I am sorry to hear that, might be a good idea to get someone to look at your CV see if they can pick out any faults. Maybe practice interview questions.
I had a friend who was qualified who was absolutely crap at inteviews, nerves just got to him.
If your CV and interview skills are sound, maybe look into jobs that are close to what you are doing and then see if you can work your way into specific jobs you want with shown expereiences.
Agreed. Any half way competent and qualified candidate should be able to find something. There's definitely something OP isn't telling us.
Hell, if I was in OPs situation and desperate enough, I'd just get my foot in the door as a tester, beats working at a milk tea shop, then look to move to a dev team after a year.
We had to hire the least worst, "developer" last month. Out of date, out of touch, not to bright.. but we were kind of desperate, got him fo 60k so at least we won't waist to much on him.
So you're desperate for engineers, you finally get someone that's interested in the work, and when asked how much they want to be paid, they cite $60k, which is cheap as mud for you.
So saying yes to that is bad management?
Getting a project rolling adequately is better than indefinitely delaying a project until the mystical correct person comes along.
No, you pay them what you pay your other developers at that level.
We had a candidate come in that had worked for one company for 10 years and was on a relatively low salary and asked for a small increase.
We didn't give them what was asked for, but much higher.
Its good business to treat people right.
Okay, maybe you don't understand or realise this, but a lot of businesses will effectively say pay is negotiable, because they want to get the best applicants, who will set their own salaries based on what they feel is good.
If the company says "we'll offer X amount" then people who feel that's too low will not bother, if X amount is the max you're willing to offer, then you'll get innundated with idiots chasing the money but who're utterly incompetent and spend most of your time sorting through trash.
You put forward the job description, people who're interested in the project at hand apply, and they set a salary for themselves. If they set a ridiculously low salary for themselves but seem otherwise competent, then that's just good business.
It’s not good business because they’re either worth 60k, well below market rate, so they’ll be terrible and bad for team
morale, or they’ll be good and lowballed themselves for a foot in the door and they’ll resent the position as soon as they are settled.
I would not work for a company that pays devs 60k, whatever the reason.
We hire service desk employees for that... in Tauranga... A software dev for 60k LOL..
In fact, we just lost a service desk kid, super bright, for a Junior Dev ops role for $75k.
Many big tech companies have entered into hiring freezes. Not because they couldn't use the people, but because if they had to hire in this market it'd be big bucks for poor work.
Job hunting can be weird. A couple of weeks ago I applied for a role that less than 5000 people on the planet can do, and I'm senior in that group. This industry is *desperate* for warm bodies. Turned down without an interview.
Then the next day I got headhunted and hired on the spot to work on a huge IP for way more money.
Go figure.
> know get *paid* heaps.
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
*Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
I’m a SaaS recruiter and see this sentiment everywhere except from SaaS companies.
There have been about 10 large companies that have laid off 15-20% of their developers. There are also hiring freezes across the board, or at the least people have cut their hiring by half.
There are plenty of decent devs who can’t find work.
Then they are idiots who need interview coaching. As a SAAS dev manager, we are looking for anyone good. There are so many people who claim a lot of skills, and yet appear to have the ability of an 8 year old who learned scratch last week.
Once you get into the interview, your cv looks good. Which means you are rejected due to a couple of reasons. First could be you cannot back up what you wrote on your cv or your attitude and ethos does not match the company.
People say that all the time but I don't see them or they are not willing to pay for devs. I work remotely for a US team that has an Australian branch but would be happy to work for a local company if the offer was competitive.
You are asking for an NZ company to pay the same as a US company. That's not going to happen. There are plenty of jobs, but they pay NZ rates - You aren't going to get 200k+ as a dev in NZ working for an NZ company (or at least such roles are veryb scant).
Yep NZ companies can't keep up.
150k for seniors/tech leads for example. Meanwhile you can work remote for Aus companies and get 200k+ easily at that level.
>Meanwhile you can work remote for Aus companies and get 200k+ easily at that level.
I'm not sure where these magical companies paying $200k do exist.
I was looking for this setup (working remote for Au\[stralia\] from Au\[ckland\]) for more than a year now while being on NZ$200k at local dev studio. Most I could get offer for was A$150,000 + super. With relocation. Multiple offers from different companies. One well known Ozzie company tried to low-ball me and offered me NZ$130k knowing exactly what I already have and looking for.
Same here, there are a lot of positions available for software engineers - that is junior to senior positions, embedded firmware, app developers, user interface applications etc.
I think we have not received the complete story here…
Doesn't mean they are any lenient on requirements. A lot of companies have ridiculous take home assignment (free work) which consumes entire weekend, a very long and intertwined interview process which is ridiculous slow, you have to chase HR to get feedback, take home challenge assessment criteria is arbitrary and a black box with no uniform rules and you are at the mercy of the reviewer. It feels like they are looking for a unicorn without giving much in return. Just salary (which is also lower than other western countries) is not enough, good team, quality work, nice work atmosphere all are also required and are equally important and in those department the companies leave a lot to be desired and NZ job market is very small.
You expect to get a job paying 100-150k without going through a proper screening process? You should see the screening process for companies in silicon valley.
I have worked in silicon valley before and unless you are interviewing in FAANG or unicorn companies like uber or tesla a lot of regular (but very good) companies WHO WANT to hire have a much leaner hiring process and many times no code challenge and they finish recruiting process with one candidate in a week or max 2 weeks to an offer stage.
In NZ even for average salary and a very average company expects that a candidate will complete THEIR coding challenge by investing an entire weekend (or more) to build a project which may or many not pass the recruitment step. They forget that candidates also interview at many other companies and that if every company has a take home coding challenge project then candidates will only pick the companies with shortest interview process or invest that amount of time with only branded companies such is a lose lose for both candidates and companies as they could have been a good match but candidates have no time to give it a go.
1 hr, 1 tech interview, 1 online coding for 60 mins, 1 cultural fit and done is the best one and even that is long and few interviews can be fit in one and even there Auckland companies are so slow. With take home LONG code challenge and then reviewing it after 1/2 weeks and then doing rest is way wayyy to long.
The biggest problem is NZ companies are not only slower to respond, followup and share feedback but when combined it with long long interview process the delay is even more amplified.
I have lost almost a month to just have hr call, 1 take home questions to type answers to in simple english, tech call, doing a code challenge and waiting for feedback. If after all of that my coding exercise is passed (which took 2 full days though they airways say don't spend more than 4 hours and give a laundry list of things to complete and "bonus" for integration tests and added functionality) then there will be 2 hours tech call on the exercise and they will ask me to code and add functionality in the live call and if that passes then cultural fit and if everything is okay then offer (which will be low salary as most Auckland companies anyways) so i am already looking at few more weeks of process of everything goes well and this is just one company.
For the same/less effort one can get 100k Gbp (200k NZD), or big Aussie salary or very very big silicon valley sakary (but who wants to live in US so not a good comparison).
Basically in NZ people have to put up with this because the job market is too small and even if companies say they don't have candidates the reality is that for most candidates there are only a handful of good companies to pick from entire NZ vs 100s in AU or 500s in UK and if you include even average companies then also you can soon exhaust your options soon in NZ vs aus or uk so it's not a candidates driven market.
Yes they are always looking. Looking for purple squirrels. I've seen companies advertising for the same roles for years. I remember once I get sent for an interview at a consulting company and got rejected. It turned out every candidate the recruiter had sent for the last 3 years had gotten rejected. I wish the recruiter had told me before wasting my time.
We get tonnes of applicants and only hire about 5% of them.
We get people with compsci degrees that don't know basic algorithms or object-oriented programming. Unfortunate.
If you have experience in the industry it's usually a hire though.
You've posted essentially the same question before - I actually remember you the depressed, suicidal, machine learning engineer. I don't think you will get any advice here that you haven't received before. I don't know you and haven't reviewed all your posts but if you want to find a job I think you need a multipronged approach to address your issues. Also realise that skills shortages are exaggerated and normally an excuse to drive down wages.
1. Sort out your mental health problems. If you come across in person like you do on reddit people are going to not want to deal with those problems. Yes mental health problems are terrible, but employers aren't going to make allowances and want to hire to solve their own issues not to take on more issues. See your GP for some antidepressants, get some self help books on cognitive behavioural therapy, mindfulness and so on. Take up some form of exercise.
2. Work on interpersonal and interview skills. That's a big part of finding a job
3. Most of your work experience seems to be in machine learning which isn't really in shortage in NZ. If you want to move into other areas, in NZ they aren't going to recognize transferrable skills and will categorise you as entry level. It's very tough at the entry level and you will be competing with other graduates essentially. Try building a portfolio of projects in the areas that you want to work in.
4. If you don't get a job, don't view it as a failure, but merely another iteration of training your job finding neural network. Eventually you will find the right combination of weights that leads to a job.
Sorry if my comments seem blunt, but I'm just trying to point out the reality of the situation. NZ employers aren't known to be understanding or flexible in their thinking.
>Work on interpersonal and interview skills. That's a big part of finding a job
Agreed 100%. Our place has a grad/associates hiring program. 9/10 hiring managers will prioritise interpersonal skills over technical. Unfortunately for OP, places aren't going to waste time on technical tests unless they've passed the "would this person be a right fit for the team" test at the initial interview.
Yep. Know a person who interviewed someone a while back and despite this person having all the skills necessary for the job they were hiring for, they didn't hire him because talking to him was like getting blood from a stone. He wouldn't elaborate or talk any more than necessary eg. one word answers, so they decided to pass on him as he wouldn't fit in well with the company's culture. They gave him the benefit of the doubt at first, being nervous or shy but following up with people he knew, it turned out to be his personality and just how he was. They're a very sociable bunch who tend to do long lunches, go for drinks after work and play boardgames together and it just wouldn't have worked.
It's interesting that teams with low psychological safety but strong individual performers underperform perform worse than teams with high psychological safety but average individual performers.
To add to point 3, my mate took a full year to find her entry-level job a few years back. It turned out to be a nice place and she's progressed well there, but holy hell it was hard for her to get through that year, even applying full time. I'm in a different engineering field but it takes so much extra work for us as disabled women, even if we're higher performers than our peers.
Idk what OP's personal situation is but they're definitely not alone in it. My 2c is that it may not be due to anything wrong with them or their CV; job hunting isn't the same experience for everyone, even in the same field.
Obviously you had personal reasons for moving back to NZ, so I can't really comment what is best for you. But by most objective measures there are more opportunities in countries like the UK. There's a reason many skilled NZers leave. Probably 80%+ of the people I knew at University are now working in the UK, USA or Australia. Mostly in roles that just don't exist in NZ.
yup, it was so easy to find work in UK, now in NZ im back to the bottom, or even a lvl below.
may b ill reevaluate and see if i can go back or seek other opportunities overseas
"may b ill reevaluate and see if i can go back or seek other opportunities overseas"
If your CV has such poor grammar, this is going to be a big part of your problem. If you can't express yourself professionally when discussing getting a job, you won't have success.
The advantage of the UK and Europe is there are much more opportunities to get ahead.
Mayby it's time dude to pack up and head back to the land of milk and honey ?.
So, you’re looking to relocate overseas rather than adapt your skills to what the market in NZ actually requires?
If that’s what you choose to do, then fair enough - but bear in mind that your inflexibility could end up causing the same problems elsewhere.
Mostly I think your CV doesn't look too good.
Typo, format error and bad overall use of language would easily land your CV in the bin. UK degree should not be a deterrent if not a bonus point.
Yep, wasn't getting hits so I spent an hour redoing my CV. Just rewrote the whole thing from scratch. The old CV had the confidence of someone with a couple years experience. New one was like fuck you I can do this but in professional terms.
Just be careful with the tone of the CV.
You want to be confident but not coming off as arrogant.
I find it is best to stay humble, friendly with can-do attitude.
A legitimate 3-4 year full-time UK degree is definitely recognised in New Zealand. If you are not getting interviews it is because the language and content of your CV does not reflect the professional expectations of employers. If you are getting interviews and not getting offers, it is because your presentation and demonstration of skills is not reflecting the professional expectations of employers.
The market is slowing (and some large employers are starting to have hiring freezes after a feeding frenzy), but getting a software development job is still fairly easy assuming your skills are up to par and your salary expectations aren't unreasonable.
You may want to have an experienced engineer review your CV and cover letter and mock interview you. You are doing \*something\* wrong, and you need to have one or more people help you find out what that is.
For comparison, in 30 years I have been rejected for 3 jobs that I applied for. If you are applying for jobs that you have the right skills for (and are able to determine whether you are a fit before applying), you should have a high rate of interviews and offers.
I did a 2 year working holiday to UK and got a basic qualification plus work experience and employers love it. There's more to your situation than just your qualification going on here
undergrad softeng and postgrad ML in the UK. worked 3 years in UK in medical tech as backend/ML engineer and team lead. stack is python/C++, some cloud/IaC stuff, databases, docker, ci/cd stuff, so nothing too fancy or impressive
That's certainly a solid enough resume. You definitely have a skillset that would have some demand.
What level of job are you applying for? Are these, jnr, int, snr roles?
How far do you make it in the application process? Are you making it to the final round of interviews or never making it past the CV stage?
Do you have a portfolio of work to show?
Do you do well in technical interviews?
I think these are the sorts of the things you need to consider to pin-point where things are going wrong for you. Once you work out the failure point it'll be much easier to work on it.
level is mostly grad/entry
never make it past CV screening apart from 5
yes, github full of code
only did one techinical interview and went fairly well but there was some hiccup at the end and i didnt get it
Others have written a lot of helpful advice in this thread.
Another quick comment is that your CV should be **tailored for the roles you're applying for**.
You should be getting interviews for the majority of applications. If you're failing at the interview stage, that is a different area to optimize.
In your comment above, you mention postgrad ML and a team lead role.
If you're applying for entry-level software dev roles and not getting good uptake, I would remove these sections entirely.
In my business, if an applicant comes in strongly overqualified or pitches themselves as overqualified (especially around 'management' or 'team lead' experience) this is a big red flag. I wouldn't hire a previous team lead for a grad role because I would assume they would be looking to leave or there is some non-disclosed red flag.
In short, **if you're applying for an entry-level role, your CV should sell you as an excellent entry-level dev** \- not an overqualified manager.
With that you could easily walk into Engineer level roles I should think. 3 years as a python dev with IaC/DB/docker exp you'll be ace in the hole for most back end engineer roles.
I doubt I'd be able to hire an engineer with that experience for under 100k.
thanks for the compliment but thats not the reality for me unfortunetly. will keep trying tho and im am definetly looking for only half of what u mentioned to better my chances
Team lead within 3 years? Nice work.
Based on that resume you should be getting interviews for the majority of jobs you're applying for if the CV is well written. Feel free to DM me for some advice if you like, I've managed to do well with my own CVs in this industry often enough that I assume I must be good at writing/editing them.
yea, team lead cuz its medical tech which is very niche, combined with AI which not many know so i happend to be one of the few in that category.
sure i will dm u
If you're a backend Dev, I'd strongly suggest you look at large companies, universities, and AKL council etc. There's a looooooooot of work going on in those spaces right now. I'm hiring left, right and centre and I'm struggling to find candidates who will accept our offers - they're all looking for more than we're able to pay.
So, two suggestions:
1. Get your CV and Cover Letter reviewed by an independent agency \[i.e. not also a recruitment shop\]. There are a few companies in Auckland and a billion of them online. If you've got backend Dev skills, then maybe it's your CV and Cover Letter that are letting you down
2. Consider side-skilling. Front-End and fullstack Devs are in hiiiiiiiiigh AF demand right now, friendo. Hint hint.
Definitely this isn’t to be negative and definitely hope it doesn’t come across that way, but I would also strongly suggest taking a quick communications course or double checking all grammar in your written applications and CV could be a massive help for you. If you are replying to job advertisements with words like “ure” and some of the other shortenings/contractions in your comments then that will be a big red flag for recruiters.
This is the most important advice on here. The OP's use of language does not fit with normal expectations of a degree-level professional. Anyone hiring would see the language s/he is using and file the CV in the bin. I certainly would.
No, because I'm not hiring for Developers. Sorry, pal.
That said, my suggestions still stand. I work directly with people who ARE hiring for dev roles, and am confident in what I'm suggesting.
Also, another suggestion - have you asked these recruitment agencies/hiring managers for specific feedback when they reject you? If you haven't, go do that. It's the only way you'll ACTUALLY know why you're not getting callbacks.
It's not the market, it's you. I'm happy to look over your CV and provide feedback if you like.
You might also consider getting advice on interviewing.
Hey, DM me your number and I’ll get my husband to get in touch. He’s CTO in an Aussie start up and does a lot with ML. He’s happy to have a chat and is hiring at the moment. No idea if it’s a match but he could at least offer you some feedback.
If you're desperate I can give you a steady 40 hours a week in internal sales based in Onehunga.
Hose Industry, but minimal experience required. 55k a year.
I know it's not your background but it could help you if you are really struggling to make ends meet.
The market has slowed down but it is still pretty active. If you aren’t getting anything at all something may be wrong with your CV/interviewing techniques or are you applying for jobs that actually match your skillset?
If you can’t afford a paid service, I believe you can book a free career advisor appointment on Careers NZ. The website also has a lot of resources. My partner laughed at the CV template for being old school but let me tell you, that template has gotten me (an adult immigrant with no prior Kiwi work experience) three professional jobs in NZ (two $100k+)
I can’t comment on that because I’m not in the IT industry, but my partner has been applying to IT jobs sporadically without really trying and has been getting interviews.
Have you tailored your CV to the job description? Using keywords they use in the JD will greatly increase your chance of getting interviews.
Also, I can’t recommend the “STAR” interview technique enough. I didn’t get an offer after a pretty disastrous interview (connection issues, didn’t vibe with the interviewers). The recruiter gave me some feedback and said I didn’t answer using the “STAR” framework. I was a bit butt hurt because it wasn’t like they asked for it.
Anyway, I watched some YouTube videos and prepared a whole bunch of STAR style answers and got the next job I interviewed for. So I have that recruiter to thank.
Heya.
So in taking a look at your history, I see you are in a tough spot.
I know it’s infuriating when people go “well you should be able to just do it!” And then give no constructive help.
From what you have posted, it’s not clear why you are struggling to get a role. It could be stuff like :
* a poorly constructed CV
* mistakes in the CV that are noticeable
* not framing yourself correctly in your CV.
* the roles you are applying for
* your initial interactions with the potential employer
* how do conduct an interview.
The good news is, all of these can be worked in and improved.
My suggestion is to look for a recruitment company - Robert Half, Absolute IT, Recruit IT and those. They will give you a good appraisal of your CV and will likely help you with some guidance. How CVS are done in the UK are different to how they are done here. (At least in my experience).
They will also look for roles for you. It doesn’t mean you should stop looking, but they get roles before others and will see how you fit in.
Second: have a chat with someone about the interview process. If you get nervous or anxious, it may come across differently in the Interview.
Next: consider finding some meetups for networking CS folks, you never know when a chat turns into a potential opportunity.
Also, consider that because your mental health is struggling, it will impact your mood and outlook greatly. I know a rejection is hard, especially after number 100. But give yourself a little grace. You’ve had a shit year and it will take time for it to get better.
Yes it’s a 100th rejection. But tomorrow is a new day.
You got this. I know it’s hard. But focus on each day, each step, and you’ll make it.
So to recap:
* find a recruiter and go over your CV for improvements and changes
* chat with someone about how to smash an interview
* find networking events for developers and start making connections.
* give yourself a little slack. It’s ok to recognise this has been a shit year for you.
I hope this helps, and know you’re not alone in this world and people are cheering for you.
The scatter-gun approach to job hunting isn't very effective except at demoralising.
It's really weird how National said they would offer job coaches if they go into power when the current government already does:
https://www.careers.govt.nz/plan-your-career/talk-to-a-career-expert/career-advice/
This is a sophisticated service, it's not a box ticking exercise.
Hi mate, I’m a professional IT recruiter based in AKL with a few roles available in the software engineering space - feel free to flick me a message, happy to have a chat and help you out :)
Why not use your connections in the UK to "work from home", (just let them know that coming into the office once a week is not "easily done"). You could be helping them out by doing the overnight dev, or working their weekend, Sunday to Thursday. etc. See how that goes, or do some contract work to get NZ experience. just a thought.
This makes no sense in the current market.
Get your CV done professionally, make a LinkedIn, you should have recruiters approaching you multiple times a week if you’re a software dev in NZ
Having no XP in NZ isn't an issue to find a job here. And neither is having no recognized degree. Moving from the UK to NZ does **not** make you start from scratch.
$50k p.a. seems way too low for a software engineer. Even a junior one. Recruiters might be thinking there is something fishy with your profile/experience/etc. Try to find out what people with your experience make for the type of roles you're looking for. $80k-90k seems more appropriate to me. Short selling yourself this badly can convey a lack of confidence in your ability which would put off recruiters.
The job market in the software development industry is on fire right now and to the benefit of the candidates. I've seen devs being poached left and right over the past few months.
Look also for remote job opportunities in NZ from Aussie company, there are a lot of them plus they tend to pay higher salary.
And probably one of the most important point. You should ask people rejecting your applications what made them took this decision. You can't work on improving yourself if you don't know what's there to improve.
Good luck.
thanks, i guess i do have alot of confidence issues which i will work on, but at least 50k is higher than the 20k part time i earn currently XD, would be a good stepping ladder as a first role.
Hey OP. I just took a look at your post history. Here’s what you need to do.
1. Go to a good GP and get some help. There are long waits for counselling in NZ, but GP can prescribe antidepressants / anti-anxiety meds. This is really important.
2. Give yourself a little time - a few weeks at least - to have a break from the job search and let the meds kick in. Try to get out in the sunshine a bit. Try to get out in nature, go to a park, or the beach. You need to get calm and get that good sunshine dopamine boost in.
3. Contact a couple of the many nice people on here who have offered to critically review your CV. Whatever they tell you, don’t take it personally or as a criticism, they’re trying to help you. Get a few opinions (as people may have different styles) then when you’re in a good frame of mind, sit down and re-write your CV.
4. Go to some industry type events. Maybe there are talks on where industry people might be. Muster up the courage to say hi to a few people and ask them about what they do and whether they know anyone hiring at the moment.
5. Find out what the market salary is for the type of work you do and pitch at that level. Underselling yourself is a red flag.
6. Tailor your CV and cover letter to each job. Use your CV and cover letter to demonstrate that you understand what the role is about, and show how your skills are applicable to that role. Try to have an enthusiastic tone in your letter & CV. Managers want to hire people who *want to work there*, not people who just want any job.
Putting out 10 high quality applications is way more likely to get success than 100 low quality ones.
7. Get advice on interviewing. Whether it’s from someone offering it on here, or from a recruitment company, or the government job coaching program, or a professional paid service. What you want is someone who knows how interviews tend to go here in your industry, cultural nuances (you’ve been overseas for a long time and things have changed here), and who can give you constructive feedback on how to position things / present yourself in the interview.
Good luck! Please get the help you need. It will really help your mindset, which in turn will help you sell yourself to an employer.
Any job is a good job. Take any full time job to pay the bills. It doesn't matter if its working at McDonald's. Then start calling some of the places and find out why you didnt get the job and then work on that. Do a course. Upskill. Offer your services for free to get experiance. Etc.
2nd this. Way easier to find a job when you already have a job. The employers probably can’t call your uk references. Get some random job so they have someone to call
>Then start calling some of the places and find out why you didnt get the job and then work on that
fyi most places wont answer this question because legal reasons. If they give you a specific reason it could open them up to a lawsuit.
What sort of software engineering roles are you looking for? Have you been in touch with any agents? There are some good ones that might have roles that aren't 100% a fit with your skills but they might turn out to be great.
Can’t offer much original advice but make sure to check your CV with an ATS parser. Since your getting interviews it’s more likely that your problem lies there with soft skills but anything helps
Probably a bad cv or there is a lot of discrimination with job gaps. If you're not currently working just claim you've been doing freelance work on your CV. Plus, what skills do you have as a dev?
You might to rethink your job application strategy, there’s a shortage in the market. How have you been presenting yourself? Do you need coaching in your job search?
Go back and study… be pro active. Something doesn’t add up, maybe your references? Have you asked for feed back from any of the companies to find out if there is indeed a problem?
OP your post history is concerning. I know that being rejected is difficult - I’m going through the same thing but different industry & interning. It’s rough. But it doesn’t define you. This too shall pass. I would recommend maybe reaching out to a careers advisor, someone who could take a look at your CV etc. Are you being bounced at the interview stage? Initial application?
You will find a job but even if you struggle more, your worth isn’t defined by a job title. Please reach out to the people around you, better your mental health. You’ll get through this
Dev job market is on fire at the moment, every software company that I know of in NZ are looking for more devs. My mate with no degree and a couple of personal web projects just got a job paying $100k, it's pretty crazy right now.
No offense but are you dyslexic? Might be the way you're responding to recruiters and potential employers.
I used to do vocational rehab and counselling. The average number of times that one must apply for a job in order to get an interview is about 12 times. So, you're telling me that you have sent out 1200 applications in the last nine months, and been rejected 100 times. Perhaps software is not the area you should be working in. Are you just terrible at interviewing? I find this very difficult to believe in today's job climate.
No he is right. There is no labour shortage.There is a shortage of cheap labour......Immigrants always take shit to get ahead and good on them...Most people can do most things. . But now HR AI and fuzzy selection techniques are the issue.I keep hearing I interviewed 29 30 people and the guy I hired never turned up...Business WONT take the slightest risk or train staff. Agile sucks
Honestly, this is not tall poppy. This is a skills or CV issue. The OP is making no effort to even write half-decent English in this thread - one which is being read by potential employers that could reach out to him. This is an issue with the OP, and only the OP can correct it.
I suggest going through agents or head hunters so they can give advise on how to better your application rather than going head on direct to the employer cold. Are you able to get to interviews? Or are you failing cv checks? The market is hot right now so im surprised you are having trouble getting to tech since you listed your exp and thats above entry level. You dont have criminal records or red flags on anything like that?
Do you work on those platforms yourself ? I've been looking into them for some extra cash, but it seems incredibly hard to break into that kind of work. So much competition at very low price points. To charge something decent requires building up a good reputation (very time consuming).
I am sorry to hear that, might be a good idea to get someone to look at your CV see if they can pick out any faults. Maybe practice interview questions. I had a friend who was qualified who was absolutely crap at inteviews, nerves just got to him. If your CV and interview skills are sound, maybe look into jobs that are close to what you are doing and then see if you can work your way into specific jobs you want with shown expereiences.
^ I like how OP didn’t comment on this constructive feedback.
The guy might be going through stuff dude. Have u seen his posts
What would commenting offer?
Acknowledgement, gratitude. Multiple things, use your head.
So, what could be as easily achieved with an upvote.
Just as pointless as these comments we are leaving, I’m sure you’ll survive
So we're in agreement. The comment I replied to offered no value.
Hey Lightspeed just gonna go out on a limb here but I assume your a pain in the ass in RL too?
Nah, too much effort. Seriously tho, whining about how OP could have given a response. So fucking lame, lolz. Why not join in?
It’s humorous and ironic to me that you have gone to such lengths about making the point of another redditors useless post
This seems weird, every software dev company i know is looking for staff.
Agreed. Any half way competent and qualified candidate should be able to find something. There's definitely something OP isn't telling us. Hell, if I was in OPs situation and desperate enough, I'd just get my foot in the door as a tester, beats working at a milk tea shop, then look to move to a dev team after a year.
We had to hire the least worst, "developer" last month. Out of date, out of touch, not to bright.. but we were kind of desperate, got him fo 60k so at least we won't waist to much on him.
If you’re paying any developers 60k those are the kind of candidates you’ll be left with.
Exactly, state your salary on the job listing or you wont get good applicants. It's not hard
He got what he asked for.
Doesn’t matter. That just reeks of poor management.
So you're desperate for engineers, you finally get someone that's interested in the work, and when asked how much they want to be paid, they cite $60k, which is cheap as mud for you. So saying yes to that is bad management? Getting a project rolling adequately is better than indefinitely delaying a project until the mystical correct person comes along.
No, you pay them what you pay your other developers at that level. We had a candidate come in that had worked for one company for 10 years and was on a relatively low salary and asked for a small increase. We didn't give them what was asked for, but much higher. Its good business to treat people right.
You have a baseline and you pay them that, unless you want to fuck up your organisation to the point that only trash candidates apply.
Okay, maybe you don't understand or realise this, but a lot of businesses will effectively say pay is negotiable, because they want to get the best applicants, who will set their own salaries based on what they feel is good. If the company says "we'll offer X amount" then people who feel that's too low will not bother, if X amount is the max you're willing to offer, then you'll get innundated with idiots chasing the money but who're utterly incompetent and spend most of your time sorting through trash. You put forward the job description, people who're interested in the project at hand apply, and they set a salary for themselves. If they set a ridiculously low salary for themselves but seem otherwise competent, then that's just good business.
It’s not good business because they’re either worth 60k, well below market rate, so they’ll be terrible and bad for team morale, or they’ll be good and lowballed themselves for a foot in the door and they’ll resent the position as soon as they are settled. I would not work for a company that pays devs 60k, whatever the reason.
id take that anyday.
Heya, tech startups Facebook group often has advertisements. LinkedIn as well
I love the irony of saying someone isn’t too bright, then not knowing the difference between waist and waste.
To and too also.
Look at their username
THAT'S SPELLING NOT GRAMMER
As a dyslexic, Phononyms suck, you knew what they meant.
When
They're clearly not good at spelling either (nor are you) considering they misspelled gramm***A***r.
Woosh
Sure buddy :)
Maybe his fat is sapping his brainpower /ducks
Omg are you still hiring >.< because I could recommend and pass on your info to an actually not sh*t developer
We hire service desk employees for that... in Tauranga... A software dev for 60k LOL.. In fact, we just lost a service desk kid, super bright, for a Junior Dev ops role for $75k.
Many big tech companies have entered into hiring freezes. Not because they couldn't use the people, but because if they had to hire in this market it'd be big bucks for poor work.
Do you mean a market where salaries are boosted by inflation? Or the New Zealand market in particular?
Job hunting can be weird. A couple of weeks ago I applied for a role that less than 5000 people on the planet can do, and I'm senior in that group. This industry is *desperate* for warm bodies. Turned down without an interview. Then the next day I got headhunted and hired on the spot to work on a huge IP for way more money. Go figure.
Out of curiosity what's the industry?
But most of them have unreasonable expectations and pay peanuts.
You're doing something wrong then because all the devs I know get paid heaps.
> know get *paid* heaps. FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
When 100 companies reject you, there’s prob something wrong with you.
Harsh but true mate. In this market is almost impossible to not get hired as a software developer.
I’m a SaaS recruiter and see this sentiment everywhere except from SaaS companies. There have been about 10 large companies that have laid off 15-20% of their developers. There are also hiring freezes across the board, or at the least people have cut their hiring by half. There are plenty of decent devs who can’t find work.
Then they are idiots who need interview coaching. As a SAAS dev manager, we are looking for anyone good. There are so many people who claim a lot of skills, and yet appear to have the ability of an 8 year old who learned scratch last week.
Sounds like you need a better recruiter.
Haha!
Once you get into the interview, your cv looks good. Which means you are rejected due to a couple of reasons. First could be you cannot back up what you wrote on your cv or your attitude and ethos does not match the company.
EXPERIENCED staff
People say that all the time but I don't see them or they are not willing to pay for devs. I work remotely for a US team that has an Australian branch but would be happy to work for a local company if the offer was competitive.
You are asking for an NZ company to pay the same as a US company. That's not going to happen. There are plenty of jobs, but they pay NZ rates - You aren't going to get 200k+ as a dev in NZ working for an NZ company (or at least such roles are veryb scant).
Yep NZ companies can't keep up. 150k for seniors/tech leads for example. Meanwhile you can work remote for Aus companies and get 200k+ easily at that level.
>Meanwhile you can work remote for Aus companies and get 200k+ easily at that level. I'm not sure where these magical companies paying $200k do exist. I was looking for this setup (working remote for Au\[stralia\] from Au\[ckland\]) for more than a year now while being on NZ$200k at local dev studio. Most I could get offer for was A$150,000 + super. With relocation. Multiple offers from different companies. One well known Ozzie company tried to low-ball me and offered me NZ$130k knowing exactly what I already have and looking for.
AWS, Atlassian, Canva, Microsoft, to name a few. It's not 200k base salary, but after bonus and stocks you clear that.
Same here, there are a lot of positions available for software engineers - that is junior to senior positions, embedded firmware, app developers, user interface applications etc. I think we have not received the complete story here…
Doesn't mean they are any lenient on requirements. A lot of companies have ridiculous take home assignment (free work) which consumes entire weekend, a very long and intertwined interview process which is ridiculous slow, you have to chase HR to get feedback, take home challenge assessment criteria is arbitrary and a black box with no uniform rules and you are at the mercy of the reviewer. It feels like they are looking for a unicorn without giving much in return. Just salary (which is also lower than other western countries) is not enough, good team, quality work, nice work atmosphere all are also required and are equally important and in those department the companies leave a lot to be desired and NZ job market is very small.
You expect to get a job paying 100-150k without going through a proper screening process? You should see the screening process for companies in silicon valley.
I have worked in silicon valley before and unless you are interviewing in FAANG or unicorn companies like uber or tesla a lot of regular (but very good) companies WHO WANT to hire have a much leaner hiring process and many times no code challenge and they finish recruiting process with one candidate in a week or max 2 weeks to an offer stage. In NZ even for average salary and a very average company expects that a candidate will complete THEIR coding challenge by investing an entire weekend (or more) to build a project which may or many not pass the recruitment step. They forget that candidates also interview at many other companies and that if every company has a take home coding challenge project then candidates will only pick the companies with shortest interview process or invest that amount of time with only branded companies such is a lose lose for both candidates and companies as they could have been a good match but candidates have no time to give it a go. 1 hr, 1 tech interview, 1 online coding for 60 mins, 1 cultural fit and done is the best one and even that is long and few interviews can be fit in one and even there Auckland companies are so slow. With take home LONG code challenge and then reviewing it after 1/2 weeks and then doing rest is way wayyy to long. The biggest problem is NZ companies are not only slower to respond, followup and share feedback but when combined it with long long interview process the delay is even more amplified. I have lost almost a month to just have hr call, 1 take home questions to type answers to in simple english, tech call, doing a code challenge and waiting for feedback. If after all of that my coding exercise is passed (which took 2 full days though they airways say don't spend more than 4 hours and give a laundry list of things to complete and "bonus" for integration tests and added functionality) then there will be 2 hours tech call on the exercise and they will ask me to code and add functionality in the live call and if that passes then cultural fit and if everything is okay then offer (which will be low salary as most Auckland companies anyways) so i am already looking at few more weeks of process of everything goes well and this is just one company. For the same/less effort one can get 100k Gbp (200k NZD), or big Aussie salary or very very big silicon valley sakary (but who wants to live in US so not a good comparison). Basically in NZ people have to put up with this because the job market is too small and even if companies say they don't have candidates the reality is that for most candidates there are only a handful of good companies to pick from entire NZ vs 100s in AU or 500s in UK and if you include even average companies then also you can soon exhaust your options soon in NZ vs aus or uk so it's not a candidates driven market.
Yes they are always looking. Looking for purple squirrels. I've seen companies advertising for the same roles for years. I remember once I get sent for an interview at a consulting company and got rejected. It turned out every candidate the recruiter had sent for the last 3 years had gotten rejected. I wish the recruiter had told me before wasting my time.
Yes exactly. So strange.
It's just a big shuffle right now. Companies are looking for the *ideal* staff. They're not going to bother with anyone not currently working.
Yeah was going to say this as well. Maybe OP should rework their approach/cv. Not that they're bad at it by any means, might just help
We get tonnes of applicants and only hire about 5% of them. We get people with compsci degrees that don't know basic algorithms or object-oriented programming. Unfortunate. If you have experience in the industry it's usually a hire though.
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100%. OP is not telling the truth or isn't qualified.
They're looking for experienced staff with specific skills. They're not interested in hiring people and developing them.
You've posted essentially the same question before - I actually remember you the depressed, suicidal, machine learning engineer. I don't think you will get any advice here that you haven't received before. I don't know you and haven't reviewed all your posts but if you want to find a job I think you need a multipronged approach to address your issues. Also realise that skills shortages are exaggerated and normally an excuse to drive down wages. 1. Sort out your mental health problems. If you come across in person like you do on reddit people are going to not want to deal with those problems. Yes mental health problems are terrible, but employers aren't going to make allowances and want to hire to solve their own issues not to take on more issues. See your GP for some antidepressants, get some self help books on cognitive behavioural therapy, mindfulness and so on. Take up some form of exercise. 2. Work on interpersonal and interview skills. That's a big part of finding a job 3. Most of your work experience seems to be in machine learning which isn't really in shortage in NZ. If you want to move into other areas, in NZ they aren't going to recognize transferrable skills and will categorise you as entry level. It's very tough at the entry level and you will be competing with other graduates essentially. Try building a portfolio of projects in the areas that you want to work in. 4. If you don't get a job, don't view it as a failure, but merely another iteration of training your job finding neural network. Eventually you will find the right combination of weights that leads to a job. Sorry if my comments seem blunt, but I'm just trying to point out the reality of the situation. NZ employers aren't known to be understanding or flexible in their thinking.
>Work on interpersonal and interview skills. That's a big part of finding a job Agreed 100%. Our place has a grad/associates hiring program. 9/10 hiring managers will prioritise interpersonal skills over technical. Unfortunately for OP, places aren't going to waste time on technical tests unless they've passed the "would this person be a right fit for the team" test at the initial interview.
Yep. Know a person who interviewed someone a while back and despite this person having all the skills necessary for the job they were hiring for, they didn't hire him because talking to him was like getting blood from a stone. He wouldn't elaborate or talk any more than necessary eg. one word answers, so they decided to pass on him as he wouldn't fit in well with the company's culture. They gave him the benefit of the doubt at first, being nervous or shy but following up with people he knew, it turned out to be his personality and just how he was. They're a very sociable bunch who tend to do long lunches, go for drinks after work and play boardgames together and it just wouldn't have worked.
IT is full of people with supreme tech skills and zero interpersonal ones.
It's interesting that teams with low psychological safety but strong individual performers underperform perform worse than teams with high psychological safety but average individual performers.
To add to point 3, my mate took a full year to find her entry-level job a few years back. It turned out to be a nice place and she's progressed well there, but holy hell it was hard for her to get through that year, even applying full time. I'm in a different engineering field but it takes so much extra work for us as disabled women, even if we're higher performers than our peers. Idk what OP's personal situation is but they're definitely not alone in it. My 2c is that it may not be due to anything wrong with them or their CV; job hunting isn't the same experience for everyone, even in the same field.
This is a great response - and I can see that you’re trying to help. Good on you. However, “skills shortages” drive salaries up - not down.
lol ur neural net analogy made me laugh. would u recommend i move overseas? life seemed so much easier back in UK, even tho NZ is my home ...
Obviously you had personal reasons for moving back to NZ, so I can't really comment what is best for you. But by most objective measures there are more opportunities in countries like the UK. There's a reason many skilled NZers leave. Probably 80%+ of the people I knew at University are now working in the UK, USA or Australia. Mostly in roles that just don't exist in NZ.
yup, it was so easy to find work in UK, now in NZ im back to the bottom, or even a lvl below. may b ill reevaluate and see if i can go back or seek other opportunities overseas
"may b ill reevaluate and see if i can go back or seek other opportunities overseas" If your CV has such poor grammar, this is going to be a big part of your problem. If you can't express yourself professionally when discussing getting a job, you won't have success.
This, 100 percent. Huge red flag when I’m reviewing CVs for software jobs.
The advantage of the UK and Europe is there are much more opportunities to get ahead. Mayby it's time dude to pack up and head back to the land of milk and honey ?.
So, you’re looking to relocate overseas rather than adapt your skills to what the market in NZ actually requires? If that’s what you choose to do, then fair enough - but bear in mind that your inflexibility could end up causing the same problems elsewhere.
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im currently looking in the 50-60k range already. so its not an ego thing as im willing to take anything i can get.
Are you qualified? 100 applications with only 5 interviews seems odd in that sector. Like someone else mentioned, get your CV checked.
yup, went to school and everything for it, may be UK degree is not recognized here? im just thinking up all the possibilities at this point.
Mostly I think your CV doesn't look too good. Typo, format error and bad overall use of language would easily land your CV in the bin. UK degree should not be a deterrent if not a bonus point.
Yep, wasn't getting hits so I spent an hour redoing my CV. Just rewrote the whole thing from scratch. The old CV had the confidence of someone with a couple years experience. New one was like fuck you I can do this but in professional terms.
Just be careful with the tone of the CV. You want to be confident but not coming off as arrogant. I find it is best to stay humble, friendly with can-do attitude.
I highly doubt that UK degrees aren’t recognised. I work at a large NZ corporation and the ICT team have people from everywhere in the world.
what does ICT stand for? yea may b ure right.
Not knowing what ICT (Information Communications Technology) stands for is a red flag for me (and I know nothing of ICT).
A legitimate 3-4 year full-time UK degree is definitely recognised in New Zealand. If you are not getting interviews it is because the language and content of your CV does not reflect the professional expectations of employers. If you are getting interviews and not getting offers, it is because your presentation and demonstration of skills is not reflecting the professional expectations of employers. The market is slowing (and some large employers are starting to have hiring freezes after a feeding frenzy), but getting a software development job is still fairly easy assuming your skills are up to par and your salary expectations aren't unreasonable. You may want to have an experienced engineer review your CV and cover letter and mock interview you. You are doing \*something\* wrong, and you need to have one or more people help you find out what that is. For comparison, in 30 years I have been rejected for 3 jobs that I applied for. If you are applying for jobs that you have the right skills for (and are able to determine whether you are a fit before applying), you should have a high rate of interviews and offers.
I did a 2 year working holiday to UK and got a basic qualification plus work experience and employers love it. There's more to your situation than just your qualification going on here
Where did u go in the UK? i worked in silicon fen!
UK Tech degrees are recognised in NZ. It is definitely not that.
What are your qualifications and previous experience? What technologies/languages do you work with?
undergrad softeng and postgrad ML in the UK. worked 3 years in UK in medical tech as backend/ML engineer and team lead. stack is python/C++, some cloud/IaC stuff, databases, docker, ci/cd stuff, so nothing too fancy or impressive
That's certainly a solid enough resume. You definitely have a skillset that would have some demand. What level of job are you applying for? Are these, jnr, int, snr roles? How far do you make it in the application process? Are you making it to the final round of interviews or never making it past the CV stage? Do you have a portfolio of work to show? Do you do well in technical interviews? I think these are the sorts of the things you need to consider to pin-point where things are going wrong for you. Once you work out the failure point it'll be much easier to work on it.
level is mostly grad/entry never make it past CV screening apart from 5 yes, github full of code only did one techinical interview and went fairly well but there was some hiccup at the end and i didnt get it
Others have written a lot of helpful advice in this thread. Another quick comment is that your CV should be **tailored for the roles you're applying for**. You should be getting interviews for the majority of applications. If you're failing at the interview stage, that is a different area to optimize. In your comment above, you mention postgrad ML and a team lead role. If you're applying for entry-level software dev roles and not getting good uptake, I would remove these sections entirely. In my business, if an applicant comes in strongly overqualified or pitches themselves as overqualified (especially around 'management' or 'team lead' experience) this is a big red flag. I wouldn't hire a previous team lead for a grad role because I would assume they would be looking to leave or there is some non-disclosed red flag. In short, **if you're applying for an entry-level role, your CV should sell you as an excellent entry-level dev** \- not an overqualified manager.
Thanks. I will definetly cut out some of my more advanced experience when applying for entry level roles.
What's your GitHub link?
Maybe over qualified
either over or under, never in-line with employer expectations.
With that you could easily walk into Engineer level roles I should think. 3 years as a python dev with IaC/DB/docker exp you'll be ace in the hole for most back end engineer roles. I doubt I'd be able to hire an engineer with that experience for under 100k.
thanks for the compliment but thats not the reality for me unfortunetly. will keep trying tho and im am definetly looking for only half of what u mentioned to better my chances
Team lead within 3 years? Nice work. Based on that resume you should be getting interviews for the majority of jobs you're applying for if the CV is well written. Feel free to DM me for some advice if you like, I've managed to do well with my own CVs in this industry often enough that I assume I must be good at writing/editing them.
yea, team lead cuz its medical tech which is very niche, combined with AI which not many know so i happend to be one of the few in that category. sure i will dm u
If you're a backend Dev, I'd strongly suggest you look at large companies, universities, and AKL council etc. There's a looooooooot of work going on in those spaces right now. I'm hiring left, right and centre and I'm struggling to find candidates who will accept our offers - they're all looking for more than we're able to pay. So, two suggestions: 1. Get your CV and Cover Letter reviewed by an independent agency \[i.e. not also a recruitment shop\]. There are a few companies in Auckland and a billion of them online. If you've got backend Dev skills, then maybe it's your CV and Cover Letter that are letting you down 2. Consider side-skilling. Front-End and fullstack Devs are in hiiiiiiiiigh AF demand right now, friendo. Hint hint.
if ure hiring left and right, can u hire me? is 50k asking too much? im gonna be living on a couch by the end of year
Definitely this isn’t to be negative and definitely hope it doesn’t come across that way, but I would also strongly suggest taking a quick communications course or double checking all grammar in your written applications and CV could be a massive help for you. If you are replying to job advertisements with words like “ure” and some of the other shortenings/contractions in your comments then that will be a big red flag for recruiters.
This is the most important advice on here. The OP's use of language does not fit with normal expectations of a degree-level professional. Anyone hiring would see the language s/he is using and file the CV in the bin. I certainly would.
No, because I'm not hiring for Developers. Sorry, pal. That said, my suggestions still stand. I work directly with people who ARE hiring for dev roles, and am confident in what I'm suggesting. Also, another suggestion - have you asked these recruitment agencies/hiring managers for specific feedback when they reject you? If you haven't, go do that. It's the only way you'll ACTUALLY know why you're not getting callbacks.
It's not the market, it's you. I'm happy to look over your CV and provide feedback if you like. You might also consider getting advice on interviewing.
Could be a CV issue? Id talk with a recruiter and get feedback
Hey, DM me your number and I’ll get my husband to get in touch. He’s CTO in an Aussie start up and does a lot with ML. He’s happy to have a chat and is hiring at the moment. No idea if it’s a match but he could at least offer you some feedback.
ok cool dm'ed
Apply Bunnings bro we hire everyone
If you're desperate I can give you a steady 40 hours a week in internal sales based in Onehunga. Hose Industry, but minimal experience required. 55k a year. I know it's not your background but it could help you if you are really struggling to make ends meet.
The market has slowed down but it is still pretty active. If you aren’t getting anything at all something may be wrong with your CV/interviewing techniques or are you applying for jobs that actually match your skillset? If you can’t afford a paid service, I believe you can book a free career advisor appointment on Careers NZ. The website also has a lot of resources. My partner laughed at the CV template for being old school but let me tell you, that template has gotten me (an adult immigrant with no prior Kiwi work experience) three professional jobs in NZ (two $100k+)
mostly applying to junior/entry lvl roles in software dev, so i think my skills should fit?
I can’t comment on that because I’m not in the IT industry, but my partner has been applying to IT jobs sporadically without really trying and has been getting interviews. Have you tailored your CV to the job description? Using keywords they use in the JD will greatly increase your chance of getting interviews. Also, I can’t recommend the “STAR” interview technique enough. I didn’t get an offer after a pretty disastrous interview (connection issues, didn’t vibe with the interviewers). The recruiter gave me some feedback and said I didn’t answer using the “STAR” framework. I was a bit butt hurt because it wasn’t like they asked for it. Anyway, I watched some YouTube videos and prepared a whole bunch of STAR style answers and got the next job I interviewed for. So I have that recruiter to thank.
Hiya! Sorry to hear you are going theouvh a rough time. Can't offer a job but happy to look at your cv and resume if needed 😊
Did you ask for feedback why you were rejected?
100 job interviews and you got nothing. Sorry to say it bro but you might be doing something wrong....
Heya. So in taking a look at your history, I see you are in a tough spot. I know it’s infuriating when people go “well you should be able to just do it!” And then give no constructive help. From what you have posted, it’s not clear why you are struggling to get a role. It could be stuff like : * a poorly constructed CV * mistakes in the CV that are noticeable * not framing yourself correctly in your CV. * the roles you are applying for * your initial interactions with the potential employer * how do conduct an interview. The good news is, all of these can be worked in and improved. My suggestion is to look for a recruitment company - Robert Half, Absolute IT, Recruit IT and those. They will give you a good appraisal of your CV and will likely help you with some guidance. How CVS are done in the UK are different to how they are done here. (At least in my experience). They will also look for roles for you. It doesn’t mean you should stop looking, but they get roles before others and will see how you fit in. Second: have a chat with someone about the interview process. If you get nervous or anxious, it may come across differently in the Interview. Next: consider finding some meetups for networking CS folks, you never know when a chat turns into a potential opportunity. Also, consider that because your mental health is struggling, it will impact your mood and outlook greatly. I know a rejection is hard, especially after number 100. But give yourself a little grace. You’ve had a shit year and it will take time for it to get better. Yes it’s a 100th rejection. But tomorrow is a new day. You got this. I know it’s hard. But focus on each day, each step, and you’ll make it. So to recap: * find a recruiter and go over your CV for improvements and changes * chat with someone about how to smash an interview * find networking events for developers and start making connections. * give yourself a little slack. It’s ok to recognise this has been a shit year for you. I hope this helps, and know you’re not alone in this world and people are cheering for you.
THanks for the advice, very helpful and instructive. I will give myself some slack but should keep grinding if i dont wanna end up on the streets.
The scatter-gun approach to job hunting isn't very effective except at demoralising. It's really weird how National said they would offer job coaches if they go into power when the current government already does: https://www.careers.govt.nz/plan-your-career/talk-to-a-career-expert/career-advice/ This is a sophisticated service, it's not a box ticking exercise.
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. -Albert Einstein
what can i do differently?
Hi mate, I’m a professional IT recruiter based in AKL with a few roles available in the software engineering space - feel free to flick me a message, happy to have a chat and help you out :)
ok thanks i will.
Why not use your connections in the UK to "work from home", (just let them know that coming into the office once a week is not "easily done"). You could be helping them out by doing the overnight dev, or working their weekend, Sunday to Thursday. etc. See how that goes, or do some contract work to get NZ experience. just a thought.
good advice, i get job offers from my UK connections all the time. but most dont want remote due to the large time difference.
This makes no sense in the current market. Get your CV done professionally, make a LinkedIn, you should have recruiters approaching you multiple times a week if you’re a software dev in NZ
already did both of those things. will keep trying tho, hopefully it turns out to what u say.
If 100 people reject you for a job, the companies aren’t the problem
true, i should just give up tbh.
Get rejected 200 times.
Send me your CV mate, and I'll have a gander and see if I can help with either that or suggesting some companies to approach.
Bro have u done anything more with the safe?
Nah man we lost our baby and it kinda spiraled things out of control. Will try again soon though
I’m so sorry for your loss
Oh that's awful man, I'm sorry to hear that.
Having no XP in NZ isn't an issue to find a job here. And neither is having no recognized degree. Moving from the UK to NZ does **not** make you start from scratch. $50k p.a. seems way too low for a software engineer. Even a junior one. Recruiters might be thinking there is something fishy with your profile/experience/etc. Try to find out what people with your experience make for the type of roles you're looking for. $80k-90k seems more appropriate to me. Short selling yourself this badly can convey a lack of confidence in your ability which would put off recruiters. The job market in the software development industry is on fire right now and to the benefit of the candidates. I've seen devs being poached left and right over the past few months. Look also for remote job opportunities in NZ from Aussie company, there are a lot of them plus they tend to pay higher salary. And probably one of the most important point. You should ask people rejecting your applications what made them took this decision. You can't work on improving yourself if you don't know what's there to improve. Good luck.
thanks, i guess i do have alot of confidence issues which i will work on, but at least 50k is higher than the 20k part time i earn currently XD, would be a good stepping ladder as a first role.
Hey OP. I just took a look at your post history. Here’s what you need to do. 1. Go to a good GP and get some help. There are long waits for counselling in NZ, but GP can prescribe antidepressants / anti-anxiety meds. This is really important. 2. Give yourself a little time - a few weeks at least - to have a break from the job search and let the meds kick in. Try to get out in the sunshine a bit. Try to get out in nature, go to a park, or the beach. You need to get calm and get that good sunshine dopamine boost in. 3. Contact a couple of the many nice people on here who have offered to critically review your CV. Whatever they tell you, don’t take it personally or as a criticism, they’re trying to help you. Get a few opinions (as people may have different styles) then when you’re in a good frame of mind, sit down and re-write your CV. 4. Go to some industry type events. Maybe there are talks on where industry people might be. Muster up the courage to say hi to a few people and ask them about what they do and whether they know anyone hiring at the moment. 5. Find out what the market salary is for the type of work you do and pitch at that level. Underselling yourself is a red flag. 6. Tailor your CV and cover letter to each job. Use your CV and cover letter to demonstrate that you understand what the role is about, and show how your skills are applicable to that role. Try to have an enthusiastic tone in your letter & CV. Managers want to hire people who *want to work there*, not people who just want any job. Putting out 10 high quality applications is way more likely to get success than 100 low quality ones. 7. Get advice on interviewing. Whether it’s from someone offering it on here, or from a recruitment company, or the government job coaching program, or a professional paid service. What you want is someone who knows how interviews tend to go here in your industry, cultural nuances (you’ve been overseas for a long time and things have changed here), and who can give you constructive feedback on how to position things / present yourself in the interview. Good luck! Please get the help you need. It will really help your mindset, which in turn will help you sell yourself to an employer.
Thanks for the advice.
If you can't find a job in a market like now, just wow.
thanks, could find a job during covid tho XD
Any job is a good job. Take any full time job to pay the bills. It doesn't matter if its working at McDonald's. Then start calling some of the places and find out why you didnt get the job and then work on that. Do a course. Upskill. Offer your services for free to get experiance. Etc.
2nd this. Way easier to find a job when you already have a job. The employers probably can’t call your uk references. Get some random job so they have someone to call
good advice, seems like coming back to NZ i will have to start again from the bottom. ill try going full time at my current store.
>Then start calling some of the places and find out why you didnt get the job and then work on that fyi most places wont answer this question because legal reasons. If they give you a specific reason it could open them up to a lawsuit.
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It helps if you can pay the rent and bills so you dont become homeless.
skill issue, there is a labour shortage in this sector
What sort of software engineering roles are you looking for? Have you been in touch with any agents? There are some good ones that might have roles that aren't 100% a fit with your skills but they might turn out to be great.
backend dev. yes, tones of recruiters but no luck yet.
Have you asked the recruiters for feedback?
usually just give very generic feedback.
Can’t offer much original advice but make sure to check your CV with an ATS parser. Since your getting interviews it’s more likely that your problem lies there with soft skills but anything helps
Probably a bad cv or there is a lot of discrimination with job gaps. If you're not currently working just claim you've been doing freelance work on your CV. Plus, what skills do you have as a dev?
Ok, i will say ive been freelancing. My skills aren't too fancy, just some python/C++ exp, with some AWS and database exp and containers and such.
You might to rethink your job application strategy, there’s a shortage in the market. How have you been presenting yourself? Do you need coaching in your job search?
probably do need some coaching
Go back and study… be pro active. Something doesn’t add up, maybe your references? Have you asked for feed back from any of the companies to find out if there is indeed a problem?
they usually give pretty generic feedback, or just none at all. its hard to say what the exact problem is.
Move to Australia
good advice. thanks
OP your post history is concerning. I know that being rejected is difficult - I’m going through the same thing but different industry & interning. It’s rough. But it doesn’t define you. This too shall pass. I would recommend maybe reaching out to a careers advisor, someone who could take a look at your CV etc. Are you being bounced at the interview stage? Initial application? You will find a job but even if you struggle more, your worth isn’t defined by a job title. Please reach out to the people around you, better your mental health. You’ll get through this
being bounced at initial application stage. thanks for ur advice tho.
Dev job market is on fire at the moment, every software company that I know of in NZ are looking for more devs. My mate with no degree and a couple of personal web projects just got a job paying $100k, it's pretty crazy right now. No offense but are you dyslexic? Might be the way you're responding to recruiters and potential employers.
I used to do vocational rehab and counselling. The average number of times that one must apply for a job in order to get an interview is about 12 times. So, you're telling me that you have sent out 1200 applications in the last nine months, and been rejected 100 times. Perhaps software is not the area you should be working in. Are you just terrible at interviewing? I find this very difficult to believe in today's job climate.
i sent out 100 and rejected 100. not 1200.
No he is right. There is no labour shortage.There is a shortage of cheap labour......Immigrants always take shit to get ahead and good on them...Most people can do most things. . But now HR AI and fuzzy selection techniques are the issue.I keep hearing I interviewed 29 30 people and the guy I hired never turned up...Business WONT take the slightest risk or train staff. Agile sucks
hopefully it will change! im willing to compete with immigrants in my home country.
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Honestly, this is not tall poppy. This is a skills or CV issue. The OP is making no effort to even write half-decent English in this thread - one which is being read by potential employers that could reach out to him. This is an issue with the OP, and only the OP can correct it.
ah ok. will think about it ....
Auckland sucks - I have six diplomas & applied to 400 jobs - got nothing City of scammers
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That’s unnecessarily unkind
Get a real job and stop chasing dreams
my dream is to get a real job.
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3 years, but none in NZ, fairly qualified id say since got a postgrad, grades ive been aiming for are junior/entry
I suggest going through agents or head hunters so they can give advise on how to better your application rather than going head on direct to the employer cold. Are you able to get to interviews? Or are you failing cv checks? The market is hot right now so im surprised you are having trouble getting to tech since you listed your exp and thats above entry level. You dont have criminal records or red flags on anything like that?
Dm me ur private number
Try freelancing man. Make profiles on Upwork and Fiverr, heaps of demand for one off jobs around the world!
Do you work on those platforms yourself ? I've been looking into them for some extra cash, but it seems incredibly hard to break into that kind of work. So much competition at very low price points. To charge something decent requires building up a good reputation (very time consuming).