Ask HN: Has my education made me unhireable?

Hello, Hacker News. I've been despairing over something lately.

I've poured the last four years into a CS PhD and am about to graduate. I don't intend to take an academic position. I applied to a few companies, but none called back.

I have a background many geeks share: coding from an early age, spending their teenage years in IRC soaking up everything, playing, hacking. When I finished high school, I went into CS, where I met my future advisor. He suggested I apply as a PhD so he could fund me. I wasn't aware then that PhD meant "professor in training", nor that the university I'd go to has a reputation for producing bad grads. It seemed like a good opportunity, so I took it.

My advisor put me to work solo on developing a large system that would be the foundation for a (possibly commercial) web service. I saw this project through from the ground up. I got to experiment with different technologies. I made a habit of writing clean code/documentation. All in all, a lot of valuable experience.

People fresh out of academia are typically some of the worst software developers imaginable, doubly so for those with no job experience. I don't feel like I meet the stereotype, but looking at my resume you can't tell. My advisor discouraged internships, and nothing I've done outside of academia is worth putting in a resume.

I feel like I'm trapped. I'm overqualified, yet have no work experience. The only thing I am qualified for is an academic job I don't want. Now I'm about to be without income.

The companies I've applied to are all big, though I think I'd fit well in an early-stage startup where I could take on a generalist role. But I feel like such a position takes connections I don't have. Could I approach the founders at such a company directly? How can I prove I'm not just yet another post-academia liability if no one will look past my resume? Am I fucked?