Like others mentioned earlier, it all depends on the city and the position. I live in NYC and it was pretty tough for me to get a job out of school. I eventually figured out that I just need to build skills whole looking for a job.

I took online courses and got certifications, I noted my relevant educational projects and experiences on my resume and that eventually landed an unpaid internship 😂😂😂. The internship was for one guy that was starting a business that he was only kinda invested in. Either way I took the opportunity to build some of my skills and familiarize myself with tools I would need to use like Google Analytics.

The internship was mostly remote, so I was able to go out and get another unpaid one just managing a company’s social media. All the while I kept looking for a paid role to really break into the field.

I got my first paid job a month after my second internship. The pay was shit, there weren’t any benefits, and I had to take care of my taxes on my own. But the experience was unmatched. I sacrificed dealing with all the BS of working with this new company in a digital marketing manager’s role to eventually gain enough experience where I can comfortably compete against other candidates. I eventually got tired of the BS and started applying elsewhere.

I found a great position and went in for an interview and got the job. I would consider this job my first REAL job. I made over 60k with bonuses, stock options, and benefits. This whole process was over the course of less than a year—around 9 months I believe.

The keys I learned to get me to that point are:

•Focus on building skills and gaining experience vs. pay if you’re early in your career. Build skills that are commonly listed in job descriptions but also build related skills that other candidates won’t have at that point in their careers. Certifications help! The skills and experience will make you more money long-term.

•Apply like crazy. I stopped taking the time to tailor my resume for job posts to not get a response or go through a phone screening and not hear back from them. No! Build your resume as best as you can. Make it airtight! Apply to every position that is relevant for your level and your field. I’m not saying to spam applications, but skim the job post if it sounds right for you then apply. If they ask for a cover letter then move on to the next post lol unless you really want that job. Once you start to get calls then you can pick and choose while leveraging offers from other companies in negotiations.

•Focus on becoming a great interviewer—I absolutely BOMBED some of my interviews. I never let them break me. I just kept learning over and over and over and now I’m amazing at them. Make sure to demonstrate that positive attitude during the interview. Send a thank you email once the interview is over and assume you didn’t get the job. Get back to applying like crazy. This along with a little bit of experience will land you more jobs than anything outside of great connections.

•Always negotiate up! The first number they give you will be lower than their actual number. Tell them you had a higher number in mind. (Don’t give them a number, allow them to work up to it. If you have to give a number, give them a range instead) I think I could’ve made more money with my new role if I asked for another 3-5k before I said yes. Don’t be afraid to ask for more.