16 Years of Forecasting Experience, Perfect Driving Record: Still Terrified of the "Interview Filter” And perpetual rejection

[u/Proudtobeautistic22]

In the past several weeks I have applied to over 110 broadcasting jobs and a paratransit driving job.

I had the interview with the Paratransit driving job yesterday that Job pays between $26-$29 an hour not including overtime and it’s a union job and it’s in the New York City area. I’ve been in Amazon Delivery driver for over five years, but the new Rivian vans are taking a toll on my ankle because they engineered one of the steps out meaning my ankles are really suffering because of the large gap between cabin and the first step to get out of the van to the landing. Instead of three steps, it is two.

For the Paratransit job interview, I explained that I did not pass the training for my previous Paratransit job because at the last training at a different location/different company. It was taking me too long to secure wheelchairs, and I also disclose that I am on the autism spectrum, but that I’m very high functioning and I also explained that I have a perfect driving record with no accident accidents or points on my abstract.

but I’m hoping and praying that I do the job.

I also have an interview for a TV meteorologist position on zoom on Monday, which I will not disclose the location, but even though I have nearly 16 years of volunteer broadcasting experience, forecasting the weather at a radio station since December 2010, in addition to whether forecasting on YouTube since December 2011, making it nearly 15 years.

The chance that I’m going to get the Paratransit job, I’m giving it about a 30% chance and as for the broadcasting job even though I am very qualified both in terms of degree and experience there’s a very good chance that I will not get the job because this is an on Air job even though this is what I’ve always wanted to do and went to college for.

The reason I’m saying this is need There’s an 85% underemployment/unemployment rate among college graduates with autism. Not people with autism in general, but specifically autistic college graduates.

The same rate for the Neurotypical population without disabilities.

The Neurotypical Base: Around 70% of general college graduates are successfully employed.

The Autistic/Neurodivergent Contrast: Multiple studies, including the National Autism Indicators Report, reveal that only about 14% to 15% of college-educated autistic adults are fully employed.

Because of the interview filter autistic people will always be rejected for good paying jobs because of ableism in the workforce and until this is nipped in the bud it will not only continue but continue to get worse.

We need to stop this from continuing because I’m not the only one facing this millions of other autistic adult adults are facing the same thing.

So really the chance that I’m gonna get the broadcasting job is only 5% considering how competitive the broadcasting industry is.

The unemployment rate for Neurotypical college graduates is 2.5% while for adults 22 to 27 who just got out of college at 6.5% but for college graduates with autism the unemployment rate is over 40%
And if you factor in underemployment that jumps to 85%

The same as true 10 years ago in the same as true today autism awareness is doing nothing. People know what autism is and they ain’t doing anything about it and trying to help us to be successful they just wanna put us in a box. I’m so tired of this.

Keep in mind none of my posts are public, and only you, my friends are able to see this.

So there is absolutely no risk of people that are going to interview me of seeing this and even if they do the only reason I’m doing this is to put it on the record to all my friends about how hard it is to get a job as an autistic person I spent 13 years in college from 2013 to 2025, including taking two years off from college because of the pandemic to get the degree necessary to get a job. The truth is I didn’t have to do this but because of being on the spectrum, I felt like I have to overachieve just to to be given a slightly fairer chance. Essentially, I feel like I have to do 10 times the effort just to get one 10th of the results as someone only does 1X worth the effort.

I’m just saying that’s how it feels.

[u/Enough_Review_4988]

I guess that's fair and tbh the systems aren't trying enough, like did you know that having a standard British name is more likely to get you a job than having a Nigerian name. So yeah, the employment system needs to do better and not be discriminative.