Step #6: Apply for jobs!

As you follow all of these steps, it is important to keep applying for jobs you see advertised. If a job is advertised, it likely exists. Companies don’t spend $$$ in this economy to advertise, unless they are somewhat serious or conducting some market research as to who is out there. Either way, they won’t know you exist unless you apply!

Unfortunately, applying for jobs online has become both easier and more difficult, depending on the company. I was surprised to note how many companies will have a description posted on monster.com, for example, with a link that takes you to the company’s homepage and requires you to follow a particular format for uploading resume, adding references and contact info and sometimes even answering questions. Many require you to fill out past job experience using a particular format. Yes, it is time consuming, yes, it is required. Also, think about it as a numbers game. If people take the time to fill it out, then they are more likely going to only apply for something they are qualified for…which means, all those resumes from people that don’t have the qualifications are eliminated from the competition. I was also surprised by an application for a rather large consulting company that at the end had a “warning checklist” come up that asked you to literally “check” the box next to all the requirements: Do you have X years in this profession, etc. Ironically, it still let you submit if you didn’t have all the experience required, but I’m not sure if you would automatically be excluded. This is very tricky b/c experience is often subjective so why you might not have a Masters in Public Health, you might have 4 years of relevant experience. I hope they look at both- but I’m not sure!

The good side, besides the harder it is to apply, the less competition, is that you can also send emails with your resume attached to many more companies in a much shorter span of time than via mail. If you are at all qualified, you might as well apply. I know that when I was hiring at my firm, I would often advertise on www.craigslist.com and end up with tons of resumes and cover letters. Honestly, I always opened the resume first. If the resume was at all interesting, or the person seemed very smart (good schools, good prior jobs) but I couldn’t figure out why on earth they were applying for the position at hand, I would then open the cover letter and hope to find an explanation. Point is I often just looked at the CV! Sometimes I even called a person in because I found their CV interesting and wanted to give them a chance to explain why they were perfect for this job.

Point of the story- just apply. I know that HR managers hate to hear this, because it means they end up with endless resumes, but if you ARE Qualified, at least meet 75% of the requirements or such, then apply. It’s still worth a shot.

Moral of the Story: Numbers count. The more jobs you apply for that you are QUALIFIED for, the more likely you will get call backs and interviews and hopefully hired!