Jack Weis, who earned a doctorate in chemical engineering from Princeton University, has submitted more than 2,300 job applications since his 2024 graduation without securing stable employment.

Weis graduated summa cum laude from Rice University before beginning his doctoral studies at Princeton in 2018, and his research on ice formation was cited in discussions of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Despite his strong academic record, Weis broadened his job search beyond his specialization, applying for software engineering, consulting, and even food‑preparation positions at a frozen crab cake company.

In January 2026 he took a short‑term contract with AI startup Mercor, earning $70 (KSh 9,090) per hour to train artificial‑intelligence models, but the work dried up and the contract ended in mid‑March 2026.

Weis’s situation has been highlighted as an example of the tightening U.S. job market, where employers across sectors have reduced hiring and competition for research‑intensive roles has intensified.

The report notes that, at 30 years old, Weis remains unemployed despite his credentials, underscoring the difficulty for doctorate holders to translate academic achievements into consistent work.