Scams, silence, rejection: US job seekers describe ‘depressing’ work prospects

Well, at least it's a systemic issue and not just me. I've been saying awhile now that experience is toxic and the jobs posted aren't real. How can one send out a thousand applications and get a single interview?

It's a terrible time to be midcareer.

When Philip Kowalski lost his job earlier this year as a USAID contractor working on aid to Ukraine due to Doge cuts, he was confident in his credentials: a master’s degree from the University of London and years of hands-on experience managing American foreign aid contracts that he thought would help him land on his feet.

Instead, he found himself adrift in what he calls “a massive pool of unemployed people who are highly qualified all competing for the same tiny pool of available jobs”.

“I’ve put out maybe 400 job applications in the last five months,” Kowalski said. “I’ve only gotten a handful of interviews. I think I’ve interviewed with six different places. It’s a really bleak situation.”

Kowalski, 36, is far from alone. From the tech-centric coasts to the US deep south, job seekers describe a market where even advanced degrees, decades of experience and thousands of applications often yield little more than silence or, often, scam calls.

This was already the case in 2020, but no one was covering it because "unemployment's so low, it's a you problem." Upskill. Go to networking events. Spend a shitton of money and go into debt so you're even more desperate for entry-level work despite decades of experience.

Meanwhile, rent goes up 15% a year, and you're making half what you did when you moved in, after a grueling, monthslong job search that forces you to put rent on a credit card.

As Carlin said: "It's bullshit, and it's bad for you."