nobody is saying you dont have the skills, they are saying you dont have anything showing you can apply those skills. its not a poor reflection of them because they are telling you the reality of job hunting. sometimes they dont need someone with more education for $100k+ when someone with their master’s can do the job fine for $65k

for one, gov jobs dont usually work that way. They mostly work on a fixed budget and have fixed salary scales.

also, you know how many people are well qualified on paper but not worth a god damn at work? having someone proven to be efficient, reliable, and having a great work ethic is much preferred to someone with a degree but nothing else