0 callbacks. 1-year gap. Haven’t coded in 6 months. Is Java/Spring still worth betting on in 2026?

Need honest advice from people already in the industry.

Current situation:

• BCA graduate

• 1-year gap

• Now doing MCA

• Java / Spring Boot / REST APIs

• Applied a lot before the gap - got 0 callbacks

• Burnt out and stopped coding for 6 months

Now trying to restart from scratch.

I can grind hard, but clearly I was doing something wrong and I do not want to waste another year repeating it.

Need blunt advice on 3 things:

Is Java/Spring still worth sticking with for fresher roles in 2026, or is it a bad bet right now?

What projects actually make recruiters shortlist a fresher?

If you were in my position, what would your next 90-day roadmap look like?

No motivation quotes. No sugarcoating.

Just what works, what does not, and what I should fix.