Hi, I was laid off from my entry-level position in August, and I've been having no luck getting an interview, let alone a job offer. In Canada, specifically Ontario, I was told that even the senior developers were laid off, so there is a pool of talent in the market, so that may be why.
I'm not even sure where I could be messing up; I've changed my resume three times and changed it according to the job posting, but I've still not gotten anywhere.
So I thought I'd try and get advice from here.

Not sure about Canada but there are lots in the US. IBM, Booz Allen, and Robert Half are some of the bigger name consulting companies in the US. There are also many smaller ones that operate on a more regional basis.

This has been a problem for me the entire 15+ years of my career. Just about every job I ended up getting was through networking/talking with people. Talk with people you know, talk with developers you've worked with, managers you've worked with, etc. Go to free developer meetups, lob fairs, etc. to talk with people. Be interested in them too, and also let them know you're looking for a job.

Ai is not helping us old timers in this industry as things change. I'm a QA tester for over 2 decades and unless you can develop code we are as useless as bird shit on a statue.

Although the volume of job advice you’re getting here is amazing, please realize that many of your US counterparts have a noticeably different job market due to the massive population difference. I’m not saying their advice isn’t valuable but be careful not to take some of the current and future job market assessment as gospel because they can differ substantially between Canada and the US. I have worked at engineering consulting firms in Ontario for the past 20 years and the employment situation in my industry right now is ridiculously in favour of the employee but 5-10 years ago it was horrible and despite the great position I’m in of looking for a job, it’s is headed back down to a more sustainable balance already. The comments that suggest following up are great. I can’t state strongly enough how much of a difference that this can make. Several others are correct that even if you don’t get the job, also contact them to see what they were looking for that you didn’t have. I’ve had several employees in Canada be quite surprised that I’d call and were very impressed. It can definitely lead to future opportunities and goes toward building your network, which, as others suggest, is key. “It’s who you know not what you know” is an old cliche that is still true today. You may have all the skill or experience in the world but if you don’t know the right people you won’t get anywhere. I don’t mean that from an elite club perspective, just that the more people you know, the more people that know your skills and that you can draw on. I recognize you are very early in your career but I was establishing the right connections from the outset.

It's difficult to say without knowing more about you, but I got taken on in the defence industry last year despite being fired from my last two jobs and having no open source experience (I was a Microsoft developer). It seems that defence spending is really being ramped up in my country, the UK so I was given the benefit of the doubt. Seems to be going well so far. I got that job through Hackajob.

I've seen your resume and the number of job applications from other comments.
I'd say that 280 apps is a low number over half a year if you're serious about getting interviews in this environment. Try to dig up 5 jobs a day.
As for your resume, it looks quite intimidating in terms of content. You don't need a header for each 'section' of your skills, try to make it fill up less vertical space. I'd personally delete seng fundamentals, repetitive things like SQL/MySQL/Postgres, and much of other frameworks could be filtered for a job posting. Maybe you just need three lines: programming languages, frameworks, tools.
I'd also highly recommend cutting down on the points in your experience: last 3 bullet points don't seem that useful to include, many other bullet points seem really high level but I don't know what you really did except for the % impact. It's overall strange to see 10 headers for skills and a single paragraph for experience.
TLDR: Replace repetitive content with things like personal projects / past seng internships, and ramp up your application counts.

I know it's hard. I'm also going through the same situation but one day you will get.. Try changing resume according to job requirements. Get certifications...

Don't give up. You're not the only one who's frustrated in this condition. It took me 11 months to find another job after the layoff. In the mean time, build a project/portfolio posted in your Github and put it in your resume. That way, you keep your skills current and be ready anytime should the opportunity presents.

So a couple of things. You need to get past ATS first. Always try to apply on the company's site as opposed to Linkedin, Indeed, or Glassdoor. Customize your resume (sounds like you're already doing that bit) to include relevant keywords listed in the job description. If there is a hiring manager listed, either on the company's site or on Linkedin, Indeed, or Glassdoor, reach out to them and express your interest in the job mentioning that you've applied but wanted to let them know they're a top choice. Perseverance is key. Hang in there and keep applying.

I always suggest to developers to start building something they have the skills in, on GitHub. Find a project, or start your own project and start applying the skills you have and build something simple.
So, you can 'Volunteer' and keep your skills up and running while you're also working to hunt down a job.
Don't even worry or be stressed out about a 'GAP' in your resume. "IF" the whole market has tanked, most recruiters will get it, and so will employers.
So, get onto GitHub and Volunteer to help code on a project or create one for yourself and keep it simple.
Increase the complexity as you go along.
From there, after you code, test it out and use it.
See what breaks, see what works, and if you're wondering if this is useful???
It is.
When you get your next interview, and mind you, you will, that 'GAP' that someone wrote in the comments?
Meh, there won't be a GAP, because you will have been working your project or volunteering for that project.
And?
When you are IN that interview and the developers ask you questions on how you created a function etc..?
You can use your experience from your project and your work.
You will have a LOT MORE to draw from in your interviews. I highly recommend doing the volunteering or creating your own project on Github, that commands respect!
And, so? When recruiters talk to you, don't forget to add that volunteering and Github experience to your resume. It counts. Keep up with recruiters that you communicated well with, too. Also, be consistent and call the same recruiters back, that means they'll get to know you and know that you're hungry to keep on working and that you'll show that hunger on the job, too. So, hang in there, find Github, get coding on Github, and you may well be employed because of that work on Github! Just might happen! Good Luck!

I had the same “no luck” and ended up taking a job that I felt was over qualified for. But it has really been great for my mental health and truly given me a chance to shine and feel valued again. All great feelings!! Best of luck to you and don’t give up!!

1) Reach out to recruiters of the companies you are wanting to work with.
2) Continue to program, submitting everything to git. (proof is in the pudding)
3) This is a difficult job market (IA, fakers, and large layoffs in IT)

Biggest advice I’ve been given is to write your resume for the job you’re applying for, not just sending out the same resume to every company. Also I listed myself on a lot of the job boards like here and indeed and LinkedIn and got some interest from recruiters from a few companies kinda out of left field. Now, some of the jobs didn’t turn out to be what I was looking for but some were interesting, just interviewed today for one I’m pretty hopeful about and I thought it went well, so fingers crossed and although it wouldn’t be traditional IT it sounds like a fun place to work and a good culture fit so if nothing else I’ll wait til the IT winter blows over, but could see myself there long term for sure.

Job Hunt
As long as you keep applying for listed jobs through boards and ATS systems, you are competing with high volumes of applicants. Consider building your network, have some informational interviews, and tap into the hidden job market. It's more directed, takes some specialized focus, but you may find greater success and better focus into what specializations you may be interested in or not even aware of.

The high volume job market is definitely a numbers game. You should be seeing a 5% return rate for screenings and interviews.

Regardless, there are a few things that you should consistently do in your job search:
- Keep track of everything. Take copies of the posting and detailed records of who you've been on contact with for each application. This is particularly important for follow-ups and thank-you's. Also, your notes will be easy to look back on when a call comes out of the blue
- Follow-ups. Be top of mind and proactive. If you haven't heard back within a week of an application, follow-up and confirm they received it. If you've had an interview, find out when their next step will be and, if you haven't heard by then, let them know you'll follow up on a specific day. If you don't know what to say, mention you haven't heard anything, yet, and offer to answer any outstanding questions or if they need more information.
- Thank-you's. Send thank-you's to everyone you encounter. Do the research. Email is fine.
- Rejection. Send thank-you's, as well. Reiterate how interested you are in working with them and that you'd like them to keep you in mind if similar roles open up. Also, ask for feedback on how you could improve yourself for that role or if there was anything particular that ruled you out. You may not get an answer but this won't cost you anything.
- Write the cover letter. Most people don't bother to adjust their resume for every job application. Use the cover to address every skill and requirement in the description. Find out the hiring manager's name. Draw the skills connections for the hiring manager. Do the work for them. This will also cover off any ATS filter words that don't exist in your resume.
- Complete your LinkedIn profile but don't give it the full detail of your resume. People look at it! Put the URL on your resume.

Resume:
My first impression is your resume looks really dense for 1 year. I like how you've sectioned off your listed skills and platforms. Beyond an ATS filter, a recruiter will only scan your resume for less than 10 seconds on the first pass.
- Change your font. Find one that's easier to read
- I like the effort you put in to write value-added statements but all the percentage gains are difficult to take at face value. Are there more discrete metrics you can use? Time saved, increased user base, stable and consistent velocity, revenue gain, money saved, etc.
- There are 12 points under your one year of job experience. Some of these are job functions are reiterate your listed skills and environments already listed. How about framing around your projects and how they added value? I try to keep mine around 3-5 points per role.
- Move your education to the bottom. Also, list any certifications and additional training you may have earned.

Keep at it. Job hunting is a tough gig.

Have you ever thought of making use of the working holiday visa agreements between Canada, Australia, New Zealand and UK? Maybe some of those countries might be looking for young talent and you might be able to travel around at the same time. It's a 2 year visa where you can also work. Only available to those under a certain age.

Same here my friend, I have laid off now for almost a year from the IT world and finding work has been a pain in the @22. While still looking for employment, I have started to look into other means of income. Search YouTube and Google for "Remote Freelance" jobs. Hopefully you will find something that will get you through until a Real Job comes. Good luck and keep your head up my friend.

It seems especially difficult out there right now. I feel like the only way to get an edge is networking. Go to tech meetups and try to meet people in person. Worst case scenario find a random job to pay the bills while you keep doing personal projects to show in your resume and build skills to be more than “entry” level.

job hunting is more of a luck game than actual merit.

Figure out something else you can do well!