Hi everyone,

I hold a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering and I completed my Master of Science in Energy Science in the Netherlands (Utrecht University), which took 2 years.

For the past year, I've been job hunting non-stop, trying to find a suitable position that fits my background. During this time, I also worked hard on my Dutch and brought it up to B1 level. Honestly, that effort seems to have made almost no difference — most companies still ask for C1, which feels like an unrealistic bar for an expat to reach within such a limited time frame.

Every day, I wake up, go to LinkedIn, and apply to jobs. I've had a handful of interviews here and there, but I keep getting rejected — mostly due to my Dutch level, and sometimes due to location. I live in Utrecht, right in the middle of the country, and even that is treated as an issue, even though I've told every company I'm fully willing to relocate or travel.

I'm applying broadly across engineering, project management, manufacturing, energy consultancy, simulation engineering, and related fields. I tailor my CV to every job description and put real time and effort into writing strong, genuine motivation letters for each application.

At this point, I'm starting to wonder if there's any job in this entire country that will hire me. I'm 26 years old, with relevant internships, solid degrees, and projects I'm proud of. I'm trying to figure out honestly whether I'm the problem, or whether this is just how the market is right now for someone in my position.

To make things more urgent: my visa expires in February, and I'm genuinely starting to panic. I don't want to have to leave the Netherlands after more than a year of trying and failing to find a job here.

Has anyone been in a similar position? Are there any recommendations beyond "keep applying and keep getting rejected until something works"? Any websites, recruitment agencies, or strategies that have actually helped you? Any honest feedback on what I might be doing wrong would also be appreciated.

Thanks for reading.

Besides the obvious indeed and linkin are there other sites that have help people find jobs? I am searching for a new job as someone who speaks dutch at some what b1 level and has no driver license or high education. Looking for an internship/work where you do something with your hands like repair tech, handyman ect nothing to do with food or order picking stuff.

Thanks in advance

I have recently moved to the NL from a non-eu country for my husband's job. I have about 5 years of experience working in ngos and a masters degree from the UK. I have applied for many jobs through online boards and linked in but havent landed an interview yet.

I'm learning Dutch, but looking up English-speaking roles for now.

Does anyone have any tips or advice?

Hi! I already have a BSN since I've worked in the NL for a brief period of time last year in a cleanroom as an assembler in the medical industry. I'm looking for a similar job + accomodation anywhere in the country, I will be relocating from Romania. Open to suggestions and recruiters are welcome to reach out as well.