As mentioned, I don’t believe that being unemployed was the only reason in isolation that someone would be denied acceptance to a religious vocation, but I do believe that it’s an entirely rational reason to raise a ‘red flag’.
I say this because I sort of experienced it. Loosing a job can be a very stressful time (as I know first hand!), and one starts considering all their options, and, of course, where they will get another job. If you happen to be a single Catholic, it’s only natural that you might see a job loss as a ‘sign’ from God, which it may or may not be. Perhaps you’re just down on yourself, and entering seminary would seem like a great way to end your current dilemma of being unemployed, and convince yourself the call is genuine. I write this, because I experienced this myself.
I never actually spoke to anybody about it, but I was seriously considering a vocation. However, I soon got a great new job, and quickly realized that God wasn’t calling me to the priesthood. Looking back, I see now that for me, it was an emotional response to believe I was being called, and not a true calling.
However, even though flags are raised, it could indeed be a sign from God. Perhaps the job loss was the ‘sign’ to get you thinking, but to know for sure, I think a wise vocation director would encourage the candidate in discerning his/her calling, but recommend the candidate go back to work in order to truly test the call - to determine if it remains strong once one would be back to work.
