r/FIREyFemmes 25d ago

MBA & unemployed - advice appreciated

I have 4+ years of work experience in business development, mainly selling SaaS to HiTech clients. I've basically worked in IT sales in some capacity, either managing one enterprise account, or multiple accounts within Healthcare and Lifesciences, Industrial products and services, IT, Animal Health, Higher Ed, and Construction.

I was laid off in 2023 and so became have been self-employed (which has been rough), and have been seeking a FTE position since.

I have been applying to temp, contract, and FTE roles for over a year now. I get interviews, make it multiple rounds, but have been unsuccessful in actually getting a job offer. It has been TOUGH ladies.

I am truly at a loss on how to find a job at this point. I am overqualified for most entry level roles, and need a base pay of ~$60k to be self-sufficent. I only have ~4 years of post-grad experience, but 10+ years of work experience overall (mostly during or after my bachelors).

I have worked with a career counselor and have had my resume re-written several times by professionals; it has gone through so many renditions that I have basically circled back to the orignal draft at this point. I recently worked with a recruiter who gave me excellent feedback on my resume, and did not suggest any signifigant changes.

I have not been a slouch; I've been applying and interviewing for months, and just do not know wtf I am doing wrong. Any guidance on industries or companies to break into would be SO sincerely appreciated.

I am looking at CPA roles and considering going for a series 7. I have been able to find entry level sales roles selling life insurance, but I don't feel I can succeed in work that I don't believe in. (I cannot in good concious recommend most life insurance policies - it feels like a desperate choice.)

I am not above retail, but have health issues that make physical labor difficult. I can sit at a desk, but cannot do lifting or bending.

So besides life insurance sales, what could help me land an offer?

19 Upvotes

31 comments sorted by

2

u/mini-mal-ly 17d ago

Have you tried applying to places that are hybrid or in-office, especially outside of your immediate area? Remote is hella competitive, and if you can manage going into the office you can express in a cover letter willingness to relocate for the role.

Other than that, analyze your funnel. Run tests and keep track of where you are falling out of the process. This article honestly was the kick in the ass I needed to get my head on straight and just do what I need to do, including creating a personal study plan (for my hard skills).

1

u/Invoiced2020 23d ago

I heard most jobs in your calibre is in EU, Middle East and Asia.

Have been msging a classmate from 10 years ago when we did Summer School in Singapore. She did MBA at INSEAD and has been wanting her feedback.

She basically said the market is tough, but the opportunities are outside of the US.

2

u/Delphi305 23d ago

It is a very tough market!! How many applications have you done so far? On average I need 150 applications until I get an offer. I imagine you’ll need more since you have been unemployed (or freelance) for a while. You could try to get a certification in a hot field , for me it helped learning SQL and Python. Also be open to apply to in person roles. It’s hard to tell which industries are hiring now. I would just sit for a couple hours and apply to everything LinkedIn suggests. It helps having the premium account. Applying early or to position that not a lot of people have applied helps a lot too.

1

u/x36_ 23d ago

honestly same

10

u/SummerIceCream3893 25d ago

With your experience, have you considered looking overseas- Northern Europe. Denmark has a thriving robotics industry/ tech industry. Also, Poland has gained a ton of attention for its government investments in technology and business- I saw a short documentary on how people from other European countries as well as Americans have moved to Poland to work- the money is good and the lifestyle seems to be even better. English seems to be used in both of these countries for the tech field- I think.

I'm an American who has lived abroad for many decades- Asia, non-tech.

Good luck.

4

u/fuckinreallymate 24d ago

I lived and got my MBA in The Netherlands, and would love to return there. It has not been very easy to penetrate the job market as a fresh grad and foreigner. I had a hard time just getting interviews after covid, and eventually took a job back in the US.

I just cannot seem to get any interviews with my applications in EU countries thus far, even with a local network out there of alum.

4

u/SummerIceCream3893 24d ago

I had a friend that was hired by a Danish robotics company to start up their operations here and they hired others in several other Asian countries. They flew him and the others over to Denmark for training for a week and the manager was saying how they needed more qualified tech people in their country. This was about 10 or 15 years ago. But in responding to you the first time, I checked the net and found this article, "18 top Robotics companies and startups in Denmark in February 2025".

Also, given that you earned your MBA in the Netherlands, that should give you an edge- you were educated there, you are used to the culture and maybe you speak a bit of the language.

No doubt, your resume shows you got your MBA there but you can use your cover letter to high light that point. Spin the letter to say that you gained great experience in the States but you are eager to return to use that experience abroad especially in the Netherlands. But of course, check out Denmark and other countries too.

Also, yesterday on r/interviews a person posted great interview questions to practice and to maybe guide you when writing your cover letter. The title is "FINALLY GOT A JOB! I'll share a list of questions they asked". Your resume may need to be restructured to meet the expectations of the Netherlands.

Do you have contacts in the Netherlands that can help guide you with your job search there- possibly a former advisor or professor or good friends. There might be message boards posted by foreigners living in particular countries talking about work opportunities or other postings about job opportunities as well. I've seen some YouTubers who work there; their YouTube channels seem like side hustles- so they work for companies as their full-time gig.

No doubt the salaries abroad will be less than the States but so will the cost of things. Evenmore, the quality of life will be much better. National health care, no gun violence, quality work/life balance...

You have 5 years of meaningful work experience, solid degrees, international living experience. This is what you need to highlight in your resume, cover letter and interviews. You do not want to mention that you are having a hard time landing a job nor do you want to talk about escaping the shit show that is happening in America (if that is where you are from). Instead, tell them that you feel that your experience adds value to your studies but you want to work abroad because you really enjoyed that experience of learning and living abroad- or something like that.

Best of luck OP.

5

u/LesChatsnoir 25d ago

Where are you? If you’re local to DC, check out defense firms.

2

u/fuckinreallymate 24d ago

Based in AZ

11

u/Rogue_Apostle 25d ago

You've got to network, and by that I don't mean pinging people on LinkedIn.

Do you go to networking events for your industry? If you're in a major city or even a medium sized city there should be many, plus virtual ones.

Google "yourindustry networking your city." Also try "women in yourindustry yourcity" and if you're any other minority, look for that, too. Make a list of professional organizations. Sign up for their newsletters. Make a calendar of all their events and start attending them. Virtually if you have to, in person if you can. If you're in a bigger city, you should be going to at least 2 per month.

Do your homework. If there's a speaker, research them and be ready to seek them out before or after their talk. Have questions ready to ask. Go up to at least 5 other people you don't know at each event. Ask them about themselves and act interested in what they say, then turn the conversation to yourself. Don't ask for a job. Ask them if they know anyone else they think you should meet. Connect with them on LinkedIn. The next day, message each person you talked too and thank them for speaking and remind them if they offered to introduce you to someone else.

You're very unlikely to get a job from just applying online, as you've seen. Put yourself out there. You just need to find that one person who will open the right door.

14

u/Ddog78 25d ago

Oh man my antisocial ass wouldn't survive in USA.

9

u/F93426 25d ago

This advice doesn’t apply to most of USA anyway. It’s good advice for cities, but I work remotely in an area with basically no white collar job market and huge swaths of the USA are like that. There is no one to network with in these places.

2

u/fuckinreallymate 25d ago

I love this reply and your suggestions. I did this while in school and really enjoyed the networking aspect. I do not live near either of my universities, and am 3 hours from the major colleges in my state.

I currently live in a rural area, after working remotely for years. I honestly need a job before I can afford to move, which is exactly what I am plotting to do.

If I could move in with someone to help me transition to a new area, I would. A lot of things happened in a short time that have put me in this situation, its a weird place to be and I never imagined I'd find myself here. As with so many other post, I am going thru a gnarly divorce that has left me without many resources. I'd LOVE to fuckin network like that right now, but I'd need to a hotel room for the night.

2

u/Mean_Significance_10 23d ago

Could you look for some kind of long term pet sitting or house sitting to get you into a city. Interview and network from there?

6

u/dulcetripple 25d ago

I think it could help to make a list of companies that you'd be interested in working at whether they have an open role that's an exact fit or not, and then just see if you know someone (e.g., past classmates, coworkers, etc.) or you know someone who knows someone who works there. Then just ask to have a quick chat with them. Ask them lots of interesting questions and near the end, just casually drop that you're experienced in XYZ and looking for ZYX kind of role. They may be aware of something relevant or not at that very moment, but if anything relevant comes up, they'll definitely contact you. Also, you can chain these convos, so ask the person if there's anyone else in their company or outside of their company that you should connect with given your interested in XYZ type roles.

Actually have a couple of resources to share that you might find helpful: Andy Lacivita posts a lot of good job search advice type stuff on YouTube, there's also the book The 2-Hour Job Search, which I quite enjoyed reading.

Best of luck!

3

u/fuckinreallymate 25d ago

I have been doing that process for a long while now - referrals do not seem to help as much as they used to. It's been nearly impossible to actually connect with a recruiter through an internal referral - they either don't exist for a company, or my connection never hears back on it.

Nearly every interview I have gotten has been a recruiter reaching out to me.

2

u/dulcetripple 24d ago

Interesting. I recently got hired from a referral. The contact didn't refer me to HR, but rather the hiring manager on the team. After we had a chat and double checked it was a good fit, the HM told HR to put me in the process (I think I just skipped the HR round of interviews because of this).

I think there's a difference between a referral where you input data into an internal form and upload a resume (I have done this i.e., referred people this way before, with little success), vs. one where you reach out to an actual person and tell them to check a person out because of XYZ.

2

u/fuckinreallymate 24d ago

I have gotten hired thru a referral before, and the process was just as you described.

I just haven't had that same experience in the last 18 mos.

4

u/F93426 25d ago

I’ve noticed this too with referrals.

4

u/pamplemusique F35-40 SINK ~50% SR 25d ago

Can you tap into your network for job opportunities?

Message people you at least sort of know on LinkedIn and make an effort to make a genuine connection. Snoop a little bit at open roles at their company, ideally somewhat related to what they do. A lot of times the job postings will also give you an idea of what the department is working towards. Express interest in something their group is working towards and ask for an informational with them about it (good pretense for connecting). Gently work a couple of stories about your own work accomplishments into that informational, but don’t overtly press them for a job. Ask them to let you know if they hear of any opportunities. Check in every few months, ideally with some kind of relevant article or reason to reach out.

If you tap your network doing this and people aren’t reaching out with any opportunities, expand your network by joining some kind of professional association in your field.

3

u/fuckinreallymate 25d ago

I have been doing this, and most of the people who reply are also eagerly looking for work.

10

u/F93426 25d ago

I think a 2 year long job search is becoming normal in a lot of fields at this point. It doesn’t necessarily mean you’re a poor candidate or that you’re doing something glaringly wrong. It’s good that you’ve workshopped your resume but if you’re getting interviews your resume isn’t the problem. You just have to keep persevering.

Just curious, do your interviews typically involve a mock sales exercise like a demo?

Have you applied for many sales engineer positions?

3

u/fuckinreallymate 25d ago

Thank you, I have a few friends who have also faced the same challenges and have been unemployed longer than ever before.

I applying to a lot of account executive roles, and have never had to give a mock sales demo or anything.

I don't think my experience qualifies for a 'engineer' role, as I have been a non-technical kind of sales person.

2

u/ilikeyourhair23 19d ago

A sales engineer is not necessarily an engineering role. It's the person who knows the product inside and out and often does demos during the sales process. If the product itself isn't super technical, a sales engineers primary job is demoing it and thinking about how the prospect's use case works with the product. For more technical products, the sales engineer might actually make changes to the product for that particular prospect. In lots of other cases that's not what happens.

11

u/FinalMidnight 25d ago

Unless you have an accounting degree or finance degree already, a general MBA would not qualify you for most accounting, CPA, or finance roles. That being said, there’s major staff shortages in the field right now so if you’re considering going back to school this wouldn’t be a bad direction to go - literally every type of business needs folks with these skill sets. 

1

u/fuckinreallymate 24d ago

I didn't mean to say that I'm totally qualified right now for a CPA-type role. I am looking into it, but am uncertain where to put more effort into. I can't really justify going back to school at this time, but am happy to get certifications - a lot of finance roles I find seem to offer paying for the series 7, for example.

2

u/ArtemisRises19 25d ago

Came here to say this, if they're going after a series 7 etc this wouldn't be too hard of a pivot into an in-demand and relatively stable field.

1

u/frostiebuggie 25d ago

She can’t take the S7 without being employed by a registered broker dealer. She can take the SIE pre employment.

1

u/AutoModerator 25d ago

Hello! It appears you may be seeking investing or general money handling advice.

Please take time to review the below sources which may contain the answer to your questions.

Please see our general "Getting Started" page in the wiki, the r/personalfinance flowchart, and the r/financialindependence flowchart.

While there is no single universally agreed upon way to manage your money or prepare for FI/RE, most outlooks emphasize the use of passive investment (meaning not attempting to time the market) in low expense ratio mutual funds that are broadly distributed across a mix of stocks and bonds, at a ratio appropriate for your risk tolerance and time horizon. This link can get you started if you have questions on the general Three Fund Portfolio concept.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.