I was incredibly lucky during dot bomb because of one good connection that I reached out to first thing when I was laid off and had lunch with. In the month it took them to decide they wanted to (and could afford to) hire me, I didn't get so much as a nibble from anyone else.
I know a fair number of people who dropped off the map and I assume the careers of many never got back on track.
So, while I'd be even more emphatic if the OP were a newly minted undergrad, I'd definitely recommend either extending academia a bit if practical or just trying to find something.
it was pretty ugly back then but I consider it a good thing. At the time everyone wanted to be in IT, I remember cab drivers with their MCSE books and every kid with a degree could be a programmer for Anderson Consulting as long as you went through their 6 week boot camp. The dot bomb killed the weak, 2008 on the other hand was a different type of blood bath.
I know a fair number of people who dropped off the map and I assume the careers of many never got back on track.
So, while I'd be even more emphatic if the OP were a newly minted undergrad, I'd definitely recommend either extending academia a bit if practical or just trying to find something.