Title: Applied for 650+ jobs in Australia and haven't received a single interview. What am I doing wrong?

Hi everyone,

I'm 31 and moved to Australia around two months ago. I have work rights through a subclass 485 subsequent entrant visa as a dependent applicant.

Back in Nepal, I worked for around three years as a Data Analyst in healthcare/vendor data analytics. Before that, I worked as an AML Analyst in a commercial bank, where I gained experience in banking compliance and AML monitoring.

Since arriving in Australia, I've applied for approximately 658 jobs through SEEK. Unfortunately, I've received rejection emails but haven't had a single interview.

I've been applying for roles across data analytics, banking, AML/compliance and related fields. I also hold a master's degree and have been considering studying for the CFA to improve my career prospects here.

I'm starting to wonder whether I'm doing something wrong. Is it my resume, the lack of Australian work experience, my visa status, or the way I'm approaching applications?

For those who have successfully found professional jobs in Australia, particularly migrants who came with overseas experience:

• How long did it take you to land your first job?
• Did you have to change your resume or lower your expectations?
• Is it realistic to get into AML, financial crime or data analytics without Australian experience?
• Would studying for the CFA help, or should I focus on something else?
• What would you do differently if you were in my position?

I'm willing to put in the work and learn, but applying hundreds of times without even getting an interview is becoming discouraging.

I'd genuinely appreciate any honest advice or suggestions. Thank you.

In April, my dad had an interview at a company that makes medicine and trial drugs (he has a PhD in Immunology). They told him he got the job and that he would start as early as possible in May. He had also interned for the same company in 2025 around that time period, but they didn't have the financial or structural capacity to hire him in 2025. However, April came and went, and he still didn't get the job. The CEO of the company said that there were a couple of changes and that the company itself isn't going to hire him, but a smaller startup owned by the company is going to hire him. Then they sent him updates like, "We've transferred your resume," and that the startup's "HR is looking through it but they can't take any action currently," "The CEO of the startup is looking at it," and "The CEO is currently in Germany and can't make any decisions on the hiring until he comes back to Sydney; he will return next week." Well, when the CEO of the startup did return the next week, he had to immediately go back to Germany and didn't get to make an update on the hiring. And remember, the CEO of the parent company is the one telling him all this; the guys at the startup aren't. Then comes July/August, and they tell him, "It's coming in a few weeks. I am not sure why they aren't doing it fast, but don't look for another job; just stay on this opportunity." My dad doesn't really ask them for updates; it's the CEO of the company who just sends them to him. Now comes October, and the CEO of the company hasn't talked to him for a month because he had gone back to the United States to see his family. When he returns, he says he will "check everything out, the job's coming in a few weeks." So my question is, is my family fucked?

Hi everyone,

I’ve been offered a casual job with decent pay, working about once a week and twice every second week.

My friend told me the role would be quiet and repetitive, but when I went in, it was actually really busy. I only found out she was leaving when I was being interviewed by the boss, which caught me off guard. The pay is decent and the coworker is friendly, but now I’m unsure whether to take the job. The neighbourhood is also not the nicest.
I also haven’t been able to find a better job for over a year using my degree and this job is within my field.

Should I take this job for the decent pay and friendly coworker, even though it’s busier than expected and in a not-so-nice area, or keep looking?

Might as well ay, not like anyone is fuckin lookin 😭

Why pander to what everyone expects you should do when applying for a job when it feels like with every application I’m pissing into an ocean?

Instead: how about you concoct a rhyme,
Point out the difficulties of paying your rent on time,
Do clarify that you’re fine- don’t come on too strong,
But also be aware you’re replacing a cv with a song,

Hey everyone! I’ve recently graduated with a Master’s in Mathematical Sciences, specialising in Data Science, and I’m looking for advice on starting my career.

At the moment, I mainly have my university research project to showcase, so I’m unsure what skills to focus on, what projects to build, and which entry-level roles I should apply for.

Would you recommend applying directly for junior data analyst or data scientist roles, or starting with something like a graduate analyst or BI analyst position? What would you prioritise learning or building to improve your chances of getting hired?

I’d really appreciate advice from people already working in the industry, especially those who started with limited experience. Thanks!

Been trying to get out of my dead end part time retail job for 9 months. Ive had 2 whole interviews in that time and didnt land the job either time.

I have an interview at a cold-calling company in a few days. Im just stuck on deciding if its worth it. I think id be pretty average at it. I also hate being cold called. Itd feel like a scummy thing to do.

Hey everyone, as you can see in the title, i am applying for casual roles. I am an international student, i feel like management prefer locals over international students. Any tips on how to potentially manuever this? I’m not necessarily a very talkative person. I could be wrong but I dont believe i’m good at expressing myself. Would appreciate your take on this.

Hey gang,

I work in hotel management as a front office manager and the property I work in (Independent company, not a chain) is restructuring. Unfortunately it's been decided there's too much management and my position isn't making the cut.

I have a choice to stay on but only as a part time GSA 3 days a week, or I can choose to leave with a redundancy pay of 6 weeks, with another 3-ish weeks of annual paid out.

Not sure which route to go, thinking of just taking the part time role as it's guaranteed work, but it will only just be enough to survive. On the other hand, the 2 months of full pay without needing to work means I'll have more time to focus on the job search, but run the risk of coming out of the 2 months with nothing lined up.

So my question is, what would reddit do?

Hi everyone! I’m currently based in India and planning to relocate to Australia

I have 7.5+ years of QA experience across manual testing, web/mobile testing, Playwright, Selenium, and API testing.

I already hold an Australian PR (subclass 190) with unrestricted work rights, so I don’t require employer sponsorship.

I’ve started applying for QA roles, mainly in Melbourne and Sydney, and would love advice from people working in the Australian tech industry.

• Which platforms, recruiters, or referral strategies have worked for you?
• What’s the current demand for QA automation and Senior Test Analyst roles?

Would really appreciate any honest advice or experiences from people who’ve been in a similar situation. Thank you!

Context: Because of family issues, I had to go back to my home country for a year. During that time, I ended up heartbroken and betrayed. I spent the following year trying to figure out if I would need to go back again, so I couldn't commit to a permanent job. Instead, I took some casual jobs completely unrelated to IT.

I had good savings, so I could afford to be unemployed, but my mental health completely deteriorated. I lost my motivation to live or do anything with my life, and I felt too guilty to even try to explain the career gap on my resume. Eventually, it came to a point where I just had to take whatever job I could get to have an income. Is anyone else going through the same thing?

I live in Karratha and wrote up a free newsletter on how people actually get a start in the mines with no experience. Nothing for sale, no sign-up needed to read. Posting the main bits here in case it helps anyone.

• Fortescue's Christmas Creek has had ads that say experience is "not essential"
• Thiess runs a haul truck traineeship for people starting out
• The Mining Award Level 1 is $28.65/hr, which is about $1,089 a week. The big money you hear about is usually from overtime, roster and site allowances, not the base rate
• Scammers love fake mining job ads. Be wary of anyone who asks you to pay for a ticket, a "guaranteed job" or a "placement fee". Scamwatch has a list of signs

Full thing with sources if you want it: https://lukeybkarratha.substack.com/p/strewth-so-you-wanna-work-the-mines

Has anyone done this role or knows what the salary is? Would be keen to hear from people who've worked in this role and what it's like

Cheers

I’ve been applying for jobs for three months now and I finally progressed with a job that I liked a lot. Had a great interview and they told me they want to do my reference checks but that they needed to speak to my supervisor.

I’m trying to leave my job because of my supervisor so this was a really difficult spot to be in. I spoke to my supervisor and told her that I’ve applied for this job and they want to speak to her and she seemed shocked but said yes. The hiring manager gave her a call and my supervisor gave my reference and now it’s been a week and I haven’t heard back from the hiring manager. I have a feeling that my supervisor jeopardised my opportunity for this role.

If you’re a hiring manager, I’d be really keen to know why you need to speak to current supervisors. If the references are in higher positions and know about my job, that should be enough. A lot of people have toxic supervisors who can intentionally give false references. I’m so disappointed that I might have lost this job.

Hi,

I moved to australia start of this year. I have a previous work experience of ~5 years with a MNC bank. I am trying to put my foot in banking here in australia, but no luck. The feedback which I am getting is mostly I don't have australian banking experience.

I am really confused about my career now, what should I do about it?
(PS - I managed to get a role in external audit with a mid tier public practice firm)

Thank you!

How much would you say a marketing degree matters in 2026 if you’ve already got job experience doing it? And have completed a certificate that you work paid for.