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I have been applying to a ton of jobs since last February and the only bites I get are from either real sketchy companies or a company that screws me over for a buddy hire after 6 weeks of interviews. I am getting desperate enough that I am considering a completely different career in a completely different industry. I apply to jobs on LinkedIn, Indeed, Dice, and even directly on their websites.
Any tips, recommendations, words of wisdom?

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Continue applying. You never know when you might find the right opportunity. There will be a lots of “no-contacts”, a lot of ghosting, and a lot of 2nd interview pass ups. But persistence if key to not only getting a job but holding onto one when you do.

Also, check in with friends if possible. See if they have possible openings at their company and maybe then can give you a referral. Connections go a long way in insanely crowded work force of 2025.

Also consider looking at your resume and making sure it is appealing and reasonable. Don’t fluff anything you can’t do but also don’t sell yourself short. Maybe make another copy of your current resume with some things switched around and some different wording. See which one gets you more interviews or calls and work off of that.

Above all else - keep on keeping on

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I struggled with that very thing. I lost my job in October 2023 and really struggled. I had lots of talks with recruiters, about one new recruiter every week, with no results. I did have one offer, a local MSP offered me barely over half of my expected pay with no room to grow, and after a short discussion with them we agreed it was not going to work. March 2024 I landed a short term contract, which carried me 4 months. Then it was December 2024 before i landed another short term contract.
This was a very hard time for me, lots of instability and insecurity and fear.

One thing I did, and I am very glad I did, was to share my resume here with the community (What is wrong with my resume?). I heard from several prominent community members and got some amazing feedback. I listened to them, made changes, asked clarifying questions, and cleaned things up. Within two weeks of using the new resume I started getting increased responses on my applications.

i really liked the temp slot that I started in December, but it was still a temp slot and I kept my eyes open. One of the jobs I applied for in January eventually came to fruition, and I started a new ‘permanent’ job the first week of April.

As @machomanrandall says, keep at it. The road it rough. Take this time to develop your skills, get certifications if you can, build your abilities.

I wish you success in your job search.

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I hear you! Part of my issue is that 1) I HATE job hunting (please pull my teeth!), and 2) this is a secondary career already (I’m a chemist by training), so I don’t yet know what I want to do with my life, which makes it hard to know where to focus my efforts.

Best wishes. You’re not alone.

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I don’t want to post my resume just in case but I would be willing to send it to someone privately.

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I have been laid off previously on 2 occasions and naturally at the worst economic time. You have my sympathy there, it sucks when the job market is not doing well and you’re in that position.

When you do searches, also look for remote opportunities if you’re not already doing that. Update your linkedin, change the status to open to work, ensure your stuff is up to date there. I get a lot of recruiters that reach out to me there. I know people like to hate on linkedin but it’s a resource, use it. I’m not currently in the market, but I try and make a point to respond back to them that I’m currently happy where I am and appreciate that they sent the opportunity my way. I had one call me today that was actually responsible for getting me into a place several years ago just to see if I was interested in hearing about an opportunity. I appreciated that. Recruiters are hit/miss, for me they had usually been a miss, but you never know where an opportunity might show up, so always be open to hearing about them.

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I sanitized mine, no actual company names/addresses/phonenumbers/websites, since that info is irrelevant for this purpose. The rest of the data is relevant, not just the content but the layout/format also.

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I haven’t personally been looking, but if I was I would have difficulties due to disability.

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One thing I learned along the way is that marketing > skill pretty much always. You can be terrible at your actual job but if you are a charming and manipulative suckup, you’ll get ahead.
Just saying.

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Sometimes the right opportunity isn’t going to pay you what you want at the start…don’t immediately disregard offers that might be the right opportunity, but aren’t the right pay.

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I am in exactly the same place. Your post reads like one I made on a Facebook group just a few weeks ago, even down to the old buddy screw over and looking outside of IT. I’ve been in IT for over 30 years. I’m wondering what IT people can do other than IT?? Suggestions for an aging techie in UK?

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I’m in the same boat. Been out of work since Dec 2024. I should have done some certifications during the years but I was so focused on work that there was not time. I’ve been applying for anything and everything and so far its not been going good. Job hunting sucks big time. This is my first time actually looking for a job. Every job I’ve had so far I’ve been approached by the hiring company.

@Dangerous I think doing something else depends on what youre good at. Personally I’m pretty handy working on cars and electrical. If I could I would become an electrician but I’m colour blind so thats out. Whereabouts in the UK are you based? I know of a position in Manchester that was available. Drop me a message if you interested.

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I am considering an opportunity to reprogram crash sensors in cars that have been repaired. I also tinker with my cars in my free time so I think I could do the job.
I guess it all depends on what you are confident you can do and maybe skills you have learned outside of work with hobbies and such can come into play? I didn’t think about how my skills could be used in the automotive field until I called a friend of mine. The only issue is I would have to go into an entry role and I don’t know if I can take that pay cut.

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I’m not. I think I am being pretty flexible on pay, I even entertained a 15k cut until the company couldn’t tell me a single thing in regards to benefits. Like they couldn’t tell me what insurance they had, if there was a 401k, or if they even had dental. I know my company pays high for my area but I got bills and such so I can’t go too low.

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my linkedin is essentially a copy/paste of my resume. so my issue would be that I can still easily be found that way. even if I sterilize it the wording could still give it away.

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I apply to everything remote, local, hybrid. I even have applied to jobs that are farther away if they at least promise hybrid. I have my linked as opentowork to recruiters, dice profile is visible, and I respond to every recruiter on linked in. Heck even if a company doesn’t have a position for me, if I see they have a generic “send us your resume” type post I will do that.

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I had a tough time this past job hunt. Yes, I am older, but wiser and much more experienced. In the end I landed an awesome gig. I chalk it up to a few things.
1 AI scanners are checking for keywords. If you can, opt out of AI review.
2 Ageism, nothing you can do about that
3 DEI, not slamming the cause, but some companies are just looking to check the boxes. The company I work for now is DEI, but they practice hiring the best candidate
4 Salary expectations may be too high for what they are willing to pay

Also if you aren’t already, cast a wide net. If it seems a stretch for your skill set, submit to it anyway and let them decide. I used like 5 or 6 different job search engines like LinkedIn, ZipRecruiter, Monster, Indeed and a couple others. Ultimately I submitted to over 1000 jobs.

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I know my company pays high, so I am willing to go for a lower salary, I had even considered a 15k paycut until the company just wouldn’t tell me about benefits, like not a single thing. It was weird. I try to be flexible but maybe I need to drop the number I put in the salary expectation fields. I just wish I could talk to people because I can get more accross than the form can.
I don’t have much luck with Monster in my area. I have been on LinkedIn, Indeed, Dice, Robert Half, and going to company sites specifically. I’ll try Zip Recruiter.

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#1 When you were a child you will have no doubt fell off your bike and cut your knee, you got up, dusted yourself off and got back on your bike, after a while the cuts and bruises become a status symbol. Same here, never give up, get back on that ‘bike’ and keep riding.

#2 Print out a bunch of resumés and take them to places you know do IT, schools, colleges, universities, local businesses, ask them if they’ve any jobs going in the IT field and if you can leave your resumé for future endeavours. Some employees appreciate those who put the effort in. Others may have to go specific routes for candidates. It never hurts to try.

#3 Practise, if you don’t have a lab, get one, keep learning, don’t let your skillset fade, because the last thing you want when the interview does come, is to not know half of what is being talked about. Advise them that while you may have been looking for work, you’re still engaged in the technology side and continually improve yourself by learning at home, you could also mention you are an active community member of other IT pros.**

#4 Be prepared to start lower than you might like, at least this way, you’re in. You can show off your skills, pick up new ones and take it from there. It’s better to be employed seeking other opportunities than be unemployed, disheartened and struggling financially.

Don’t let it beat you down, most IT jobs do this anyway.

Short version, get back on the bike and keep riding, eventually you will get where you are going.

** I will also add, be active on here, especially helping others with their queries, there are headhunters who frequent here. Ask me how I know.

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Good luck on your hunt. Hopefully you find one that suits you financially as well as the job role.

Any company that won’t discuss benefits is hiding something (like expensive or lame coverage) and that is a major red flag!

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