:). Ok, I get it now. Btw I've heard an interview with some multinational IT company boss, and he was like: "programmers in Romania get between 500-1500 euros/month, while in the Netherlands office they get between 3500-5000, the only difference between them being that the guys in NED speak dutch."
Wtf... For 5000 euros/month I'll learn japanese if I have to.

So is the quality of life. Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, Bosnia... all balkan countries are horrible to live in and raise your children in. So yes, I agree with the poster who would learn Japanese go get out of balkan misery. Hell i'd event work 2 jobs just to get my family and me out of here

Yeah... that's why I pay 1.45 euros/l for diesel fuel right?

This. Nearly every single "entry level" job I've found in my field has 3-5 years of experience as a minimum qualification. One firm had an entry level internship require 3 years of experience working in a large firm just to be considered. It's completely absurd to see companies being so picky about their entry level candidates' experience, all the while having job listings go unfilled for several months.

I suppose it eases my mind slightly to know that hardly anyone I graduated with has found any meaningful employment either, so at least I can tell myself it's not just me being a completely undesired person.

24 is not so late. After finishing university(economics) i went to military for 6 months.(it is mandatory) After that i searched for job for 1.5 years and switched to software development by learning by myself at home. Finding job is hard.

I can imagine how frustrating the experience had to be :(.

Based on what I experienced in Czech and Budapest, the cost of living here in The Netherlands is indeed significantly higher.
The minimal gross salary per month for a full time job is 1477.80 this year. Depending on your employer that's 36-40 hours a week depending on your employer or branche.
I have no idea what the average wages are here, but I think it's between €2000-3500 a month. Downside here is that prices are high for everything. Fresh food is expensive, buyer's house prices are high, every form of transport is expensive, ...

A few years ago I went to Prague with a friend of mine. Our first meal of the day there was in the evening. We had 2 bottles of water (0.75 liters), a none alcholic drink, several beers, an appetizer and a main course. Tip included we paid €20 total. In The Netherlands we would have paid more for the drinks alone.
A 5 minute ride by taxi from the train station to my home costs €8 (rounded up from €7.xx). In Budapest 20-30 minutes in a taxi costs me less.
A 0.2 liter beer or coke in a bar or restaurant costs €2.50-3. If you go to Amsterdam you can add €1.50-2.50 to that in the popular places. At the Sziget festival in Budapest a 0.5 liter can costs around that amount.

Lots of people here are struggling to make ends meet.
As for programmers salaries, I work at an ICT company. Most of our programmers are closer to €3500 than €5000. I was a programmer here for a few years and started at minimal wages. Now I'm a servicedesk employee doing some programming, consulting, system maintenance and system management. I still don't make €3500.
Fortunately I can easily make ends meet and save some money at the end of the month. I thank my parents for that. They thought me the value of money. I spend money when I need to, not when I want to. I'm also not used to replacing items which are still good.

Btw our IRS assumes a 4% interest on savings above 21k. That 4% is met with a 30% tax. meaning you pay 1.2% over your savings. Real interest on saving accounts currently is 1.5% (thank you ECB). Inflation is between 2.5-3%.

Words of wisdom.

I'm a Biochemistry graduate (with a Master in Molecular Genetics), and damn it if I worked one single day in my field.
It's not only hard to find a job in the field I studied, it's actually pretty much impossible. And that's due to ... I don't even want to get started on reasons and all.

Worked as desktop publisher for 7 years, content manager, internet caffee supervisor, etc.

I'm having thoughts of sending my resume to some foreign magazines, newspapers, alongside my portfolio, and hope I'll get an answer.

Was at an interview yesterday, and of course, I was told "I'll feed back what we discussed to HR, and they will call you".
Yeah, right, I'm sure they will. I'd better start calling myself.

And it's been almost an year since the layoffs at my last job. :|

You are lawyer go fight for justice and against corruption. You will be bribed and paid to stop but hopefully you wont stop.