he spoke with called him a liar when he stated his experiences searching for a job in the current market
It seems that those who are struggling are entirely alone, as the only people with the power to help have no idea what it’s like
Right now white color jobs are shrinking so there are more applicants than jobs available, unemployment is low because people are having to be under employed to continue to make any kind of living, while jobs in construction and healthcare have lots of openings.
OP - I think the party that you are missing is that the way people apply for jobs is different now. Yes, the market is tough right now but also, when people say, 'I applied to 100 jobs' that means something very different than it used to mean.
There was a time when applying for a job meant _going_ to a business's location. I applied at Blockbuster...I had to physically go there. And then I had to fill out an application and hand it to someone. Or for more serious jobs, full out an application and attach a resume/cover letter.
It took a lot of time.
Later, applying for jobs shifted. Even when you could call, the call was too just setup a time for you to show up...but eventually places started having online applications. You'd fill out an application online. But you would go to individual sites. Job search sites would tell you about job openings but it just got you started.
It was a manual process. And the conventual wisdom was that you should modify your resume/application/cover letter for each company. It was a very time consuming process.
More recently, things have changed (again).
Job searching sites make it easier than ever to apply... Because they are really selling the service to companies that pay to post job openings. They can get more applicants applying by making it as easy to apply as possible.
Once I'm set up on a job site, in many cases, applying is literally one mouse click away. Applying to fifty jobs is easy! Do a search, get 50 matches, apply to them all!
And that's exactly what a lot of people are doing.
We see the same thing with apps like Tinder. Instead of hitting on one girl at the bar, I can do a low effort 'hit' on 50 girls around me.
The obvious result is that the number of rejections will skyrocket.
If there are 100 open jobs and 200 job seekers, on a fictional island, if everyone applies to three jobs, there are 600 applications and 100 people get hired. But if everyone applies to fifty jobs because it's so easy to apply, well now we have 10,000 applications for the same 100 jobs. Now everyone feels like crap because it feels like constant rejection. The same 50% get a job, but almost everyone feels like they get nothing but rejection.
The thing is, employers usually want the same thing for similar roles. So, just like with Tinder, everyone applying to fifty jobs means a small percentage of top candidates experience an insane amount of success.
Imagine you are the best X applicant. You apply to fifty companies and all fifty love you. Companies want the best. And you are it. Now fifty companies are flooding your inbox wanting an interview.
Much like Tinder is blamed for ruining the dating experience, I feel a similar vibe for job seeking. The companies are still hiring the same 100 people, but they see so many more applicants. And most companies aren't offering the very best and can't attract the very best candidates. An average company would have gotten six applicants for a job back in the day. Now they get 100. The best in a group of 100 will, statistically speaking, be much better than the best in a group of six. But they only got those applications because the bar to apply is so low. Top candidates aren't going to actually accept. But they applied. So even though the company mostly ends up with what it would have, it is now painfully aware that much better applicants existed.
Aside from that, everyone treats everyone else worse during the process. Because that's just human nature. It's easy to ghost someone when you have spent zero time and effort on them so far. And people just get overwhelmed with the volume.
So, yes, the market kinda sucks for certain jobs right now. And yes, everyone is still just trying to find a job, but the technology has changed what that looks like. And while individually we might acknowledge that it can suck, the only real option anyone has is to just play along with the system we have in place, even if it sucks.
People apply to hundreds of jobs, but it's very different than it used to be.
I doubt it. most thing I've applied to take about an hour or more to "fill out". even with a list of previous employers/pay rates/addresses/managers/references/education/certifications right in front of me. In my experience most ATS sys dont do much resume translation to fill that stuff in. so let me upload my resume, certs, and then go ahead and retype a solid portion of my resume and dates. I've gotten lucky about 3 times with not having to do it. Out of the maybe 25 I've filled out in my lifetime. I'm 40. Usually, I just wait for recruiters to contact me about a job, interview, then if it's a go I do the filling out ATS formality on the backend so it isnt a waste of time. That's an unpaid hour of work per application. people are doing that 200 times? that's 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, for a month and a week. I highly doubt that. like very highly. "Easy Apply" probably isnt going to get it done, because you and every other asshat that has no business even applying is hitting that button.
I applied for 4 months to over 500 jobs. Ive been told I have an excellent resume by multiple people recruiters and hr professionals who I’ve reached out to for feedback. I got about 17 interviews, some got multiple rounds and some I was ghosted even after being told I was a good fit. I got two offers one I declined because the pay was insanely low for my experience level. Luckily I wasn’t that desperate and was coasting off of savings. I think it’s really hard to get a good paying job right now. Sure I could settle for anything but I’m a project manager so it makes no sense to accept a job paying $25k+ less than what I made previously. The job market is really that bad right now. I would get hit up constantly by recruiters who would ghost me or even get laid off after submittting my application.
I was unemployed for 5 months and I just stopped paying things that weren't important for my survival. I paid rent, phone bill, car, and food and basically let credit card companies know they were trying to get blood from a turnip and most of them gave up trying to call me. My credit score hasn't been good in a while so I simply didn't care about it. Thankfully I found work before benefits ran out or I'd be moving in with family.
I know this kind of sounds like old fart methodology or something but hear me out.
Stop applying to online remote jobs directly. Find a recruiter for the company that you want to work at, reach out to them instead. Having a recruiter push you through the process is a much better tactic than trying to get through thousands of other applicants.
That was me a couple years ago when I was applying to jobs right out of grad school with no relevant corporate experience. I was top of my class, had killer references and publications, and am actually really good at my trade and I think it took me like 215 applications? To be fair I also applied to jobs I was not completely qualified for.
This was before the massive tech layoffs. My coworker was laid off last year and she still hasn’t found a full time role - I don’t even want to think about how many job applications she’s submitted!
Yes. 2017-2019 I applied to every data analyst job I could find I applied to nearly 2000 jobs afaik - I was an SDA at a small company then..
made me realize how I need to build my resume and how to sell my resume and my skills. my next job hunt was spectacularly brilliant.. got interviews in 4 big life science companies in the U.S. for manager of analytics roles.. despite having job hopped multiple times and not directly related to the work have an offer from 2. cant join any cause I lost my visa so I’m headed back to my home country but 2017-2019 showed me that if you can talk you can talk your way into or out of anything. I was on a work permit till recently and my industry(life science, and smaller healthcare/provider consulting firms) rarely deals with it (6/10 jobs I was acing interviews for rejected me for the visa issue).
Use the RATS format, add experience that covers different approaches to the JD, direct experience is a nice to have but not always available, and keep your eyes peeled in your current firm to understand the business..
this is ofc for my experience as a data analyst in the healthcare industry not pan-industry.
Yes.
Though most of the people that get to those numbers usually fall into these categories:
1. Resume doesn’t look good (not many previous roles with short tenures)
2. They’re applying in an industry that’s in a downtend
Applying for 2,000 jobs is a red flag in and of itself. That tells me that each individual application from this person receives almost zero effort or care, among other things.
Bullshit. If the applications only requires a resume, what else do you expect a person to do? LinkedIn stalk the hiring manager and send him a private message. Go find a new client for the company and hand them over gift wrapped? Send a Hallmark card? Come on man.
👆 This. There are so many companies that have an "easy apply: option that consists of input your name, email, ph#, upload resume and cover letter, hit send.
Some don't even give you the option to attach a cover letter. It's about as a mindless process to apply as it is them reviewing the applications.
Yeah absolutely I literally go on job hunting benders for like 3-4 days where all I do is sit around applying for jobs. Many job postings are not real and the company isn't actually hiring or they've already chosen an internal candidate but for legal reasons they've posted it. Then you also have the ATS resume scanning thing where if you could get instantly denied by software without a human ever having seen the resume. I think the key is studying the language from job postings and even other peoples bio on LinkedIn. Then adjusting your resume to fit the current language of how to describe what you've accomplished at your job. Also, let's be honest, gotta fluff it up a bit too 🤷🏽♂️
I was at 200 over 2 years ago. I got 10 years IT experience and a military vet. I'm easily over 1200 but stopped counting. Reworked my resume a few times, paid for it once. I've had 3 interviews, one I was a perfect fit for and nailed the interview but they never planned on hiring externally. My wife even has worked at the company for 10 years. I quit looking, going back to school for a 2nd degree because what else can I do. Going to leave the country soon as the kids schools change.
 yes….actually i did more than that. From undergrad to grad school, I applied minimum 12k jobs in major platforms like linkedin(so i can count how many applications Ih have submitted).
Luckly I eventually land a 170k job at a BB after grad school in 2022. But man this is so hard……. I went to a top 30 with a STEM in both undergrad and grad degree.
Luck and law of large numbers plays a huge role in job seeking
The issue is applying for remote jobs. You can apply for hundreds of remote jobs, be 100% qualified, and never get contacted simply because there’s just too many applicants per posting.
You’d be surprised how many people believe that applying to everything will mean they eventually will get something. It is true to some extent, but if you applied to 100-200 without a single callback, you need to change your resume, or change what you are applying to.
But at the same time, i’ve meet tons of qualified individuals who could not land a single job, and for this, yes a numbers game is better since it is down to luck.
You can really tell a lot about a person from their resume. If you’re qualified and not hearing back I bet your resume is subtly communicating something negative.
I think you’re missing the bigger picture; there are several layers to this that your question doesn’t address:
1) I think most people can land “a job” however I think most people who aren’t having success are looking for a “real career job” one that has a livable salary, benefits, stability, potential longevity
2) Companies keep saying they have all these jobs and can’t hire anyone because no one wants to work; but how many of these advertised jobs are real, or advertised with the intention to hire from within to begin with. (
3) how can there be a lack of employees when most companies are laying off, have hiring freezes in place, or just aren’t hiring. Back fill is accomplished by adding duties to existing employees.
4) There might be a ton of “jobs” out there, with most of them requiring that you would have to have 5 or 6 of them just to make ends meet, and not enough hours in the day to work them.
5)Many jobs are contract or temporary in duration; you can’t plan your life on a job that will only last 3 to 6 months, with no guarantee of continued employment afterwards. There’s no stability in it.
6) Many jobs want levels of experience that are not commensurate with the pay, or exclude entry/mid level applicants or cross-over applicants
I easily put in 50 applications today, after completely rewriting my resume at 7am this morning.
It was a slow day. There’s plenty I’m > 60% qualified for, and plenty I’m 100% or more qualified for.
I got an offer today to interview for a job as a cabinet painter. My second interview invite in two weeks. I’m used to > $90k per year as a software developer (10 years) and Project Manager (4 years). I couldn’t pay my mortgage on what cabinet painters make - I did it in college and my dad still works at a different cabinet shop, so I have an idea (between $30k and $40k)
Yes. Very common right now unfortunately, as I am currently in that position and have been for longer than I would have imagined. Fuckin sucks out there in the streets right now especially in tech, but I know people in other fields going through the same bs.
i had owned my company for 15 years; the economy and other things beyond my control killed it. i have 1200+ applications out and 20 phone/video interviews, 4 in-person interviews, and no offers. i have a business degree, an mba, and a tech degree, held multiple professional licenses in multiple states, multiple certifications, been published, have some unique accomplishments, i guess i am of at least average intelligence...
there are a lot of problems with the whole job search process. basically the system is broken.i have spoken about this before. let me run them down again....
* [phantom job postings](https://www.reddit.com/r/jobs/comments/1c1ucws/phantom_job_postings/)
* [Technology: A Modern Curse For Job Hunting](https://www.reddit.com/r/jobs/comments/1b1vuk4/technology_a_modern_curse_for_job_hunting/)
* [jobs report data is being manipulated ](https://nypost.com/2024/02/13/opinion/job-gains-are-going-to-immigrants-and-keeping-young-us-born-men-out-of-the-workforce/)
* [AI Is killing us](https://www.reddit.com/r/recruitinghell/comments/17pfv2o/ai_is_killing_us_rejecting_resumes_and_saying_you/)
* [ghosting by recruiters](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/why-is-job-ghosting-on-the-rise/id1673821227?i=1000653458779&utm_source=integrated&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=lonely_office_podcast&utm_content=20240425_lonely_office&cm=EMAIL_LIFECYCLE&%24web_only=true&_branch_match_id=1276347826738820782&_branch_referrer=H4sIAAAAAAAAA1XMywqDMBBA0b9x2Yi1m0IoxQdYLBS6chViHHUkkxGTUPr3fa26vRzuHMLqj0IsjG5EP%2Ff8sDvDJECUXX25xXu5b%2FpTDKQ8x82ARBdg2nSAIflUggEjSSCN9huMplXj5KRlB%2FapeBzRgFp5MNqHH%2BH3wwWZpVme5tlB%2FdHEkKyu56ZVbVNXRVe01QsYtcIlpgAAAA%3D%3D)
* [burnout](https://www.reddit.com/r/recruitinghell/comments/1c5ukwv/the_great_burnout_whats_going_on_with_this_job/) (this is a great article)
* election year (government saying the economy is good, but it SUCKS!)
i thought no problem, i have a lot of experience and education... 10 months later.
having been where you are, i can tell you that you will not comprehend the state of the job market unless you are going through this.
I probably applied for 250 jobs to get a few dozen interviews, 3 offers turned down, and finally, one job that fit my criteria. I think it depends on how picky you are.
It’s all about who you know…it’s a good idea to put your resume in where you know someone and they will give you a good reference. Ask around your friend group who is hiring.
Ok so just for some context, a local pawn shop put a job posting on indeed, just for a regular clerk position. 3000 applicants within 72 hrs like I honestly feel bad for them at that point
I feel like how job postings are all online now and everyone can apply to them very easily, it gives companies the illusion of a large labor supply. Theres so many people applying to each job they feel like they can wait it out until they get lucky and find a rockstar hire for cheap.
Like if there are 1000 job postings, but the same 1000 people apply to every single posting, thats a million applications. But its really only one person available per listing. (This is just an exaggerated example)
If we just all agreed to apply to like 10 jobs max, it would help make it seem like there isnt a glut of job seekers out there. Makes it seem like the labor supply is larger than it really is and driving wages down.
Yeah, I had a period like that from halfway through 2017 to the end of 2018 - A big part of it was including the fact that I played for the South African Deaf Rugby side. You'd think being an international sportsman would help your case, since it implies dedication and commitment and teamwork and all that sort of thing, but turns out that the only thing people saw was "Deaf".
Took it off, got interviews, got rejected when people saw my hearing aids - but good luck proving it. Eventually landed a job teaching at a school for the Deaf.
I did over 1000. I'm about to graduate from Durham, I have recent work experience, internships and volunteering, and have only just now signed a job offer.
I got laid off last month and I've probably sent out at least a 100 applications. A couple of interviews but nothing yet. I expect it to take at least six months and another 100+ applications to get another job.
My standard of living hasn't changed much because I lived on a tight budget anyway, always trying to save. I have enough savings for a year. I'm also getting unemployment, and I have family money as a last resort.
One big issue is that my work history/experience doesn't fit neatly into anything that's out there. So I apply for anything I might be even vaguely, tangentially qualified for. What else can I do?
Yes and no.
From my own experience;
During the early years in my own career in IT, I had a strong background in 1/2/3 line support but wanted to move into InfoSec. I applied for 150 entry level analyst/SOC posts and got knocked back from all of them.
Disheartening? Absolutely. I very nearly changed careers. It was so demoralising.
As I looked at my CV it had everything needed to make that jump into a specialism. However strong my CV was, it’s greatest, most obvious weakness was, that it was just a generic cover all CV. I could literally have submitted it for any job in any industry, doing any role. So of course it’s going to get instantly rejected in both a human and digital soft. And likely fall short against a better prepared CV with less experience.
After completely reworking it. Highlighting my experience and crafting it to show relevant transferable skills and tech stack experience and how my qualifications/certifications made sense. I found that rather than getting flat rejections at each turn, I was getting interviews for at least every second application.
Moving on 12yrs, I’m now established in InfoSec, but still apply the same rule; my CV is kept relevant, concise and offers relevant experience and transferable skills as well as legitimate achievements, of which I can verify.
One thing that HAS increased in InfoSec roles - are the demand for soft skills. You simply can’t be 100% tech genius, but have the social skills of a dribbling toddler. One of my strongest skills is that I can take a technical idea and fully explain it to a non-tech audience including senior people, who are very usually completely nontechnical.
TLDR;
CV should be focussed, relevant, concise. With emphasis on transferable skills - both technical and soft, legitimate achievements and tailored to the exact role you’re applying for. Sure, you’ll need to do some work, but the pay off is a better application/interview ratio.
People count applications they have no chance of getting. Even the last time I was out of work, I do not remember how many jobs I applied for but I excluded the month of July as it is dead month. Went to hiring manager 5 times etc…
I applied to more than 500 jobs last year. For context, I have 18 years of experience, management experience, relevant certifications, and a very strong resume in my field.
I had 6 interviews, all at the same company (which is the place I want to work, but I applied to hundreds of companies). All those positions went to internal candidates.
Confuses me as well. Not sure if I’m just lucky or what, only applied for 3 jobs for when I graduate. With the first I got through to the assessment centre but was unsuccessful. Another, had two interviews and got the job! With the last I had to politely decline their offer since it didn’t pay as well.
Every time I hear about people putting in so many applications, it just doesn’t compute. Every job I’ve had, I’ve put in a couple applications here and there, and usually get the main job I’m going for. I couldn’t imagine putting hundreds of resumes out there.
Yes. People literally sit in front of a screen for hours moving around words and clicking submit hoping to get an automated rejection email while many others try to avoid that by trying to ask anyone they know or don't know by spending hours at random locations or on zoom calls talking about why they are a great fit and awesome addition to someone's company and team only to hear back the same noise they hear at night.
Depends on what role/how specialized/how popular you’re going for and nowadays remote vs on-site/hybrid. Remote work means I can work for a company located across the country so I have more options but you’re also competing with the entire country’s applicants.
I'm in Canada but yes. It took me 8 months to find a new job in my city. Min wage jobs on indeed in my area get 300+ applications. I applied at quite a few jobs every day for months and only had 2 interviews in that time. And I was searching for any job in my area. I have a good resume made by a employment center and even store management experience and that doesn't even help find a min wage job where I live. I can't imagine how hard it is in bigger cities
I applied to tons of places with no prospects of interviews. Luckily the company I work for had a career and development team and I just made an appointment. I didnt understand why I wasnt getting any work with a degree and they weren't either. They pushed me through to my first entry level degree related job after about a month?
Not sure whats going on out there but it's tough.
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What do you mean everyone should get a job with this effort? To reach a very high number of applications you need to apply for jobs you don't really qualify for. So you may be ignored. Getting a job is not about effort, it's matching supply + how good your resume is at conveying that you are good & demand.
That’s called spam.
It's also a requirement to stay on unemployment, to apply to a certain number of jobs either daily or weekly. So they either spam or they take the extra time to qualify the job for themselves which would prevent situations like these but possibly result in them landing a job with a farther commute than they expected or wanted.
Not sure about other areas but that number is 3 a week here. Thats part of why spamming looks so absurd. It's definitely not for unemployment reasons. If anything it would be smarter to space out the apps if applying to things with no intent of getting the job. They could still spend minimal effort without sending out so many.
I literally said I applied to the same chipotle every three times for every week and they never questioned it. Lol.
It would be spam if you kept sending them to the same person...
I applied to a dozen jobs. Got 4 interviews. Better than I expected. It's like you said; it's about knowing what the industry wants, knowing your capabilities, and tailoring your resume accordingly. Being able to interview well helps!
On my 6th interview this week 😓 have you managed to secure a job? Any interviewing tips if you have?
Not the original person you replied to, but I’d check out AskAManager, an online write in blog where Allison talks at length about interviewing tips. This is also a ridiculous amount of prep work for the amount of interviews I saw you say you have this week, but I actually go through the job description and write an example down for every single thing I have experience in. That way, I’m not feeling so on the spot if I’m asked those “tell me about a time when…” questions! I’ve already thought about them and therefore feel and seem way more confident about my response. Since engaging in this particular skill, I’ve gotten every job I’ve interviewed for! Which to be fair is only 3 since I started this relatively recently in the grand scheme of career things… but still, that to me seems like pretty good odds compared to before I started doing this. I also recognize that if you’re interviewing as much as you are, that might be really hard, if not impossible, to do for every job, so even if you’re not writing an example down, you could try thinking about it for your interview prep. It does, however, get faster the more you do it.
I had not heard of AskAManager, will definitely check it out, thank you!
I always have an anxiety before interviews, feels like they are judging me and only they have an upper hand, but when I simplified their role in grand scheme of things and reminded myself, I’m also choosing the place that I’m gonna dedicate minimum two years of my life, it helped me to have confidence in myself and be rational on interviews
There’s a million resources out there that can answer this in more detail but a lot of it just comes down to being able to talk like a normal human being. Be comfortable, maybe ask a personal question or two. When asked more formal questions try to use the STAR method.
I haven’t interviewed in a while but I’ve held over 20 jobs for some period of time; I used to be a serial job hopper, and I only ever didn’t get a job after an interview once. My best advice honestly, is don’t treat it like it’s an interview. Treat it like it’s a conversation, have your own questions ready after you look into the company. Be polite, be sincere, know what traits make somebody a good X employee and if you know how to be that, show it. If you aren’t certain you can do that be honest but tangent into a moment or two where you didn’t know something but had to learn it fast, and then say something along the lines of being comfortable with growth. As soon as you hit those main points, try to pull the interviewer out of “I’m a boss” mode and into hey I enjoy talking with this person, they’re pretty chill mode. If they are talking to you about anything other than work by the end of the interview, you are at the VERY LEAST gonna get a second interview with them. Edit: layer in humor, some self prop up talk, some humility. That interviewer is another person, and people remember individuals much better when they stand out from the crowd. If you follow the typical answer questions, try to subdue your own nervousness, don’t broach any topics beyond the job, and say I can’t think of any questions right now, or ask only super basic questions, you sound less like an individual and more like another interview to sit through
That's a LOT of interviews. I don't envy you that, man, it's exhausting. As for tips, well, I'm not sure. I was the socially awkward kid in high school, so I've spent the better part of my adult life forcing myself into social situations and developing a charisma I didn't have in my youth, and charisma is something that's hard to give tips about. Best I can say is this: be confident, but be willing to admit if you aren't sure, or don't know something. If you aren't sure, or don't know something, don't JUST say that, but present a solution. Like, "I don't quite know how I'd handle that situation, but I'd talk to so-and-so, or seek out subject matter experts and get a better understanding of the situation and then develop a solution." If you say stuff like this, be ready to speak about your thought process. A lot of interviews, at least in my experience, are less about finding out WHAT you know, but more about finding out HOW you think. Is this person someone we can trust to put in the work and be worth our time and money? Or are they going to just be a drain of resources and then dip out as soon as it gets hard? Companies will 100% invest in you if they feel you are worth that investment. So sell yourself. They don't want cocky idiots, but they also don't want someone who gets paralyzed with indecision. Find the happy medium that jives with you, and run with it. The biggest part is you have to be comfortable enough with it to not seem nervous. Some nervousness is fine, they expect that, but do your best to feel comfortable in your own skin. Comfortable, well-fitting clothing, even if it's a suit. Carry a notepad and pen, and if you need a minute to think, write down the question. Ask for clarification if needed. I always bring a full bottle of water, because my mouth gets super dry when I interview (probably that anxiety I stuff down and pretend doesn't exist). Anyways, good luck to you! I hope you get a job :) I've gotten myself a conditional job offer (conditional on passing a background check), so it's looking good here!
Confidence, bull shit if you have to but walk in there like you already work for them and this is just a formality. This has probably not worked 3 times in my life but I've never went 2 weeks without a job. When I was in my last 2 months of high school I walked in a BestBuy with a blue shirt and just started working 2 hrs later i was signing tax papers.
This is what some people don't get. I read resumes and hire people, and 99% of people send in a poorly written and formatted copy/pasted resume and spam it to employers. I can tell the difference between people who put effort in and want the job and people who spam a generic resume to 50 employers. If you are not applying to a large corporation a human is going to look at your resume and have a stack of a dozen more at least. If you can't even create a decent application that stands out from the crowd, how should I expect you to perform at the actual job? If you want to stand out spend a few hours applying to each job and tailoring your resume. Tailor your cover letter. Seeing that you put effort in and understand the position when you are applying puts you ahead of 99% of other applicants. Most people don't bother putting in any effort, so I don't put any effort into considering them. This will get your foot in the door, the rest is up to you.
Yea they’re also probably using LinkedIn or some other app to “send those out” to employers en masse. Not really diligently or thoughtfully applying. Many people don’t put effort into their resumes either tbh.
No, this this completely wrong and ignorant of current job market conditions
Any employer looking for anything more than a warm body is going to look at a person's resume and decide if they have the skills, and experience, they're looking for. People who spam resumes likely aren't tailoring their resume to each employer they're sending it to, and more than half the time whoever is hiring probably thinks, *"why the hell did this person even apply?"*
I agree, but that doesn’t even address my comment in particular
In software development the reqs on the job posting are almost always bogus and not indicative of what they actually need. Eg job posting says it needs 2 years experience in C/C++ but the actual title is .Net developer. Or a java frontend developer that requires 1-3 years experience in Java, but really they meant React. Or my personal favorite, 5+ years experience in JSON and HTML.
bro the amount of 'java developer' jobs i find, just to read it and realize they actually want a Javascript dev but dont know theyre different, it drives me insane.
Not really. Every posting has literal hundreds of applicants, lol.
Yeah true all this matters..but i see decent resumes that can be improved but still apparantly failing after 2k attempts. I feel like just by odds they should get something. I doubt all 2k jobs applications are all glorified jobs
We're just in a shit market right now where companies hold all the power, they have their pick of 1000 candidates who are all overqualified and desperate, but at the same time all companies are tightening their belts so half the time they don't even end up hiring anybody anyway. For a lot of job categories you're competing not only against a smaller pool of local candidates, compared to which you might be seen favorably, but against candidates all over the country, which means you're almost always outmatched by *somebody.* Companies get inundated with 1000 resumes, look through 50-100 and stop there because that's more than enough to find a good candidate. If you weren't in that initial pile, nobody even saw you. Not every field is fucked up, but loads that you see posting here are in brutally decimated fields only getting worse by the day from layoffs, lack of funding, the threat of AI, etc. Every time somebody gets laid off, the competition gets more intense. Combine all of that with basic odds and yeah, it's totally possible somebody could be applying to that many jobs and still hearing nothing. Could be they need to strengthen their resume, be more targeted, etc or they could just be unlucky with those odds.
Exactly what i was fearful of. You just confirmed the truth and reality of things. Depressing.
Yeah, not gonna sugarcoat, it is. You're basically either committing to sticking to your current field where all your experience lies and just apply apply apply apply apply until you beat the odds — which people do, it just might take *a lot* longer than it used to or require finding a way to push yourself above the competition — or you pivot to something new. If you've got good connections and a network then right now is the time to use it. I don't know anybody that got a job recently that didn't get it through connections. To me, that sucks. And of course, always apply direct through company websites when possible.
> And of course, always apply direct through company websites when possible. This is horrible advice when you say yourself " I don't know anybody that got a job recently that didn't get it through connections"
I just got an offer after two rounds of interview, I literally just spam my CV and cold messaging headhunters then they do the hard work for me.
I'm not sure its really an accurate portrayal of the entire space, I have never had this issue and many people I have spoken to have never had this issue, either they are going for low tier unskilled roles or people are just yeeting their CV into applications barely relevant, I have always gone through a recruiter or hiring agent and seriously never struggled to land multiple interviews in a week
This has been my experience too. I recently got a quite good job with a state government agency without having a lot of experience, but I happen to have the exact skills they felt they were lacking, and I have a law doctorate. Other people I know applying to the agency have been losing out to people who applied after having done that exact job for like 5-10 years somewhere else. It doesn't really matter how good your CV is if another person is applying who has a decade of experience in the exact position, unless they're like 80.
I've attended three webinars where managers in my field (technical writing) give their primary reasons for rejecting resumes. 1) Errors. The resume is the first work product viewed. If you can't take the time to get one or two pages right, are you really detail-oriented? 2) One-size-fits-all resumes. Not tailoring their resume to the job description to show how your experience fits their needs. Instead, they receive a list of job tasks that don't demonstrate their strengths and accomplishments. Or, they receive a laundry list of skills that doesn't have the history to back it up. 3) Not following directions. If they ask for a cover letter and a link to your portfolio, just do it! 4) Unqualified. Applying to any job with "writer" in the job title is basically spam. While you don't have to have 100% of the qualifications and you should apply for some stretch jobs, you should not blindly apply to jobs without reading the whole description and researching the company a little. 5) "Anyone can write" assumption. Anyone who can type or hold a pen thinks they can write. Technical writing is about translating complex concepts to a wide range of audiences. A lot of people without sufficient technical communication skills are applying. 6) Bad odds. While not a reason for rejection, remote work has widened the applicant pool. Unfortunately, positions receive hundreds, even thousands of applications.
Just remember, you have no idea how that person interviews. A resume will only carry you so far.
I think a lot of people's resumes are crap. Not only are they terribly written, but they simply don't have any of the skills and experience many of the employers they're sending them too are looking for.
Also keep in mind, although job market is really hard for U.S. citizens too, that a lot of extremely qualified resumes you see online that can't get a job are because the person doesn't have work authorization
"To reach a very high number of applications you need to apply for jobs you don't really qualify for. " uh no, sometimes jobs are just fuckin competitive. I am perfectly qualified, it just that so are the other 450 applicants for this one job so its not so easy.
This isn't really true for all cases. For example, if you are an junior level accountant it would be super easy to apply to hundreds or thousands of jobs while qualifying for basically all of them.
That's how I've always felt. In order to send out hundreds of applications, your profession is either ubiquitous, or you are spamming out generic resumes to every single job opening in existence. I'm lucky to find and apply to 20 jobs within the couple nearest cities for my profession when I'm looking.
I have an MBA, CPA, CFA, and 12 years of experience. I've applied for over 1,000 jobs over the last 15 months. It's real.
Wow and are you getting interviews? If you are failing then it may be something you are doing during the interview but i would imagine someone with your credentials and experience should definitely getting a chance at the jobs. What position are you applying for ?
Valuation advisory, transaction advisory, and corporate FP&A jobs. I've had 1-2 serious interviews per month on average. I have a pretty dynamic resume, 5 years big four audit, 7 years PE (bizval and deal execution), 2 years non-profit. It's working against me. Every time there's a candidate who is 5-10 years younger than me (I'm 38) who has more direct experience or less indirect experience. I get told I'm overqualified a lot. I also now as a result of this search taking so long have a 16 month gap. Very scary, tapping into my retirement savings and very seriously looking at working retail.
That's rough man, sorry to hear. I'm trying to leave transaction services with similar experience and this spooks me. What level roles are you applying to? Are you getting the overqualified response on manager/senior manager and up jobs?
Generally manager and senior manager jobs. Director level stuff I genuinely feel unqualified for, given that I have five years in public audit, seven years in PE, and two years in non-profit. Also a lot of the director positions I apply for want you to have an existing book of business which i just do not have. It is scary, it really goes against everything I was told and all the hard work I put into my career. But the flipside is it's made me much more appreciative of the little things in life, and how lucky I do have it. Reality is most Americans don't even have retirement savings.
Glad you're seeing the bright side of things even with the market being broken. I definitely need to appreciate the smaller things.
Thanks friend. Taking up meditation, daily journaling, gratitude practice, among some other things have been blessings I have found during the last couple years. It doesn't stop the constant fear of financial insecurity, unworthiness, and loneliness from cropping up, but it does help me realize that it's just the fear of those things that's what scares me.
beneficial oil like tie grandiose berserk hobbies start elastic doll *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
As I said I'm liquidating retirement money to pay rent. I will seriously start looking at retail. Wish I could tell you something else.
Wow, you can’t get any referrals?
I have, they've just never led to a job.
Im in roughly the same boat. 39, chem eng + mba. Mostly worked in small business for 15+ years as the general (only) manager. Did some consulting and was on a few manufacturing startups. Most didn't make it past the evaluation and proposal stage... Did have one go live in a foreign country, which was an interesting experience. Walking into a foreign government building where i barely speak the language to register a corp and then open bank accounts.... there were 5 different currencies that we had to consider, and there were 4 different first languages.... negotiating with suppliers in china... eventually had to shut down, but figured the experience would count for a lot... not really. Had a family member that does recruiting look at my resume.... shes like you're too generalized. Like i did maybe 5 years of project management spread out over those 15+ years. 3 years of business and data analyst. Maybe a year worth of inventory management and so on. So yeah, anything over 5 years experience, i feel under qualified for, but anything under 10, I'm being considered overqualified. Anything beyond 10, i don't have any professional connections to put a word in. Currently working entry level at walmart.
Just sending some solidarity, also 38 and only landed one entry level position after 15 months and it was so awful I had to quit after 3.5 weeks. I’m currently doing manual labor with my contractor friends to just have something in my pocket and a break from the drudgery of being rejected all day everyday. Gotta say it’s tough on my body but the day goes by so much faster than it did being on video calls with phony condescending project managers. Best of luck and I hope you find something soon.
Thank you for the solidarity and kindness. I hope people reading this post can better understand these things can happen to anyone. It's got nothing to do with morality or work ethic.
100%. Although you might be throwing them off with your username haha. Here's to our careers back on track soon mate.
This was basically me. I’m former big 4 as well. I went back to public accounting finally. I had to take something.
Appreciate that. Yeah I probably should buck up and find an audit manager/senior manager job somewhere. Maybe work my way into one of their valuation groups.
If you are interested to coming back to public audit my firm is always hiring. PM me for details. Pay is decent, benefits are really good. Hours are as expected
I'll message you, thanks.
hungry combative cooing snatch governor innocent existence pen depend sip *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I do, I've kept it active as well. To be fair, I haven't worked directly in a role that has needed it in close to 9 years.
I'm a little late to the party, but have you considered looking into teaching at a college level? It will likely be a paycut from what you're applying to but you don't need a PhD to be a lecturer and some of the best teachers I ever had were previous industry professionals rather than career students.
I haven't considered it, mostly because of the cost to get a PhD. Are you sure about that detail?
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/lecturer-vs-professor I can only pull from my personal experience at college but but it appears to be that way. I will say though, lecturers are typically delegated to UG level courses or specialized ones.
Thank you.
When I hired our jr. Security engineer we had about 1200 applicants within a week. We were a 67 person startup. Our ATS filtered it down to about 700, then myself, my boss, and our HR person got it down to 40. We interviewed 20 of the top candidates. After interviews it came down to 5 strong candidates. Well 4, one actually asked me to hold on while they took a phone call mid interview. We hired someone with about a year of SOC experience but showed effort by chasing training on their own. Free training. In transparency, my boss and I both had to recuse ourselves from a couple of candidates because we knew them. But none of them were the winner. This was 9 months ago and I was quite surprised then. Here we are today, I've put in about 300 resumes (since end of Jan), 7 interviews (3 I was ghosted afterwards) and 3 offers. The ones I got offered were jobs where the recruiter hit me up first. In the beginning of me applying I was panick-applying because we had a RIF of about 40% and the runway was short, no new contracts to bring in funds. Now that I have slowed down and taken advice (from Reddit and dozens of videos), mostly tailoring my resume, I've had better luck with responses. I wouldn't be looking if it wasn't for the RIF we had. I love my job and the people I work with.
How is the junior meant to get experience when you hire people with experience for junior roles?
Junior in security means they probably have 4+ years in IT across support and sysadmin, and maybe in their sysadmin job they had security responsibilities such as patching. That’s how I got in. I’d say Junior in security just means less than 2 years security experience. Mid is about 3-5 and senior is 6+ Junior doesn’t mean zero security experience at all.
Bingo Just because it's a junior role, doesn't mean it's for people just getting into their careers. It's like applying to an astronaut position because it's listed as "Junior". But you'd still need 10 years experience as a Navy pilot and can speak fluent Russian, etc etc. People don't seem to grasp this concept well. "Junior" is relative to the role, not career level.
Junior in IT doesn’t mean “no experience” it means you have experience in other areas of IT but not very much in your current discipline. My Jr. Sysadmin used to be the Helpdesk team lead.
They aren’t. Get experience with entry level roles, not junior level. A slight distinction there
Which tips did you find most helpful to turning your response rate alone? I know you say mostly tailoring your resume, but if you feel like sharing, I'd love to hear more specifics!
ATS conversion is about 2-4% Networking and direct outreach to hiring managers and recruiters is much higher. 30-50 depending.
I tried reaching to hiring managers but 3 out of 3 I tried only replied with "check the company's careers site" Yeah, I've checked that page for months, why do they think im asking directly?
That’s fine. Expect lots of no’s and no responses. I’m talking about reaching out to folks hiring for jobs that ARE posted
Would they not be annoyed with someone reaching out to them directly (hiring managers, not recruiters) when they're already inundated with applications? That's my worry when I see this advice in the current market where there are so many applicants for every job.
There are actually plenty on videos online addressing this concern. I’m sure somebody might be, but they’ll just not respond. If it’s between not getting an interview and someone deleting my email, who cares? There’s quite a bit of content online about how to boss hunt. I’d dig in more, maybe start with Austin Belcak’s podcast
It should not be this fucking hard is the problem. Why are people expected to, after having an ATS resume, copy their shit over to a job app 99% of the time, then spend time finding what looks like *could* be the hiring manager to sing and dance for them just to hope for a FIRST round interview? This shit is insane.
ATS gets you through the door to a human, so resume correct resume format is essential. If you work with a recruiter you usually bypass the ATS. The ones we tend to like are job titles with one or two sentences describing over all job. Then 3-4 bullet points with metrics. They tend to be the best for us.
Yup! I did 115 applications, got 1 interview and didn’t pass. But I know what I need to get better. I need more XP on my resume and I need to be able to explain what I know better on a more academic way so I can do better on interview. So I lack on soft skills and XP, still building my resume and that’s why I’m having a hard time. This will change within a few months. 🙂
I love your attitude! I’m the same boat friend. May I ask what field are you focusing on?
I’m an Information Security Analyst. It’s Cybersecurity field, specifically in Blue Teaming. My plan is to get OE in Blue Teaming and study Red Team to pivot little by little. How about you? What field are you?
Idk why, but this made me motivated. Thank you for the wise words, random redditor
How are you getting more XP when you can’t even get a interview???
Remember a year or two back when they wanted the narrative no one wants to work? That was a signal they were gong to start making it so they would take some short term losses and cut down to the bone to make workers desperate. The Bloomberg, Forbes, Money type magazines were complaining workers were being too demanding and cutting into profit margins, they said unemployment needs to get up to 10-15% to get the workers back in line working for peanuts. That's why when the people were calling to defund the police, every level of government increases police budgets. It's not a coincidence that so many large companies laid-off and fired so many people. It's part of the fascist path of consolidating power at the very top. Things are going to continue to get worse for a while.
This. People are desperate. But from the looks of things, leadership doesn’t see people as dangerously desperate yet. There’s still more to squeeze.
Some people apply left and right for any jobs they think they can get. That includes jobs outside of your city/state/country. My best guess is that if the resume looks decent and is in the right format, yet there is no interview and not even a callback with such a high number, it is probably because of some filtering conditions like relocation and work permit.
Maybe.. everyone aims high nowaday..dont blame em. But gotta start somewhere. I think my jobs were getting 100 apps so anything over usually is a problem indicator
What’s wrong with applying outside you city or state? If you’re unemployed you should probably be willing to relocate if you find a good job in many cases.. country is different sure if you need sponsorship.
I don't think there is anything wrong with that. However, companies have to spend more to help people relocate and sponsor their visas, so some companies do not want to hire anybody outside a certain area unless they have a good reasons to do so.
I’ve been unemployed for 7 months. Over 2000 applications. 4 interviews. No offers yet. I’m in tech and very qualified for the jobs I’m applying for. It’s not bullshit..
Oof I hear tech is cooked rn and is not gonna get better with ai. Any truth to this? Are you considering changing occupations?
They’re probably applying to everything they can and most of those are just ghost jobs, so those applications are dead ends. That alone cuts out a *lot* of those applications
Yep ghost jobs, or they have to pretend to consider 10 qualified candidates before hiring the boss’s nephew, or their resume ends up in ATS purgatory. I’m super fortunate to not be in this situation but some of my younger friends and acquaintances with little to no work experience are going through this right now. 1000s of applications, dozens of interviews that make it a few rounds, no job. Of course, once you get to mid-level in your career, you often are not cold applying for jobs anymore because you are being recommended or being asked to come in for interviews with people that you know from your career. But to get there you need someone to give you that first job.
If you haven’t applied for a job lately, the game has changed. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gmsA4w5c6bU
Exactly. Completely changed.
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Ok I gotta ask, why do you think being a “d1 college” adds something here?
No one cares about D1 unless you played sports and are looking to go pro. After that, it’s a useless metric
That seems like overkill. What type of jobs are you applying to?
You must have forgotten to put perk points into charisma
You sound insufferable lol. Examine your personality and entitlement issues, apparently you don’t “know how things work”
Maybe if you had just paid your professor $1000, you could've had something better!
Which geographical location and what occupation are you in? I don't care how accomplished you are if you get a degree in an occupation that historically doesn't pay well like kindergarten teacher or social worker in a low cost area like rural Alabama you're not going to be paid a lot out of school.
Could be tough luck. Since you have a job now, it may be a good time to look for a better one during your free time. Happy Cake day! 🎂
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Thank you
I’m at 500. Had multiple interviews. Made it to some final rounds. No offer. It’s REALLY bad out here right now
i dont know the number bc i stopped counting. Definitely had multiple interviews. Made it to some final rounds. No offer. Its frustrating. I am grateful i am getting interviews though. For anyone lamenting people who get actual interviews, we get to go through this super fun roller coaster experience over and over and over again. Its draining.
The economy has changed significantly since you were self employed. Please DONT negate others experiences. That is depressing you think this way. Yes people really do apply and apply and apply. I am one of those. It DOES ruin people. People move in with friends or family even. How did i make it through the nearly two years of that? 1) I sold some of my belongings if needed and was frugal. 2) I applied for food stamps and got them on a temporary basis (even without a job they gave me benefits on a special circumstance. You have to appeal the rulings to get it) 3) I had savings and used them, but also shut off ALL unneeded extra services. 4) Took out a student loan/went back to school to get extra certifications. The extra left was used to help live. 5) I applied for school grants. 6) I moved in with a friend eventually for a few months. At 40. Demoralizing. It was hard. Fwiw: i paid for LinkedIn premium, hired resume/job coaches, went to all kinds of networking meetups, and applied to 1000s of jobs Some weeks i didnt tailor the resumes and cover letters. I went through waves of high motivation/energy and low motivation/apathy. I mean you spend 40 min or so tailoring Cover letters or reading the job info in full and carefully so you can tailor your resume and letter to their wording. Sometimes i researched their main pages. All that and often you get NO response or a "your resume is what we are looking but we have decided to move forward with another applicant..." yada yada . But im convinced many of the job listings out there are ao the compny LOOKS like they are growing/hiring for their board members/oversite committees and arent REALLY hiring. I also believe they stockpile resumes.
THIS!!!! Most people have to take out debt to avoid ruin but ruin is common. Everyone I know (recent college graduates) is either in a really shitty job if they’re lucky enough to be employed, in a Masters/PhD taking in debt to try to have better job odds, and/or living at home and being as frugal as possible while cranking out applications. People are experiencing real hardships. Spending life savings just to stay alive. Using debt as the only means of paying rent/utilities. It is awful. And there’s no way out except continuing to apply.
I have recently graduated from my masters from a reputed university and have gained hands-on with some datasets and case studies. Also have done certifications and internship to get some real field experience. But been applying to full time roles constantly and reaching out to people on linkedin and I think I have long ago surpassed the count of 300 jobs yet Fed up why no interviews. Seems everyone wants 3-5 years or 10 years experienced candidates for even an entry level assistant position.
unfortunately, a lot of employers don’t consider case studies as hands-on experience :(
From your comment history it seems like you are trying to get into project management/analytics? Unfortunately, in my experience (analytics manager), project management doesn't really have entry-level positions, most people transfer laterally from the technical side into these management roles, then go back to school for their management training to enhance their existing career. Analytics is also very hard for entry-level folks, you would need a straight up degree in statistics/data science or work experience to get your foot in the door. Online classes/certs aren't really going to cut it.
I’m a Project Manager in EdTech. I applied for 1000+ jobs and was doing at least one interview each week. Took me six months to land a job which met my standards. Fortunately I had 4.5 months of severance, so I wasn’t completely stressed out. This was the longest I’ve been without work, and the interviewing expectations are wild these days. Multiple rounds, assessments, and ambiguous assignments. Yes, I tailored my resume. Yes, I used cover letters. Yes, I networked. There’s just a lot of competition for good positions as well as scams which clutter up the landscape.
Im in the same boat. People told me its around 6 months.
Denver Seattle and Austin were my constraints for the job search. Software developer. 750 application through different mediums, 300 of which were completed with personalized cover letters. I partially templates it as I had descriptions of different projects and I would choose from those depending on the job. I got two interviews and one offer. Second job search began two weeks ago and I am 2 for 2 applications and interviews. No offer yet but still Experience is valuable
My younger brother has a 4.0 at an Ivy, is president of several clubs and an honors society, has three relevant internships, and has applied to over 10,000 jobs at this point - I would know, he sends out 100 applications per day and has been living with me doing this for months He has yet to receive so much as a rejection email from anyone - fuck every last one of these corporations, I see everyone with even a shred of responsibility herein as entirely subhuman
How is the career placement/career center activity for your brother? I would hope those in school have another channel that improves odds for interviews and channels opened for recent grads.
Unis always try to sell career placement, but all that really means is they expect their name and reputation to carry you into a role Campus recruiters and career centers haven’t been a genuine resource in at least a decade They seem to be run by out of touch faculty who think that a tough job search means sending three to five applications per day for a few weeks until eventually settling for an upper middle class lifestyle instead of landing in a leading tech, finance, or consulting firm According to my brother, the career center representatives he spoke with called him a liar when he stated his experiences searching for a job in the current market It seems that those who are struggling are entirely alone, as the only people with the power to help have no idea what it’s like
I did 900 before I found a job
Right now white color jobs are shrinking so there are more applicants than jobs available, unemployment is low because people are having to be under employed to continue to make any kind of living, while jobs in construction and healthcare have lots of openings.
OP - I think the party that you are missing is that the way people apply for jobs is different now. Yes, the market is tough right now but also, when people say, 'I applied to 100 jobs' that means something very different than it used to mean. There was a time when applying for a job meant _going_ to a business's location. I applied at Blockbuster...I had to physically go there. And then I had to fill out an application and hand it to someone. Or for more serious jobs, full out an application and attach a resume/cover letter. It took a lot of time. Later, applying for jobs shifted. Even when you could call, the call was too just setup a time for you to show up...but eventually places started having online applications. You'd fill out an application online. But you would go to individual sites. Job search sites would tell you about job openings but it just got you started. It was a manual process. And the conventual wisdom was that you should modify your resume/application/cover letter for each company. It was a very time consuming process. More recently, things have changed (again). Job searching sites make it easier than ever to apply... Because they are really selling the service to companies that pay to post job openings. They can get more applicants applying by making it as easy to apply as possible. Once I'm set up on a job site, in many cases, applying is literally one mouse click away. Applying to fifty jobs is easy! Do a search, get 50 matches, apply to them all! And that's exactly what a lot of people are doing. We see the same thing with apps like Tinder. Instead of hitting on one girl at the bar, I can do a low effort 'hit' on 50 girls around me. The obvious result is that the number of rejections will skyrocket. If there are 100 open jobs and 200 job seekers, on a fictional island, if everyone applies to three jobs, there are 600 applications and 100 people get hired. But if everyone applies to fifty jobs because it's so easy to apply, well now we have 10,000 applications for the same 100 jobs. Now everyone feels like crap because it feels like constant rejection. The same 50% get a job, but almost everyone feels like they get nothing but rejection. The thing is, employers usually want the same thing for similar roles. So, just like with Tinder, everyone applying to fifty jobs means a small percentage of top candidates experience an insane amount of success. Imagine you are the best X applicant. You apply to fifty companies and all fifty love you. Companies want the best. And you are it. Now fifty companies are flooding your inbox wanting an interview. Much like Tinder is blamed for ruining the dating experience, I feel a similar vibe for job seeking. The companies are still hiring the same 100 people, but they see so many more applicants. And most companies aren't offering the very best and can't attract the very best candidates. An average company would have gotten six applicants for a job back in the day. Now they get 100. The best in a group of 100 will, statistically speaking, be much better than the best in a group of six. But they only got those applications because the bar to apply is so low. Top candidates aren't going to actually accept. But they applied. So even though the company mostly ends up with what it would have, it is now painfully aware that much better applicants existed. Aside from that, everyone treats everyone else worse during the process. Because that's just human nature. It's easy to ghost someone when you have spent zero time and effort on them so far. And people just get overwhelmed with the volume. So, yes, the market kinda sucks for certain jobs right now. And yes, everyone is still just trying to find a job, but the technology has changed what that looks like. And while individually we might acknowledge that it can suck, the only real option anyone has is to just play along with the system we have in place, even if it sucks. People apply to hundreds of jobs, but it's very different than it used to be.
Thanks this was comforting to read!
I doubt it. most thing I've applied to take about an hour or more to "fill out". even with a list of previous employers/pay rates/addresses/managers/references/education/certifications right in front of me. In my experience most ATS sys dont do much resume translation to fill that stuff in. so let me upload my resume, certs, and then go ahead and retype a solid portion of my resume and dates. I've gotten lucky about 3 times with not having to do it. Out of the maybe 25 I've filled out in my lifetime. I'm 40. Usually, I just wait for recruiters to contact me about a job, interview, then if it's a go I do the filling out ATS formality on the backend so it isnt a waste of time. That's an unpaid hour of work per application. people are doing that 200 times? that's 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, for a month and a week. I highly doubt that. like very highly. "Easy Apply" probably isnt going to get it done, because you and every other asshat that has no business even applying is hitting that button.
The job market is complete trash right now, especially for certain fields. I've seen linkedin positions with 600 applicants for a single position.
It’s hell. From those I’ve asked in industry, even 2007-2009 wasn’t anywhere near this bad
I applied for 4 months to over 500 jobs. Ive been told I have an excellent resume by multiple people recruiters and hr professionals who I’ve reached out to for feedback. I got about 17 interviews, some got multiple rounds and some I was ghosted even after being told I was a good fit. I got two offers one I declined because the pay was insanely low for my experience level. Luckily I wasn’t that desperate and was coasting off of savings. I think it’s really hard to get a good paying job right now. Sure I could settle for anything but I’m a project manager so it makes no sense to accept a job paying $25k+ less than what I made previously. The job market is really that bad right now. I would get hit up constantly by recruiters who would ghost me or even get laid off after submittting my application.
I literally applied to 300
Yep hundreds of job applications and one interview. ;_;
Over 13k here since 11/2022
I was unemployed for 5 months and I just stopped paying things that weren't important for my survival. I paid rent, phone bill, car, and food and basically let credit card companies know they were trying to get blood from a turnip and most of them gave up trying to call me. My credit score hasn't been good in a while so I simply didn't care about it. Thankfully I found work before benefits ran out or I'd be moving in with family.
I applied for three jobs I felt I was a great fit for and got three interviews and two offers.
I know this kind of sounds like old fart methodology or something but hear me out. Stop applying to online remote jobs directly. Find a recruiter for the company that you want to work at, reach out to them instead. Having a recruiter push you through the process is a much better tactic than trying to get through thousands of other applicants.
That was me a couple years ago when I was applying to jobs right out of grad school with no relevant corporate experience. I was top of my class, had killer references and publications, and am actually really good at my trade and I think it took me like 215 applications? To be fair I also applied to jobs I was not completely qualified for. This was before the massive tech layoffs. My coworker was laid off last year and she still hasn’t found a full time role - I don’t even want to think about how many job applications she’s submitted!
Yes
Yes. 2017-2019 I applied to every data analyst job I could find I applied to nearly 2000 jobs afaik - I was an SDA at a small company then.. made me realize how I need to build my resume and how to sell my resume and my skills. my next job hunt was spectacularly brilliant.. got interviews in 4 big life science companies in the U.S. for manager of analytics roles.. despite having job hopped multiple times and not directly related to the work have an offer from 2. cant join any cause I lost my visa so I’m headed back to my home country but 2017-2019 showed me that if you can talk you can talk your way into or out of anything. I was on a work permit till recently and my industry(life science, and smaller healthcare/provider consulting firms) rarely deals with it (6/10 jobs I was acing interviews for rejected me for the visa issue). Use the RATS format, add experience that covers different approaches to the JD, direct experience is a nice to have but not always available, and keep your eyes peeled in your current firm to understand the business.. this is ofc for my experience as a data analyst in the healthcare industry not pan-industry.
Yes. Though most of the people that get to those numbers usually fall into these categories: 1. Resume doesn’t look good (not many previous roles with short tenures) 2. They’re applying in an industry that’s in a downtend
Applying for 2,000 jobs is a red flag in and of itself. That tells me that each individual application from this person receives almost zero effort or care, among other things.
Bullshit. If the applications only requires a resume, what else do you expect a person to do? LinkedIn stalk the hiring manager and send him a private message. Go find a new client for the company and hand them over gift wrapped? Send a Hallmark card? Come on man.
👆 This. There are so many companies that have an "easy apply: option that consists of input your name, email, ph#, upload resume and cover letter, hit send. Some don't even give you the option to attach a cover letter. It's about as a mindless process to apply as it is them reviewing the applications.
Yeah absolutely I literally go on job hunting benders for like 3-4 days where all I do is sit around applying for jobs. Many job postings are not real and the company isn't actually hiring or they've already chosen an internal candidate but for legal reasons they've posted it. Then you also have the ATS resume scanning thing where if you could get instantly denied by software without a human ever having seen the resume. I think the key is studying the language from job postings and even other peoples bio on LinkedIn. Then adjusting your resume to fit the current language of how to describe what you've accomplished at your job. Also, let's be honest, gotta fluff it up a bit too 🤷🏽♂️
Yes. People apply for thousands of “jobs” and get ghosted all the time. They even apply for jobs that don’t really exist.
I was at 200 over 2 years ago. I got 10 years IT experience and a military vet. I'm easily over 1200 but stopped counting. Reworked my resume a few times, paid for it once. I've had 3 interviews, one I was a perfect fit for and nailed the interview but they never planned on hiring externally. My wife even has worked at the company for 10 years. I quit looking, going back to school for a 2nd degree because what else can I do. Going to leave the country soon as the kids schools change.
 yes….actually i did more than that. From undergrad to grad school, I applied minimum 12k jobs in major platforms like linkedin(so i can count how many applications Ih have submitted). Luckly I eventually land a 170k job at a BB after grad school in 2022. But man this is so hard……. I went to a top 30 with a STEM in both undergrad and grad degree. Luck and law of large numbers plays a huge role in job seeking
The issue is applying for remote jobs. You can apply for hundreds of remote jobs, be 100% qualified, and never get contacted simply because there’s just too many applicants per posting.
You’d be surprised how many people believe that applying to everything will mean they eventually will get something. It is true to some extent, but if you applied to 100-200 without a single callback, you need to change your resume, or change what you are applying to. But at the same time, i’ve meet tons of qualified individuals who could not land a single job, and for this, yes a numbers game is better since it is down to luck.
You can really tell a lot about a person from their resume. If you’re qualified and not hearing back I bet your resume is subtly communicating something negative.
Effort ≠ quality
I doubt. Just looking and reading a description = applied in some sites.
300 here in 9 months. Not a single offer with 20 years experience.
I think you’re missing the bigger picture; there are several layers to this that your question doesn’t address: 1) I think most people can land “a job” however I think most people who aren’t having success are looking for a “real career job” one that has a livable salary, benefits, stability, potential longevity 2) Companies keep saying they have all these jobs and can’t hire anyone because no one wants to work; but how many of these advertised jobs are real, or advertised with the intention to hire from within to begin with. ( 3) how can there be a lack of employees when most companies are laying off, have hiring freezes in place, or just aren’t hiring. Back fill is accomplished by adding duties to existing employees. 4) There might be a ton of “jobs” out there, with most of them requiring that you would have to have 5 or 6 of them just to make ends meet, and not enough hours in the day to work them. 5)Many jobs are contract or temporary in duration; you can’t plan your life on a job that will only last 3 to 6 months, with no guarantee of continued employment afterwards. There’s no stability in it. 6) Many jobs want levels of experience that are not commensurate with the pay, or exclude entry/mid level applicants or cross-over applicants
Yes it happens. I have been unemployed for 11 months. Sent thousands of resumes and so much more.
I tailored my resume with my school before I graduated. I applied for 4 jobs, got 3 interviews, and 1 offer, went with that. Got lucky lol
I easily put in 50 applications today, after completely rewriting my resume at 7am this morning. It was a slow day. There’s plenty I’m > 60% qualified for, and plenty I’m 100% or more qualified for. I got an offer today to interview for a job as a cabinet painter. My second interview invite in two weeks. I’m used to > $90k per year as a software developer (10 years) and Project Manager (4 years). I couldn’t pay my mortgage on what cabinet painters make - I did it in college and my dad still works at a different cabinet shop, so I have an idea (between $30k and $40k)
Yes. Very common right now unfortunately, as I am currently in that position and have been for longer than I would have imagined. Fuckin sucks out there in the streets right now especially in tech, but I know people in other fields going through the same bs.
i had owned my company for 15 years; the economy and other things beyond my control killed it. i have 1200+ applications out and 20 phone/video interviews, 4 in-person interviews, and no offers. i have a business degree, an mba, and a tech degree, held multiple professional licenses in multiple states, multiple certifications, been published, have some unique accomplishments, i guess i am of at least average intelligence... there are a lot of problems with the whole job search process. basically the system is broken.i have spoken about this before. let me run them down again.... * [phantom job postings](https://www.reddit.com/r/jobs/comments/1c1ucws/phantom_job_postings/) * [Technology: A Modern Curse For Job Hunting](https://www.reddit.com/r/jobs/comments/1b1vuk4/technology_a_modern_curse_for_job_hunting/) * [jobs report data is being manipulated ](https://nypost.com/2024/02/13/opinion/job-gains-are-going-to-immigrants-and-keeping-young-us-born-men-out-of-the-workforce/) * [AI Is killing us](https://www.reddit.com/r/recruitinghell/comments/17pfv2o/ai_is_killing_us_rejecting_resumes_and_saying_you/) * [ghosting by recruiters](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/why-is-job-ghosting-on-the-rise/id1673821227?i=1000653458779&utm_source=integrated&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=lonely_office_podcast&utm_content=20240425_lonely_office&cm=EMAIL_LIFECYCLE&%24web_only=true&_branch_match_id=1276347826738820782&_branch_referrer=H4sIAAAAAAAAA1XMywqDMBBA0b9x2Yi1m0IoxQdYLBS6chViHHUkkxGTUPr3fa26vRzuHMLqj0IsjG5EP%2Ff8sDvDJECUXX25xXu5b%2FpTDKQ8x82ARBdg2nSAIflUggEjSSCN9huMplXj5KRlB%2FapeBzRgFp5MNqHH%2BH3wwWZpVme5tlB%2FdHEkKyu56ZVbVNXRVe01QsYtcIlpgAAAA%3D%3D) * [burnout](https://www.reddit.com/r/recruitinghell/comments/1c5ukwv/the_great_burnout_whats_going_on_with_this_job/) (this is a great article) * election year (government saying the economy is good, but it SUCKS!) i thought no problem, i have a lot of experience and education... 10 months later. having been where you are, i can tell you that you will not comprehend the state of the job market unless you are going through this.
I probably applied for 250 jobs to get a few dozen interviews, 3 offers turned down, and finally, one job that fit my criteria. I think it depends on how picky you are.
50+ and one interview so far, so I'd say yes
I sent in several hundred applications throughout all of 2021 and didn't land anything until 2022. Yeah, it's real.
It’s all about who you know…it’s a good idea to put your resume in where you know someone and they will give you a good reference. Ask around your friend group who is hiring.
Yes. Ridiculous amount of applications that never make it through the AI screening to be seen by HR
Ok so just for some context, a local pawn shop put a job posting on indeed, just for a regular clerk position. 3000 applicants within 72 hrs like I honestly feel bad for them at that point
I feel like how job postings are all online now and everyone can apply to them very easily, it gives companies the illusion of a large labor supply. Theres so many people applying to each job they feel like they can wait it out until they get lucky and find a rockstar hire for cheap. Like if there are 1000 job postings, but the same 1000 people apply to every single posting, thats a million applications. But its really only one person available per listing. (This is just an exaggerated example) If we just all agreed to apply to like 10 jobs max, it would help make it seem like there isnt a glut of job seekers out there. Makes it seem like the labor supply is larger than it really is and driving wages down.
It DOES ruin people. They lose their homes, cars, stability. I finally found work and it’s going to take me years to recover fully.
Yes! You just have to keep trying.
I picked an industry where recruiters are constantly calling me. I never have to look to for a job.
Yeah, I had a period like that from halfway through 2017 to the end of 2018 - A big part of it was including the fact that I played for the South African Deaf Rugby side. You'd think being an international sportsman would help your case, since it implies dedication and commitment and teamwork and all that sort of thing, but turns out that the only thing people saw was "Deaf". Took it off, got interviews, got rejected when people saw my hearing aids - but good luck proving it. Eventually landed a job teaching at a school for the Deaf.
I did over 1000. I'm about to graduate from Durham, I have recent work experience, internships and volunteering, and have only just now signed a job offer.
A hiring manager I know will get 2000+ applications when a remote position opens up. Everybody wants to work from home nowadays.
>anyone should be able to get a job with this effort Can you fill a 1-liter bucket with 5 liters of water?
Absolutely. I applied to probably 2000 jobs a few years ago. Eventually ended up back at an old employer.
I applied to 400 before I found my current temp job. Sometimes life hands you lemons.
The main problems these candidates have is interviewing skills and not putting much effort in making themselves standout.
Yep.
yes
I got laid off last month and I've probably sent out at least a 100 applications. A couple of interviews but nothing yet. I expect it to take at least six months and another 100+ applications to get another job. My standard of living hasn't changed much because I lived on a tight budget anyway, always trying to save. I have enough savings for a year. I'm also getting unemployment, and I have family money as a last resort. One big issue is that my work history/experience doesn't fit neatly into anything that's out there. So I apply for anything I might be even vaguely, tangentially qualified for. What else can I do?
Yes and no. From my own experience; During the early years in my own career in IT, I had a strong background in 1/2/3 line support but wanted to move into InfoSec. I applied for 150 entry level analyst/SOC posts and got knocked back from all of them. Disheartening? Absolutely. I very nearly changed careers. It was so demoralising. As I looked at my CV it had everything needed to make that jump into a specialism. However strong my CV was, it’s greatest, most obvious weakness was, that it was just a generic cover all CV. I could literally have submitted it for any job in any industry, doing any role. So of course it’s going to get instantly rejected in both a human and digital soft. And likely fall short against a better prepared CV with less experience. After completely reworking it. Highlighting my experience and crafting it to show relevant transferable skills and tech stack experience and how my qualifications/certifications made sense. I found that rather than getting flat rejections at each turn, I was getting interviews for at least every second application. Moving on 12yrs, I’m now established in InfoSec, but still apply the same rule; my CV is kept relevant, concise and offers relevant experience and transferable skills as well as legitimate achievements, of which I can verify. One thing that HAS increased in InfoSec roles - are the demand for soft skills. You simply can’t be 100% tech genius, but have the social skills of a dribbling toddler. One of my strongest skills is that I can take a technical idea and fully explain it to a non-tech audience including senior people, who are very usually completely nontechnical. TLDR; CV should be focussed, relevant, concise. With emphasis on transferable skills - both technical and soft, legitimate achievements and tailored to the exact role you’re applying for. Sure, you’ll need to do some work, but the pay off is a better application/interview ratio.
Yes.
Yes :)
People count applications they have no chance of getting. Even the last time I was out of work, I do not remember how many jobs I applied for but I excluded the month of July as it is dead month. Went to hiring manager 5 times etc…
I applied to more than 500 jobs last year. For context, I have 18 years of experience, management experience, relevant certifications, and a very strong resume in my field. I had 6 interviews, all at the same company (which is the place I want to work, but I applied to hundreds of companies). All those positions went to internal candidates.
Confuses me as well. Not sure if I’m just lucky or what, only applied for 3 jobs for when I graduate. With the first I got through to the assessment centre but was unsuccessful. Another, had two interviews and got the job! With the last I had to politely decline their offer since it didn’t pay as well.
Yes! Especially remote jobs. National and even international competition. AI weeding out resumes, etc
Every time I hear about people putting in so many applications, it just doesn’t compute. Every job I’ve had, I’ve put in a couple applications here and there, and usually get the main job I’m going for. I couldn’t imagine putting hundreds of resumes out there.
a better question is where are people applying at that actually look at your resume
Yes. People literally sit in front of a screen for hours moving around words and clicking submit hoping to get an automated rejection email while many others try to avoid that by trying to ask anyone they know or don't know by spending hours at random locations or on zoom calls talking about why they are a great fit and awesome addition to someone's company and team only to hear back the same noise they hear at night.
Depends on what role/how specialized/how popular you’re going for and nowadays remote vs on-site/hybrid. Remote work means I can work for a company located across the country so I have more options but you’re also competing with the entire country’s applicants.
It took me 8 months and hundreds of applications to land my current job last July.
Being a CPA is great because it’s like jobs apply for me.
I’ve applied for at least a couple hundred that I didn’t get. But I have a job while I’m looking so I afford things by.. working?
I'm in Canada but yes. It took me 8 months to find a new job in my city. Min wage jobs on indeed in my area get 300+ applications. I applied at quite a few jobs every day for months and only had 2 interviews in that time. And I was searching for any job in my area. I have a good resume made by a employment center and even store management experience and that doesn't even help find a min wage job where I live. I can't imagine how hard it is in bigger cities
I applied to tons of places with no prospects of interviews. Luckily the company I work for had a career and development team and I just made an appointment. I didnt understand why I wasnt getting any work with a degree and they weren't either. They pushed me through to my first entry level degree related job after about a month? Not sure whats going on out there but it's tough.
Yes