People under 5 YoE who managed to land a job in 2024, how did you do it? /u/BJJ-Newbie CSCQ protests reddit

I have a double masters degree in CS and DS from a reputed US university. I have a little over 3.5 years of professional work experience after graduation. I was laid off in January last year and haven’t been able to find a full time role ever since. Fortunately, a startup offered to let me volunteer as an MLE. I worked unpaid for about 4 months and have started getting paid for only an hour these past 2 months. I’m struggling to make ends meet and am also in debt which is why I am trying to find a full time role. The problem is, in 2024, despite aggressively applying, I was only able to get one interview (via referral) which I did not clear.

I don’t want history to repeat itself in 2025 which is why I’m turning to all of y’all amazing people for help. I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. So here are my questions.

1) How do yall apply? Do yall just tailor your resume for a particular role and spam apply for that role? Do yall tailor your resume for each and every job you apply to pass the ATS? If yes, how much time do you spend per application and how many applications do y’all send in a day?

2) Is the issue my resume? Y’all will be able to see my resume in my post history. Are my skills and experience just not compatible with the current demands in tech?

3) What’s the best course of action for me to move forward? I’ve been really stressed and my depression has resurfaced because of this.

EDIT : For more context, I have a valid h1 visa that needs to be transferred to another company which would take about 2-3 weeks to process. Also I’m out of the country because I didn’t wanna overstay and become illegal. Wanna immigrate back into the country legally with a valid reputable job.

I have a double masters degree in CS and DS from a reputed US university. I have a little over 3.5 years of professional work experience after graduation. I was laid off in January last year and haven’t been able to find a full time role ever since. Fortunately, a startup offered to let me volunteer as an MLE. I worked unpaid for about 4 months and have started getting paid for only an hour these past 2 months. I’m struggling to make ends meet and am also in debt which is why I am trying to find a full time role. The problem is, in 2024, despite aggressively applying, I was only able to get one interview (via referral) which I did not clear.

I don’t want history to repeat itself in 2025 which is why I’m turning to all of y’all amazing people for help. I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. So here are my questions.

1) How do yall apply? Do yall just tailor your resume for a particular role and spam apply for that role? Do yall tailor your resume for each and every job you apply to pass the ATS? If yes, how much time do you spend per application and how many applications do y’all send in a day?

2) Is the issue my resume? Y’all will be able to see my resume in my post history. Are my skills and experience just not compatible with the current demands in tech?

3) What’s the best course of action for me to move forward? I’ve been really stressed and my depression has resurfaced because of this.

EDIT : For more context, I have a valid h1 visa that needs to be transferred to another company which would take about 2-3 weeks to process. Also I’m out of the country because I didn’t wanna overstay and become illegal. Wanna immigrate back into the country legally with a valid reputable job.