"You're a failure."

That's been my internal dialogue for approximately the last eight weeks. Why? Because despite the fact that I graduated cum laude and even received an award at commencement, among other academic and non-academic accomplishments, I have been completely unable to find a job. I've been on a few interviews and sent out my resume at least 60 times, but to absolutely no avail.

And I'm not alone. This past May, thousands of students received their well earned B.A.'s or B.Sc.'s and entered into a job market that is the most impersonal it has been in years. Not only is there a demand for higher specialization, meaning getting your M.A., PhD, or equivalent higher degree before even being considered, there is also a demand for more 'experience' prior to being applicable for a job. And to make matter even grimmer, many employers are very unwilling to consider leadership positions held during your undergraduate career towards this 'x years of professional experience' requirement.

But, this is all the optimistic view.

As many recent graduates already know, about 75% of the time, your application doesn't even make it to a human being. All resumes and cover letters are sent through computer programs, which screen for key words, and if your resume doesn't include them, then you simply don't even make the cut. This is also keeping in mind that you're applying for a job that is even still open, as most jobs posted to the internet today are either already filled or will most likely be filled by an internal candidate.

So what does all of this mean? Well, for young people such as myself, it means constantly adjusting your resume and cover letter, hoping against hope that you'll make it far enough in the process that someone will give you a chance.

Today's job market has effectively eliminated the human element to the job search. It's easy to disregard a candidate as too immature or under-qualified when they are simply reduced to a single-page, Times New Roman, point 10 font.

This is all, of course, not to say that young people don't get hired anymore. I have several friends who have been lucky enough to receive positions and I mean it when I say I am truly happy for each and every one of them. But the reality is that most young people today spend several months looking for that first job and I just happen to be one of those people.

So to all my fellow unemployed graduates of the class of 2016, please know that you are not a failure simply because you have been unable to find full time employment. Just remember to keep putting yourself out there with the knowledge that one day everything will fall into place for you too, but you have to be kind to yourself during the process.