Applying to 500 Developer Jobs with No Luck: A Candid Discussion

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In this candid conversation, I talked with someone trying to find his next developer job. Despite applying to over 500 jobs, he's only had a handful of interviews, faced rejection at the final round, struggled with coding challenges, and even had a job offer rescinded. I dug into what might be holding him back, while also discussing job boards, the importance of cover letters and networking, and how to stand out in a crowded job market. This episode is perfect for anyone who's tired of job rejection and wants to learn from someone who's been there.

Mitchell Brandon (guest):

[yourdadishere]

Uh, dude's LinkedIn shows that he actually had a Frontend job throughout 2022. He's not an entry-level developer, nor is he aspiring for his first job.

[VRR]

Good stuff. I'm a self-taught dev and have been fulltime for 12 years now (10 in current position) but am always interested in the process new devs are going through. Good advice here. Also wanted to add - granted my experience was 10 yrs ago - but I always had great results by connecting with a technical placement agency. Applying direct is great but in my experience HR departments are often overwhelmed (and under staffed) and I think many applications can get lost in the shuffle. Working with an agency really helped me because they had a direct channel to HR and could call them directly to get my application in front of them and get the interview process rolling.

During the time I was searching (and had little professional experience) I went through tons of interviews... bombed some, did well in others but ultimately wound up in the ideal position for me. Just don't give up!

[firefoxmetzger]

It's funny. I was applying earlier this year, too, and I noticed that I got increasingly frustrated, because I would spend the majority of my time writing a good cover letter just to get "desk rejected" with a generic email. Eventually, I decided to do a 2-week experiment and just send out "bulk applications" with either a generic cover letter or none at all, just to see how my odds of getting to the first stage would change. In the end, I got as many first-round interviews back as I got from my previous 3 months of applying with cover letters (2 in both cases) of which both lead to an offer.

I know it's not exactly hard evidence and at best anecdotal, but I wonder if there is more to it.

[CodingAbroad]

I’ve just hired an Angular developer for my team. The 2 most important things for me to see in candidates was having a portfolio site (of which about 80% of those applied didn’t have) and just general a ‘can do’ attitude as clique as that sounds.

You have to bear in mind when we hire a jr we’re taking a risk so we at least want to see someone with a great attitude

[igboanugwocollins]

This is very insightful, i have already applied to over 800 job applications on LinkedIn, and gotten less than 20 interviews. Finally landed a job on September last year but lost the job after just a month 😢
It really feels discouraging to keep applying, at this moment am just a bit confused on what to do next. This actually sparks another kind of perspective to follow, thanks again!

[DH-ojru]

Its rediculous that companies expect people to care about the company at all beyond a paycheck - do yall really think 99% of devs would ever apply to a full time job for any reason other than money? Its a JOB.

[darkdudironaji]

I recently hit my 250th application, and have had exactly 1 interview. I'm really at the point where I feel like I'm going to be working in construction for the rest of my life. It's almost not worth the heartache anymore.

[demetriuslewis]

Bro, i feel your pain in this one. I was laid off just last week and im going through this pain right now. This video will help me a lot. Thank you!

[thej]

I just discovered you, and I really like your content, Don. I have a developer job personally, but what you have to say really resonates with me.

I really like what you have to say about finding passion projects that are personally meaningful to you and solve a problem. The job I am at is very stable, but this is a beginner-level job with no experts to consult with. I recognize that I am moreso an amateur, but I am the only one here that can work with the technologies we use, which I learned with OJT. Getting the kind of results here really brought back my confidence and passion for working in SWE. I want to work on more side projects

Don, you've motivated me to try to find something that I can work on with my spare time. Instead of looking for a team to work with, I can begin the project myself.

[mahklo]

This is good stuff Don, very solid advice. Almost all my jobs have come from networking. I am also self taught going on 10+ years. Started as a graphic designer doing freelance to Sr engineer in a very large company in Silicon Valley. To my guy being interviewed, hang in there bud and don't get discouraged. Find a good mentor in the area you're interested in whether it be UI/UX, devops, data, etc. There are many types of SWE so I would caution against being a jack of all trades. Focus on one and get really good at it. Most importantly, dont be afraid to fail...instead see it as an opportunity to level up. Find other hobbies to balance your time with coding. Mental health is no joke. Youre brain is your primary asset in this field, treat it well and hopefully you wont burn out. Good like brother. Clicked on this video expecting to disagree with something and agreed with everything lol.

[DonTheDeveloper]

If you'd like to come on the show and ask me a question, just fill out this short form:

[MurangShaBu_MahalNaBiGas]

I admire his spirit and guts, when I got rejected twice, I was really discourage, my first one, they only interview once and then ghost me like nothing, my second one, I made it in round 2 and being told me that they like me and I'm the no.1 candidate but then shoo their way out and says that they will promote their own people for my position, luckily my 3rd one hired me, but I can really attribute it with my soft skills, my technical skills are not that much I even tend to forget to answer question but I can really communicate well with people, so make sure you work in your soft skills and also learn plenty of interview skills.

[avi]

All my jobs have come organically from taking some sort of action. I've never actually applied to a job and have been gainfully employed since 2008. My advice has always been to do something cool and show people. People love people who do cool stuff unprompted esp when you show an interest in their company or project. But at the same time, don't do it with the intention of getting a job b cause then it's not the right cool thing, I guarantee it.

[McWickyyyy]

For me I always spam applied to like 500+. Kept the same resume. Usually didn’t write a cover letter. I’m on my third job now. I’ve noticed with this strategy even when I first started out it would take about 3 months to land something. I would only ever get interviews with like 3 companies at a time that were serious. Rejected sometimes. And then suddenly a few offers at once.

Hang in there man. I’m sure you’ll get some offers soon. I would def say if you don’t have experience have something you can show on a portfolio. That’s what I did for my first job. I just showed them my fortnite stats website I was making back in 2018 lol. It was just the frontend part of the app only. I was able to talk on it and show my experience that way

[deathKira]

Went to his LinkedIn profile to see that he got a work as a lead frontend software engineer. Congratulations to this man.

[romanvandersar]

Damn, watching these videos really makes me feel better about my situation.
I can not image going through this much struggle and staying motivated.

I went from 0 knowledge to hired in 12 months after 13 applications, self thought.
Knowing somebody in the industry can get you a headstart (not my case though) but its true!

[Skbeats]

This was awesome Don. I'm in a similar spot as Mitchell after graduating Hack Reactor in September, and you really helped me adjust my outlook on the application process.

[vangmvp]

I could relate, I’m looking as well for my first junior role, it is really discouraging, but keep your head up and trust the process, your time will come, I don’t know if you have a website portfolio, that really helps too

[Mikebigmike]

hearing this sort of thing makes me glad I've chosen to do a CS degree. nothing is guaranteed but I think it puts you at the top of the pile, especially if you're also self-studying and creating projects simultaneously.

[fifty]

i've gone through almost 100 applications, and only got hired or even got the opportunity for interview only when i was dealing with a hiring agency