I have been looking for a PT internship in NYC in the proptech startup field this past month. A lot of time spend on LinkedIn got me absolutely nowhere. I ended up reaching out to a family member who put me in contact with somebody they know at a startup I would have been interested in interning by.

This contact and I spoke over the phone and really hit it off and he asked that I’d prepare some example work. I did so and I got very positive feedback and then he connected me with the head of the company who is in charge of making the final say.

This CEO, who is very busy took some time to respond and had to reschedule nearly 3 times before we actually had our time to talk over zoom. However while we were emailing it seemed that he was interested in an intern (I mean hey, who doesn’t want free labor from somebody hungry for work). He even told me that he was looking forward to talk and that he apologized for postponing our meeting.

I join the meeting and he is looking down at his keyboard the entire time clearly working on something else. It didn’t feel like an interview, more like a confrontation. I felt like I was at my principals office in elementary school where he guilted me into confessing to what I did.

After explaining the role I’m looking for, he took two steps back and looked around the office and turned to me and said: unfortunately, we currently don’t have the resources to have an intern at the moment.

Like… ugh. I totally understand that this is reality but damn, I really thought I had this in the bag.

So now I’m back to square 1, reaching out via LinkedIn and cold emailing.

I then decided I’d use another resource I had by being in the city and I printed the attached flyer and mamilla envelopes and decided to go around the city to some startups and drop it off by them.

The first startup I went to, the doorman let me in and I went up to the HQ. And omg it was insane. Just a huge space full of people working. I felt like I was intruding on something, I mean I was.

I walked into the office and see a guy coming out of the restroom and I ask him if there’s a secretary I could drop off my envelope by and he told me to give it to a person he pointed to.

I went up to her and very nicely I said “excuse me, sorry to bother but I have some mail to deliver. I was told you would be the one I could hand this off to.” She was very kind back and took it and I went back downstairs and left the building.

I never have ever had the confidence to do such a thing but I don’t think I’ve ever felt more alive before in my life.

Happens to be I also emailed a somebody there today and they responded that they aren’t hiring for PT/internship roles.

But I’m still proud of myself for doing something extremely ambitious.

Anyways I’m still on the hunt for an internship in NYC. DM me if y’all have any leads. Curious to know what yall think of my story 🙃

It's been 7 months. I applied to everything that pops up on Indeed. I am 42 and have decades of retail and warehouse experience. Nobody would hire me. I had not a single call back. I finally got hired. I start October 25th. All the paperwork is in and it's official. It's not the best job but it pays well. And at least I have something. It's a crazy job market. It's been hell. I hear the people out there who have been unemployed for years. I don't want to jinx myself so I am literally knocking on wood. Wish me luck

This one surprised me. A company sought me out because of my experience and education in the AML and fraud space, which was exciting because the requisition wasn’t even open yet. Someone asked for my resume and forwarded it to HR. Within 13 minutes, HR emailed me asking to schedule an interview. They said they weren’t sure how soon the requisition would open but they definitely wanted me to meet with the VP. They scheduled that conversation, it turned out they were opening a role and the interview went well. Afterward HR let me know I was moving forward to the assignment round.

I started working on the assignment and asked a clarifying question about the data. It turned out they wanted me to evaluate everything as of April rather than the current date, which changed my approach enough that I needed to restart. There wasn’t a deadline but I still let them know I would need one additional day. Instead of submitting it the next day, I submitted it the following day. I also had a few people review my work to see whether my reasoning and conclusions made sense to them before turning it in.

Then late on a Saturday, I received an automated rejection. That was the entire follow-up after a company had proactively sought me out, quickly arranged an interview with its VP and asked me to complete an assignment. I have substantial experience with the work the assignment covered, completed it quickly even with the clarification and have done roughly 25 interview assignments over the last two years. Until this one I had never been rejected immediately after the assignment round.

I’m not saying that means my work couldn’t have missed the mark or that I was entitled to move forward. But the sequence feels strange, and I’m left wondering what happened. Did the assignment change their assessment? Had they already decided against moving forward while I was still working on it? Did something change internally? I don’t know, and an automated rejection gives me nothing to work with. Going from being actively recruited before a role was even open to receiving a Saturday rejection after completing their assignment feels like a pretty abrupt shift. This one honestly feels fishy, even though I don’t have enough information to say why.

27k in student loan debt, homeless, no job, no savings, two SWE internships on my resume, useless cs bachelor's degree from 2025.

My parents kicked me out when I approached a year post graduation with no job. I wasn't getting any interviews, at all. I was working as a part time barista for $16/hour to bide my time but I abandoned that job when I was kicked out. I'm in a city where rents are 2000+ for closets. No reason to stay at that place.

My loans have obviously been defaulted on by now, I don't even have an active phone number for then to contact me with. No money.

I've been staggering, stumbling around gagging on nothing like a drug addict in the last week or so. I had a bike but someone broke the lock on it while I was sleeping outside one night.

Idk what I can do now. I can't get a tech job or use my degree for much of anything. I've been diving into trash cans for plastic bottles. I feel uncomfortable in my skin, I have no pride in myself, in my existence. I have no confidence anymore.

I'm sitting near a Starbucks curled up on a bench just watching the night go by. My life is over. I have no control but my future any longer. I want to end this.

Some of the assessment questions were weird, for example:

Do you work too fast without thinking about safety more, or do you miss deadlines more? WHAAAAAAAAT. I DONT DO EITHER.

I came across the job opening on LinkedIn. It was a fairly established company with international offices.

“(Tea, please!)” ruined my day I can’t lie.

i’ve literally been without a job for the past 5-6 months because nobody is hiring me. I’ll do countless interviews and applications and nothing ever comes of it. u genuinely have to beg for a job nowadays or know someone in the company to get the job. i’m basically homeless right now and sleeping at friends houses because i lost everything. this is genuinely horrible. i am able to do gigs every here and there but i dont make enough to survive on my own at ALL.

I was emailed a soft offer by the person in charge of onboarding at the company I've been interviewing with. I was told that they would be sending my actual offer documentation yesterday, "later on in the day" (Friday), but I never received anything.

This is a startup company, and they do not have an HR department, so the CFO is the one doing the offer letters and the onboarding/sending the PEO links. Should I be concerned, or is it possible that he just had entirely too much on his plate and wasn't able to get to creating/finishing the offer?

Keep in mind, when I was interviewed for my first round (Oct 5th), I didn't hear back about my invite for my second round until 11pm on Oct. 11th. My recruiter who got me connected with the company in the first place told me that I should expect the official offer letter sometime this weekend or by Monday morning. She also said that for the last person she got hired at this job that she called their references for them, but she told me she wasn't able to get around to it and that she would have to call mine this upcoming Monday/Tuesday. So I am also trying to consider if that is also what is delaying the official offer letter being sent to me.

I am in a very tight window financially, due to months of unemployment and living off my savings and I am at the very end of my savings at this point. If I don't start this job within the next 3 weeks, I'm screwed.

I’m in China and I have been unemployed for 14 months. Actually I was laid off from last company.

I have a Master’s degree and have been searching for jobs constantly but no results. All the interviews and the selecting process make me exhausted. I need to put every effort into this process and the company, however, they just reject me or prolong the period and I think they are trying to find other candidates.

All I got in this 14 months is just rejection. Feeling hopeless.

I have some friends who are also unemployed for many reasons. But some of my colleagues also switch jobs successfully.

Anyway, I don’t know when it will end.

We are cooked gang. Blue and white collars aren't safe.

Hi all! I’ve been so nervous since my interview because this is my dream company, and honestly, just getting the opportunity to interview felt like a big deal to me.
I prepared my ass off, and I felt like 3 out of the 4 interviews went pretty well.

My recruiter said I should hear back by Thursday or Friday, but I haven’t heard anything from them since. I had also emailed the hiring manager after the interview, and although it took a while, they surprisingly replied on Friday with this message:

“Hello Again! Appreciate this note and thank you very much for your interest in the role and for participating. We just met to review the panel feedback after additional interviews yesterday. I will keep you posted, but I’ve heard good things, and we may have you try for one of my other open roles. Stay tuned and have a great weekend!”

I know this sounds somewhat positive, but my anxious brain is reading between the lines and telling me they’ve probably selected someone else for the role I interviewed for, and they might consider me for another position if they don’t find someone else.

I honestly don’t know how to interpret this. Does “I’ve heard good things” mean I’m still in the running, or does mentioning other open roles usually mean they’re leaning toward another candidate for this one?

I know nobody can know for sure, but I’d really appreciate some perspective from anyone who’s been in a similar situation. The waiting and overthinking are killing me! 😭

If Domino's Pizza can have an online pizza tracker to tell you where your pizza is, I feel like companies should be able to do something similar.

I see so many posts talking about being ghosted, and I have experienced the same myself. Why can't companies help put people out of their misery and say "Sorry, no job for you. But here's a coupon for some pizza."

That way there are (hopefully) no awkward emails, no waiting endlessly. Just the facts.

Hey everyone,

I’m facing a major career dilemma and could really use some outside perspective, especially from anyone who has worked through Actalent or done long-term contract-to-hire roles in Ontario.

My Current Situation:

• Role: Permanent, full-time.
• The Good: Excellent benefits, incredibly stable, and I am very well settled. I know the work inside and out, my manager likes me, and everything is smooth sailing.
• The Limitation: Because it's a smaller company, it is basically impossible to move up to a senior position due to strict headcount limits.

The Actalent Offer:

• Pay: Hourly position offering a substantial pay increase (40k) over my current earnings, featuring 1.5x overtime.
• The Catch: It is a 12-month contract-to-hire with a big company. Actalent explicitly stated that the client cannot hire me permanently before the 12-month mark.
• Benefits: Basic/minimal coverage, which is a step down from what I have now.

Why I’m considering it:
I have over 8 years of experience in my professional field. This new role is in a very niche, highly desirable specialization, offers a Senior title (which I can't get at my current firm), and is with a massive company.

The hiring manager also indicated that they see strong pathing for me to move into leadership quite quickly. This is incredibly appealing and feels like the exact career acceleration I’ve been looking for.

Why I’m hesitant (The Risks):
I am terrified of being out of a job. I’ve read countless horror stories on Reddit about contract positions where people are let go instantly without proper notice because of a sudden corporate budget freeze, project cancellation, or macro-economic shifts.

A 12-month lockout period feels like a long time to live with that underlying anxiety, especially when transitioning from a completely stable, comfortable permanent role where I am highly valued.

My Questions for you:

1. If you've worked with Actalent in Ontario, how was your experience with contract security and their benefits?
2. Has anyone taken a 12-month contract-to-hire with a large firm and actually successfully converted, or did you face delays/extensions?

Appreciate any honest advice or experiences you can share!

Interviewed for a great job and was super excited about it, but didn’t get the position. During the interview the manager asked me “did you pay for your university?” I was a bit thrown off but replied with “no, I was fortunate enough that my parents saved up and help me out”.

She then went on about how they ask that as it’s very telling about someone’s work ethic and drive. That someone that had to put in the hours to pay for their education has a different work ethic. Someone who had to pay for their classes didn’t wanna fail so they gave it their all etc.

I’m wondering if maybe my parents paying for my education was an issue to her? And she seemed very judgmental and has this weird standard. Can an employer really ask that ? Seems wrong and very strange!

So I worked in my first job ever from November 2021 to March 1st 2025, then got laid off.

My father died in April, and because of that I took a very very long gap and had some mental health stuff going on, so I took a long break. But in February of 2025 last year, when I was still employed, a manager from a company reached out to me an interviewed me and liked me, but paused hiring for the role because of the company pausing hiring.

2 months ago, after almost a year plus, they reached out and said the team is hiring again, and really liked me as a candidate. After that long. I said ok I would love to continue, but they never asked me for my new resume or update and I just finished the final round onsite and they move me to offer stage, but I realized the resume they still had on file for me said present. Event after a year plus.

Now next step would be background check, and I'm scared as hell that this might be over, any advice how to handle this? I know I messed up but after such a long break and wanting to get back into the market, I made an error.

Any advice?

I was talking to a friend from a huge pharma agency to recommend an account manager who might be open to work. He’s said it’s really bad. He has requests still pending since June at his company not filled yet and his network uses 900+ freelancers.

I’m not sure what’s going on. Are there shortages of healthcare/pharma account executives out there? At the current state I would think it’s hirer’s market but is that not so in this sector?

I need to vent about a wildly unprofessional bait-and-switch and free consulting extraction I just went through with Insight Global recruiting for a contract at BMO (Bank of Montreal).

They pitched me an incorporated Senior Data Architecture contract targeting $70/hr. That's a low wage for this role but it sounded like a solid fit, so I went through multiple interview rounds. Then, they asked me to do a massive, time-consuming case study and present my architecture recommendations directly to the bank's hiring manager.

This wasn’t a simple technical assessment. I spent hours building a complete 24-slide enterprise architecture deck (a 16-slide core strategy presentation plus an 8-slide technical appendix). I mapped out their data ingestion, ETL/ELT pipelines, audience segmentation rules, privacy compliance controls, incident response playbooks, and a full 4-week rollout plan.

During the video call, I noticed the BMO hiring manager immediately reaching for her keyboard the exact second I transitioned to a new slide. She was very obviously taking screenshots of my core presentation step-by-step as I walked through my strategy.

The presentation went perfectly. The feedback from the BMO Director was glowing. Then the Insight Global recruiter reaches out: "You were the strongest candidate, but they're going with someone whose rate aligns with the budget."

I was confused because I had never asked for more than the $70/hr listed on the job description. I emailed the recruiter back and said, "I really liked the team and the architecture challenge. If the other candidate falls through, I'll take the role at the original $70/hr rate."

The recruiter’s response? They admit the actual approved budget from BMO was only for a $50/hr T4A contractor all along.

Here is the part that really pisses me off. The recruiter explicitly told me they knew the budget was $50/hr T4A, but deliberately pitched me as a $70/hr incorporated consultant because they wanted to prove a point to BMO about current market rates. They used my unpaid labor as a free bargaining chip to educate their client, without ever telling me I was participating in their experiment. I wasn't looking to help an agency prove a point to a bank. I was looking for a job.

When the bank predictably said no, the agency just shrugged and walked away. Insight Global gambled with my time, and the BMO hiring manager walked away with screenshots of a free senior-level architecture blueprint.

If an agency ever asks you to do a massive presentation or a take-home project, demand written confirmation of the actually approved budget first. And if you do present, watermark your slides. Do not let recruiters and clients use your interviews to test budget elasticity and harvest free consulting.

sent from Jerkday at 3 in the morning as part of a "daily update" that I didn't ask for. When I click the unsubscribe link I'm prompted for a Microsoft account? Yeah, no.

Has anyone gotten a job contact through an initial Jerkday application? Anyone? Bueller?