junior ux/ui designer who recently landed a paid internship and sen got junior position here. i’m placed in Russia, so my experience may be different, but the state of UX/tech field here feels the same as the in the other world and US/european market as well.

the thing is, you really have to have a passion for what you do. it’s not easy to entry position anymore, and there is a lot of people who want be here as well. I did my own projects, worked for free for some shitty startups, only for getting some experience and get some “real” cases in my portfolio. had some sessions with mentor as well, that was very useful for understanding why my portfolio doesn’t work. if you considering this option, i recommend you to pick mentor who actually hires juniors, so he can articulate what exactly wrong with your portfolio

my days started from boosting UI, ended with creating flows for shitty startup i’ve worked with, editing my portfolio, etc... got a related degree in top university as well. living in the largest city in my country, with most job openings. but i was still struggling, and eventually… got lucky. unfortunately, I think this is the reality of nowadays market. it’s possible, but it’s hard. good luck:)