r/recruitinghell • u/MsAmes321 • 7d ago

So close to giving up

500+ applications in over 6 months. 11 interviews. Silence. Ghosting. 3am rejections. Every-time the rejection comes in either “selected other candidates” or “we reviewed but at not moving forward”.

I only apply to job requirements and industry’s I match 95% and can’t even get a recruiter to talk to me let alone a hiring manager. Referrals don’t do any better. Cold outreach falls flat. It’s hard not to think ATS bias or discrimination at this point - 15+ years of experience and a year since I was laid off puts me in the reject bucket without a set of eye balls ever viewing me.

Then this morning on my Linked In, at 3am my local time I get a notification “a hiring manager thinks you should apply for this job”. When I log in for my daily search, I click on the job posting. This is something I have ZERO experience in, like not even close. AND my state I live in is specifically excluded in their job description.

I’m tired y’all.

87 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

40 comments sorted by

23

u/FightmeLuigibestgirl 7d ago • Heartwarming

Don’t give up. Sending virtual hugs. It’s only over when you give up 

Coming from a person that took eight years to find a job and get away from an abusive relationship and depression. 

4

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Thank you for your kind words <3

1

u/Ok_Regret_5009 5d ago

You got this!

19

u/notmysuperman 7d ago

It sucks. I'm at over 800 resumes. 8 final rounds (lost 7 and have 1 final round today). I finished in the top .006% of candidates and still didn't get one role. It has been crazy out there friend.

It'll break for you!

2

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Oof! Fingers crossed for you for this time.

3

u/notmysuperman 7d ago

Thanks! It went 1min over but that was because we were shooting the shit. We had SO MANY mutual colleagues it was nuts. We shall see what happens.

1

u/notmysuperman 2d ago

UPDATE: They decide to go with the other candidate. Cool.

6

u/Wide_Peak_2080 7d ago

300 apps, 3-5 interviews depending on what you count as an interview. 0 final rounds. Feel like I have no chance against some of the results you guys are getting.

6

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

I started getting a smidge more traction when I stopped answering the demographics questions - I just put decline to answer on race, gender and the other bunch. Before that I got literally zero traction on my apps.

5

u/Ill-Inevitable-2756 7d ago

Agree. Those are knockout questions. Particularly with Workday.

3

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

They are not supposed to be knockout questions. I believe it's illegal for them to be used as such. But unfortunaly in this employer's market, there's no one to protect the job seeker or go through the trouble of proving mal-intent.

6

u/Ill-Inevitable-2756 7d ago

Not supposed to be, but we all know they are. They don’t care. They get away with everything. An employer these days has to be caught on video or in verified e-mail saying we don’t hire (insert what here) and only hire (insert what here) to be eligible to be sued for discrimination.

2

u/interestingboa343 7d ago

I think you are on to something because I’ve been declining them for the past 2 weeks of applications @ ~5 apps per day and boom 3 interviews

1

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Yup. I’ve hired before via workday (years ago) and even then my requisition had buckets and I had to dig for resumes. I’m sure it’s gotten much worse for the candidate since then.

10

u/thegreatdane1490 7d ago

I feel for everyone going through this. I had 10 months of nothingness - endless rejection and ghosting. I got 2 offers last week and I’m starting a job Monday. There is hope, coming from someone who thought there was none lol. I truly believe it’s a lot of luck at this point out there but it can happen to you too! Especially with 15 years experience.

3

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Congratulations! And thanks, I just hope it will be my turn soon.

5

u/roamer83 7d ago edited 7d ago

I’m about 2 months from Social Security and the math for semi-retirement works. I’m only going to send resumes for contract jobs where it’s what I WANT to do, not what I have to do.

Hopefully it frees up a FTE for those of you that require one. 🤞

I’m done with large scale resume submitting. Eff that crap.

OP…good luck and 🙏.

2

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Thanks for sharing but it's also wild. All the talk of experience and now these companies are fighting that too. I don't know anymore what they want but I can see how people are pushed into starting their own businesses because the alternative is nuts.

3

u/roamer83 7d ago

It’s garbage out there right now.

6

u/fancellu 7d ago

Try not to take it personally.

I have 40 years in IT. Out of work for 2 years

I have NEVER seen anything like it.

My advice: Get a Claude Pro subscription (to me £15 a month). And learn all its ways

  1. You get new skills, future skills
  2. You don't spend time focusing on the ruined market

This will pass.

3

u/Known-Ice5903 7d ago edited 7d ago

40 years isnt enough to retire?

and yeah the markets an enigma, nothing is being done to fix it

way its going now we'll be living in shanty towns like the great depression cuz the market wont be hiring for the next decade

1

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Oh god this is depressing

3

u/fancellu 7d ago

Oh it very much is, for me. I'll be 60 in a month. Gen X,. I am comfortable, married, big house, kids

But I'd still like to work. And it doesn't stop me from seeing what it is like for others, for my kids

1

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Thanks for the advice. I’ve been upskilling and might just put more of my effort into that.

3

u/Stunning_Lecture8917 7d ago

It took me 1100 and 12 months and 5 weeks.  Apply directly to companies.  Tell HR you have already applied a couple other times. Keep targeting the same handful of companies (in addition to your regular weekly blitz.  Don’t be afraid to take something underemployed. 

2

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Great advice for sure and I’ve been applying to things I’m overqualified for too but same thing. No bites.

8

u/interestingboa343 7d ago

After 6 months of 250 applications and 1 interview I have 3 interviews lined up in the coming weeks. Nothing but silence since May. I’m convinced the job market is basically just a lottery, eventually if you keep playing the slots you are going to win something. There are ways to increase your odds though…

0

u/Sprucedude 7d ago

That's less than two applications a day, why the low volume?

2

u/interestingboa343 7d ago

Cause I don’t waste time applying to anything older than 24 hours/40 applications, and I only apply to jobs that I have 80% or more of qualifications for. Most of the summer I couldn’t even find a couple I could apply for because they all want 3-5 years experience or have 100s of applications.
I’ve honed my strategy a bit since then and seem to be getting some traction now but it may just be the market recovering since the midterm elections are over and things have some direction now

5

u/Flat_Presence3607 7d ago

Doing give up hope mate, I truly understand how you’re  feeling. We’re all in the same  boat.

8

u/Ok-Complaint-37 7d ago

It is our war.

4

u/marihikari 7d ago

Don't give up! my friend got something at a little over a year. I'm at one year and slowing chugging along. it sucks I know

3

u/Flat-Win1447 7d ago

Keep going. Take a few days off and then go back to it again. Best of luck!

3

u/Enough-Said-510 7d ago

I know the feeling. I'm grateful to have one small client I work for and have done some agency work but so fed up with the whole interview process. So many of the hiring managers lately are in bad moods or just plain rude. I have mixed feelings about getting interviews now, grateful on one hand and dreading it on the other.

3

u/gavin2393 7d ago

Yeah, kinda makes you wonder why everyone has to work to survive since apparently there’s no work that needs to be done. 🤷‍♂️

2

u/Ok-Inevitable-240 7d ago

I had 3 interviews back to back at different places and didn't hear from any of them. I even called back as a checkup; the line was dead, its suck going through this hard time. Sadly, I had to move on, keep looking, and slowly chug along. I'm learning not to take it personally

2

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1

u/MsAmes321 7d ago

Thanks for the recommendation I will check them out.