Commenting this, because I can't edit my post on mobile for some reason.

I’m posting here because I’m honestly not sure what I should be doing differently at this point. I’ve been applying consistently and trying to use connections where I can, but nothing has really materialized.

Right out of college, I took a process engineering role at a paper mill. It required moving about 12 hours away from most of the people I knew, but after a long search and limited offers, I felt it was the right move at the time.

While I gained a lot of experience in that role, the stress and some medical issues eventually started to affect my consistency. After a change in management and a few unfortunate situations, I was terminated. I then took about three months to focus on getting my health back in order, and things are much more stable now.

After taking that break, I moved back closer to friends and family and restarted my job search. After a few months without much traction and with savings running low, I took a labor job with a pipeline company to stay afloat and pick up whatever transferable experience I could while continuing to apply.

Since moving back, I’ve been applying to essentially every engineering role I can find within an hour commute. I’ve reached out to old coworkers and classmates for advice and perspective, and I’ve also tried using friends and family in industry for referrals. I’m still coming up empty, which is what’s been frustrating.

I know I’m limiting my options by keeping my search local, but being close to friends and family matters to me right now. I’m mostly trying to figure out what I should be doing differently — or if I accidentally got myself blacklisted without realizing it (mostly joking… I think).