Good comments so far, specially those touching on skill-set rust and interviewer bias. I'd like to offer a different perspective, not because is better but beca

Good comments so far, specially those touching on skill-set rust and interviewer bias. I'd like to offer a different perspective, not because is better but because is another uncorrelated factor. Maybe more seasoned people struggling to find work are looking for jobs as if they were young? As a single data point, I have 10 years of (paid) experience and a graduate degree. When I was about 30 I struggled a lot to find any IT related position. Part of it had to do with me doing the same thing as all the fresh crop of B.A.s were doing at the same time: send resumes, apply to jobs online, contact my alumni association, etc. The thing is that I was competing in a market where I was seen as past the pull date: overqualified and too expensive for entry level positions, but still not mature enough for management. Fast forward 8 years and I am doing much better. One thing I accidentally discovered is that there is a lot of weight in having a list of colleagues that know you, trust you, and are willing/able to let you know of career opportunities that are not heavily publicized. I have been in both sides of that kind of relationship and it is a win-win. So, maybe some people struggling may benefit from being a little more social? Or maybe their own network is very isolated (all work at the same place) so they all enter times of need at the same time and are not able to help each other out?