300+ apps and no luck…
The student job market right now is genuinely cooked. Everyone kept telling me to start looking for summer work early, so I did exactly what I was supposed to do. I started grinding out applications back in November and kept going straight through February. Over 300 applications later, and I have absolutely nothing to show for it. In every category possible (retail, fast food, grocery, cafes, restaurants, senior homes, FSWEP & government postings as well). I apply, I call, I go in person, nothing though. To recap, I’m a 20F uni student going into my 3rd year in fall.
I’m a citizen, and my resume isn't even blank. I have solid experience in customer service and admin support, some as a cashier, a lot in social work and clothing retail, and I'm bilingual. I did everything by the book, tailored my resume so it’s readable by the systems they use to scan, and tracked everything. I’m looking for full-time work but at this point, I will gladly take part-time too. I even have my own car and can drive anywhere. Looking for a job I can keep after summer as well (part time).
I constantly have people telling me, "Oh, just apply to landscaping or painting crews, they're always hiring!" So I did…. And guess what? They never get back to me either. Which ig is somewhat understandable because im a girl and i heard they tend to avoid us…
The result across the board is just endless ghosting or automated rejection emails months later. It is SOO incredibly draining.
With how messed up the OSAP situation is right now, the stress is driving me crazy. I need to make money before classes start up again in September just to survive the semester, but even landing a basic retail or service job feels like winning the lottery.
Does anyone know of places that are ACTUALLY hiring right now? Not just posting ghost jobs to look busy, but actively bringing people on? It’s gotten so bad that I’m driving all the way out to places in Stittsville just trying to find anything. How are we students actually supposed to survive right now? This feels so relentless and completely unfair.
PLEASE 🙏🏾 I’m desperate, are any of your job places hiring? I’ll do anything at this point.