Is a 6-year gap really a disadvantage in job hunting? Talking about the reality. (Introduction #4)

Hello. I am Roku, a student who effectively spent many years as a ronin.

Before writing the main content, I would like to write about "whether being a long-term ronin is a disadvantage in new graduate job hunting".

Let me start with the conclusion.

When job hunting as a new graduate, being a long-term ronin is a handicap.

However, there is no need to be pessimistic after hearing this.

Just because it is a handicap does not mean you will not receive any job offers or that you cannot get a job.

Even if it is a handicap or a disadvantage, it is only in comparison to other students (current students).

In my case, I was effectively a 6-year ronin. At the time, when I was job hunting as a university student, I was 27 years old. Other students were 21 to 22 years old.

If a current student graduates from university straight through and gets a job as a new graduate, at 27, they would be in their 5th or 6th year as a working professional.

I think they would be in a position to guide juniors and have the discretion to work on their own.

Since I was that age when I was job hunting, it is natural that it would be a disadvantage.

Actually, when I was job hunting in my third year of university, I applied to over 100 companies, but most of them were rejected at the document screening stage.

At the time, I suspected, "Is this the so-called age filter...?"

While my university friends would send out 10 entry sheets and pass 6 or 7, it was good if I passed 1 out of 10. In terms of probability, that is 10%.

Since the pass rate was 10%, I think now that it is not such a bad number, but at the time, I felt despair.

Even if I was lucky enough to proceed to an interview, I repeatedly failed the first round of selection,
and depending on the company, I was suddenly called out by HR during a first-round group discussion,

and lectured, "Don't you feel sorry for the other kids when you discuss with them at that age? Aren't you ashamed?"

I was even rejected after being told that.

(This... I know it's hard to believe, but it's a true story...)

In the middle of job hunting, my heart almost broke, thinking, "Can't I get a job because I'm a long-term ronin?"

However, as a result of continuing my job search until the end,
I was eventually able to receive a job offer from a major company (a railway company).

The reason I applied to over 100 companies and kept getting rejected at the document stage might have been partly due to being a long-term ronin.

However, essentially, the cause was in my own way of job hunting. I repeated trial and error and found a way forward.

There is a way to fight in job hunting that is unique to long-term ronin.

Even if you are a long-term ronin, you can get a job.

"If you are a liberal arts student at a private university and a long-term ronin, your life is over. You can't get a job."
I see this written on the internet, but
there is no need to take that seriously.

To repeat, everything depends on you.

How to succeed in job hunting even as a long-term ronin is written in detail in the following article.
I hope it can be of help to those who are anxious or worried.

The next article is here.

"All experiences lead to the present—Until I, a 6-year ronin, returned to society"
In my note, I will share the journey from my life as a shut-in after graduating high school and my time as a part-timer, to entering university as an effective 6-year ronin, and overcoming the handicap of being a long-term ronin to receive a job offer from a major railway company, divided into 4 episodes.

➡️ I have compiled the complete record of the path I took. Click here for details.