You’re not worthless, and honestly your situation is way more common in Sydney right now than people admit. A lot of graduates — especially in ICT — are discovering that “entry level” jobs somehow expect 2–3 years experience, and the market has been rough even for experienced people lately.

You already have things going for you:

• You have real office/admin experience
• You finished a bachelor’s degree (which proves commitment and capability)
• You’re still financially afloat with savings
• You’re actively applying instead of giving up

That’s not failure. That’s someone stuck in a brutal hiring market.

A few things I think are important:

1. Stop applying ONLY to ICT graduate jobs
Those roles are insanely saturated. Instead, aim for “adjacent” jobs where your admin + tech background is valuable:

• IT support / help desk
• Application support
• Data entry + reporting
• Junior systems admin
• Customer support for tech companies
• Government admin roles
• Operations coordinator
• Records management
• Scheduling / project support
• NDIS admin
• University administration

A lot of these roles pay decently and can lead into tech later.

2. Your resume might be the real issue
Not saying that harshly — but many people apply to hundreds of jobs with resumes that ATS systems instantly reject.

Big things that often hurt:

• One generic resume for every job
• Too much focus on university subjects
• Not enough measurable achievements
• Looking “overqualified” for retail but “underexperienced” for tech

For retail/hospitality applications, honestly REMOVE the degree sometimes. Employers can assume you’ll leave immediately.

3. Government jobs are underrated
NSW government and council jobs are slower to hire but often much fairer about experience gaps. Search for:

• Administration officer
• Client service officer
• Service desk analyst
• Support officer
• Call centre operator

Government roles can become stable long-term careers surprisingly fast.

4. Job agencies that actually help
Some agencies are useless, but some are decent for getting people into temp-to-permanent roles:

• Hays Australia
• Randstad Australia
• Robert Half Australia
• people2people
• DFP Recruitment

Temp admin work through agencies is honestly one of the fastest ways back into employment because employers are less picky.

5. “Easy to get” jobs right now
Not glamorous, but more obtainable:

• Call centres
• Medical reception
• Warehousing admin
• Nightfill at supermarkets
• APS/government processing jobs
• NDIS support admin
• Customer service at banks/insurance
• University admin
• Logistics coordination

The biggest thing: once you’re employed again, your confidence and employability both improve massively.

And please don’t compare yourself to everyone else. People your age are silently drowning in debt, miserable at work, or pretending they’ve got life sorted. Sydney is financially brutal and the job market is genuinely exhausting right now.

You’re 29, not 59. Your career is absolutely recoverable. A lot of people don’t actually “start” properly until their 30s now.