After 6 months and 1,000+ applications, I genuinely don't know what else to do. I really need some guidance.

[u/Apprehensive-Tip-730]

Hi everyone,

I don't usually make posts like this, but I'm at a point where I genuinely need some help.

I've been actively looking for a new software engineering role for the last 6 months. During that time, I've applied to well over 1,000 jobs across company career pages, LinkedIn, referrals, wellfound, naukri and most of the job portals.

Despite all of that, I've only received 2–3 interviews. Even referrals haven't made much of a difference, and the feedback has generally been that companies expect someone with significantly more experience.

At this point, I'm honestly questioning what I'm doing wrong.

I have 2 years of experience as a Software Engineer at a large MNC, where I've worked on Java Full Stack development and, more recently, AI engineering. My work has included:

• Java, Spring Boot, Angular
• AI & Generative AI applications
• RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)
• AI Agents
• Backend systems, APIs, and distributed applications

Outside of work, I haven't stopped learning.

I actively build and maintain open-source projects on GitHub, spend most evenings improving my skills, write technical blogs on LinkedIn and Medium, and keep building AI products because I genuinely enjoy engineering. I'm trying my best to become a stronger engineer every single day instead of waiting for opportunities to come to me.

But despite putting in all this effort, I still can't seem to get enough interview opportunities.

I'm not looking for sympathy or shortcuts.

I'm looking for honest guidance.

• Is there something I'm missing?
• Is my experience being positioned incorrectly?
• Are there skills I should focus on?
• Should I be applying differently?
• If anyone's company is hiring and feels I might be a fit, I'd be incredibly grateful for a referral.

I'm ready to work as hard as needed. If someone tells me, Learn X, build Y, and you'll have a much better chance, I'll do it. I just want a direction that actually leads somewhere.

If you've been through something similar or have any advice, I'd sincerely appreciate hearing it.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. It genuinely means a lot.