A dad-of-four with an MBA in technology management has claimed he's unable to land a job despite having sent out hundreds of applications.
When he was a teenager, Marcial Quinones didn't have any trouble getting jobs.
He'd dropped out of school in seventh grade after a 'difficult upbringing', but he began 'taking things more seriously' after he became a father at 18.
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Speaking to Business Insider, Quinones explained how he was interested in computers and found jobs helping the Salvation Army and other businesses with their devices.
His experience helped him land a job as head technician for a computer company, and by 1999 he was working at Intel, where he worked as an IT manager for a year before getting laid off.
Hoping to further his education, Quinones decided to enrol in community college and secured his associate degree in computer programming, then a bachelor's degree in computer programming, and finally an MBA program in technology management.
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All of that did help Quinones land a job as chief technology officer for an import and export company, but in 2010, two years into the job, Quinones experienced a situation in his family which cost him his job.
The dad told Business Insider it was 'extremely difficult to recover from', and despite his best efforts, he's struggled to land another job in his field ever since.
Since the early 2010s, Quinones estimates he's sent out approximately 1,500 applications and has redone his résumé multiple times.
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Quinones even spent $300 to have his résumé created by a professional, but even that failed to result in any interviews.
He's had some part-time jobs and has built his own inventory software to sell to companies, but has struggled to even make it to the interview stage with businesses, let alone secure anything long-term.
Screenshots reviewed by Business Insider revealed Quinones has been receiving five-to-10 rejections every day this year.
"I wish there was an easier way, but traditional ways of looking for employment have been overshadowed by artificial intelligence and lack of human interaction," Quinones said.
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He claimed he's gone to the lengths of walking in to local businesses to discuss work, only to be told he 'would not be happy working there because it is not part of [his] high-skilled profession'.
"This is even after not including my education not to become overqualified," he said. "However, when they reviewed my work history, it was clear I am."
"I used to get interviews for jobs where I beat out 600 people," he added.
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"Now, it's hard to get a job when you don't have a foot in the door to interview."
Quinones has been helping to make ends meet by driving for Uber and taking on small side projects, but his family-of-six is currently mostly supported through his wife's work as a sales supervisor.
Topics: Education, Technology, Money, Life
Emily Brown