Finding a job is seriously hard. I mean, I have not been able to find anything but retail work for the longest time. But a consistent seven month job was stolen because someone had a week (yes a week) more experience than I did. So believe me, it's rough. You probably already understand how rough that is, so i'm not gonna rant about it. Just know that you've toughed it out this long. Sure it feels crappy, believe me, i've been there, but you have persevered this long. It's rough, but you have made it this far. Sooner or later you WILL get what you want/need. Just keep your chin up, keep on a smile, and fill out as many applications as humanly possible. You got this!

Thanks for the motivation, continuing to try and keep a smile is really all I can do. But it gets pretty depressing when I can't even get retail or fast food work. Been over a year since I started cracking down on job applications and I've gotten a total of 4 interviews.

I was stream 1. Believe me, I know the pain (and from what I heard, stream 4 gets that much more assistance that you may just be in a better boat than I am!)
This is unfortunately gonna be part-rant and part-help, please don't take this too seriously, because I really do want to help you as much as I can, but I'm just as jaded with centrelink, Job Service Providers (JSPs) and the government in general as you are. If you still want to find out more, despite the fact that I'm gonna sound really goddamn angry (SORRY ILU I WANNA HELP <3), read on.

I was long-term unemployed up until a month ago (And I'm still wrapped around centrelink's little finger because the work I've got is only part-time.) I was in much the same situation as you (though I do have qualifications, they are largely irrelevant because they're so specific, and I was mooching off my mum and boyfriend at the same time)
I know your pain. Here's a couple of things that helped me, and maybe, just maybe, they'll help you.

First up? I was with a crummy JSP for almost two years. They were massive buckets of arse. They convinced me that they couldn't help with anything, that I had to all the legwork myself.
That's a fucking lie and they knew it.
I complained and complained and FINALLY got moved to someone who gave a damn. They could see that I really wanted the help (it's unfortunate that some people don't, and they're required to help everyone equally, but this lady didn't give one flying fuck about that). Here's why the right JSP helped me immensely (and may just help you too)

READ THIS PART WELL. I am stream 1 and I got offered this assistance, I see absolutely no reason why they can't offer this to you. The thing is to get your facts straight. Here are things that the right JSP can and will help you with:
Reverse Marketing. Grab a Yellow Pages (you can order them to your house for free, look it up online, or the JSP office will have one there for you). Write down the names and numbers of some businesses you want to try. Then take that list and push it in your JSP's face. They HAVE to be looking for something for you. HAVE to be. If they're not, then they're not doing their job properly. I lucked out and got someone who took as many names as I could provide, but there is a set number that they will ring up on your behalf, and they don't need to do any more than that. But they will ring up, they will advertise you, and that will definitely not hurt.
Subsidising things that will help in getting a job. For me, this was getting my license. They paid for a set number of lessons, my test and my license fee. This was because public transport is pretty limited out my way, and with my license in hand, the number of jobs I could suddenly apply for increased tenfold. When I got my part-time job, they also helped pay for work and safety equipment. See what they can do for you, because it may just be a little help.
Making a REASONABLE Employment Pathway Plan. My first JSP fucked this right the way up, putting down that because I had a degree in Animal Science, that was what I wanted. That was ALL I wanted. I finally got that fixed when I sat down and explained in intense fucking detail all the things I could do, and that if any jobs came up in ANY field that I could perform remotely well in, to give me a call immediately. my EPP now reflects that really well, saying that because I have part-time work, I want either more part-time in any field, or full-time in an animal-related field. This allows more options for jobs to crop up.

Now, what I did. I applied through websites for years, and nothing worked. Turns out applying through websites allows you to reach...maybe a quarter of the job market.
I hated everything I am about to explain, but it landed me a job in two weeks so I have to laud it.
First up, I found a book called "What Colour Is Your Parachute". This book straight up saved me. It allowed me to focus, and where I was applying for anything and everything before, I found that I could now focus on the fields I wanted, and it gave me pointers on how to do everything from applying to resumés to interviews (and it wasn't coming from someone who'd "seen it all, ah yes I was unemployed once I know your struggles" (protip no they fucking don't), so it was easier to read through and not feel ashamed about it.
Then came time to apply for stuff. I didn't believe in this method, I thought it was kind of stupid. I hate ringing people. I really intensely hate it.
But I grabbed that yellow pages again, found the fields I wanted, and rang every motherfucker in there. And it landed me eleven emailed resumés, three interviews and one job. All in the space of two weeks.
I cannot stress enough how important this is when applying for businesses and such. Just look up everywhere you think you can work for and tell them that you are ready and eager for a job. Job search websites are nice but they just don't cut it. People were often genuinely surprised that someone was ringing them about a job, and some offered interviews before they'd even seen a resume or cover letter, simply because I'd explained that I really wanted this goddamn job. The animal industry is one of the hardest to get jobs in, and I did it. After two long years of getting fucked around, I stopped taking shit from people, rang up every person in the goddamn phone book and asked. And I got it.

Now, I'm not saying this is all gonna work out for you like it did for me. But I sincerely hope it does, because I know how it feels to be at the mercy of the government with no help, to actually pass the 22-year-old milestone and start getting government assistance, to very nearly become the stereotypical dole-bludger. I shudder to think how close I came to being stuck there forever. But the government is not in this for you, as much as they say they might be. You've gotta turn around and demand as much as you can from both them and any businesses you find, and get really aggressive. I don't want what almost happened to me to happen to you. I want you to fucking succeed, and I just hope that a little of what I've said here will help you to do that. If you want any more advice/tips/someone to vent to (:P), let me know! Good luck!

Hah, you actually made me tear up a little. Thank you so much, I'm so glad that someone's finally on the same page as me. I didn't even know you were Australian! Gonna head to my local library and see if I can find that book. I have absolutely no idea what I wanna do if I had the choice, maybe that'll help me find out.
What was the name of your JSP? I've been with Matchworks for a long time and even had extreme family leverage (my aunt is a regional manager) and they did diddly squat. There's a Max Employment nearby so imma give them a poke. But not before ringing every tom dick and harry about a job.
Thanks so much again for the advice, I really really super appreciate it. It makes me feel a lot better knowing someone found a way out of this hole.

Heck yeah, Melbourne too! I have no idea where you are, but if there is any chance of it, head to Job Prospects in Heidelberg and ask for Kathy. She's the one that got me outta my mess. (And if not, then yeah, no one place is better than the other, it's more about finding a person within the company that is willing to listen. There's nothing wrong with sifting through a few places until you find a JSP that works for you.)

Despite me having a degree, I never quite knew what I could do with it, or what my skills were. The book just helped me sort that all out, get it down on paper. It seems silly to follow all their instructions, but it actually did help (and there were a couple of parts I didn't do, it was just about finding what I needed and going from there).

But yeah. Ringing places just worked for me. And I didn't think it would and I didn't know it would, but the response I received was amazing. Even people who didn't have work appreciated the fact that I'd taken the time to come to them. I don't know what industry you're looking to get into, but some places (particularly smaller ones?) are often willing to hire people without experience if you're keen enough, and you can demonstrate some skills that will benefit them (e.g. for an office position, you may not have the years of experience but if you can prove you know your way around a computer, that's equally fantastic for them). Some places actually want new-to-the-market people, since they get a blank slate to train in their methods and be confident they're not going to do things another way because they think it'll be better.

So keep your chin up! I know exactly how it feels to be in this hole, and how good it feels to start being rid of it (I'm not out of the woods yet, part-time is nice but I need full-time work before I can call myself truly independent). And hey, Melbourne! If you ever wanna meet up, coffee, hang out with other cool people (I think I'm cool ha ha ha >_>), lemme know! (If it weren't April I'd talk about CFG and hanging out there, but one furcon a year just ain't enough xD)

I can keep sending photos of jobs you can apply for at JB
places like Chadstone an Knox tho.. just keep an eye on our website an apply.

I'm sure you'll find something soon hun, TOTALLY UNDERSTAND THAT FRUSTRATION

I would super appreciate it in case I've missed any, I'm applying for all the ones I can get to! Would be super nice to work somewhere I'll actually enjoy.

Oh trust me I'm in the exact same boat right now and its absolute hell. I feel so guilty that I still have to depend on my mum to give me money occasionally. I wish I could do art commissions but my art is so average no one wants it. It's really unfair how hard it is to get jobs pretty much everywhere lately. I can't even get a job at McDonalds either and its purely because they want people under 18 I'm guessing. I've only gotten 3 interviews in 7 months, sometimes you gotta wonder why you bother ugh.

Fast food seem to just be scumbags like that. I applied for all the McDonalds, KFCs and Hungry Jacks along the belgrave and lillydale lines, my inbox is overflowing with automated rejection emails. Living off anything creative is really difficult to get into because you need to build a good reputation and fanbase which takes forever. I do love your arts though they're super crazy adorable. If I wasn't in a tough spot I would commission you for a palette commission. Give 11sharn11's comment a read, I had no idea ringing up places asking for a job would actually work.

It might take time, but you can always get what you want when you work hard for it.. And you definitely seem to be doing that.

Fast food is unfortunately a hard type of job to get into once you're 18. And retail? Yeah they want you to have experience (which is stupid).. But your Murrstralia ideas are amazing and I can see things really kicking off once you're up and running. I know you can do it!

Yeah it does take time, but I can't be without income in that meantime. I'd absolutely love murrstralia to kick off, but annoyingly we can't get started on the... "main attraction".. until we get a buttload of silicone and move somewhere with a shed (nasty nasty silicone fumes). Silicone does not come cheaply here sadly.
On another note I'm crazy super excited to see how your first fursuit head turns out. All the WIPs are looking amazing!

Aussie prices for anything awesome are just ludicrous :(
I've seen you guys are looking at places, and I'm sure you'll find one when the time is right :)
Thanks heaps! I'm super nervous about finishing it.. which should happen tomorrow..

I'm with you there man.
You gotta have experience to get a job, you gotta have a job to get experience.
Shits fucked up

Shits fucked up, the entire job market in a nutshell XD

Yup sure is man