from the desk of....candidate 1
Professional Courtesy vs. Patience
I am now starting to feel more prepared for the job search; in large part because my graduate school offers career sessions to help students in our program navigate the process. We spend two hours on several Fridays throughout the semester talking about every aspect of searching for employment. Values alignment, location, salary and correspondence have all been focal points of our discussions.
Recently, we talked about the power of the cover letter and the resume. You know, matching headings, a solid font, and great catch phrases – the critical elements to being remembered. These parts make me feel really good. And admittedly, I am a little detail oriented, so I excel with this type of thing.
Since my last post, I have applied to several more jobs. Now my count is at about 16. It seems like a lot but so many places have only anticipated openings and other positions seem like they might be a stretch for my skill set. Regardless, I am baffled at the fact that so many schools have not even acknowledged receipt of my application.
I am not sure about you, but I think this is just rude. At the very least, employers advertising a position should offer a standard reply that says: “Thank you for submitting your application. We will start our review in a week, and will contact you with more information.” Is that too much to ask? Oh, I know - you receive a ton of applications for your amazing residence life position. Sure…. I mean why would you spend two minutes of your day sending a reply? It’s professional courtesy, just send the email.
And yes, there is a flip side to this. I probably should just be more patient. Not a heck of a lot of movement will happen before TPE, which is still four weeks away. Many employers are likely waiting on the applicant pool to fill, and I should probably respect that part of the process. Moreover, it’s email. They received it - it doesn’t’ need double checking. And, if it didn’t bounce back, somebody on the other end got it.
Maybe there’s a middle ground. More potential employers should be ready with a reply at a click’s notice, and applicants should hold their horses a bit. I’m not sure. I just know that I really appreciate it when I know that someone is tending to my application and that it’s not in cyberspace. Certainly, it makes me less anxious. We all could sign up for a little less anxiety…right?
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6 comments:
AMEN! I do feel a bit frustrated by those schools who have yet to acknowledge receipt of my application materials, especially since I applied to some of them nearly 5 weeks ago. I also think it's a matter of professional courtesy to shoot off a quick "thanks, we'll be in touch" reply. I took forever and a day to complete your application, finalize the cover letter, and send off the resume. I think the very least we should expect in return is a quick form letter email that says "Got it! Thanks!" Whew...that felt good to unload! Now back to the "oh, no! Don't worry about it!" response when a school finally does contact me back...God forbid I come off as impatient! :o)
from candidate 1...
Thank you for the comment. It has been a huge struggle for me. Similarly I have applied to jobs more than a month ago and still have not heard from potential employers. I maintain that if you are ready to post a position you should also be ready to reply to candidates and let them know you have received the application. Using a different perspective, a colleague and mentor of mine maintains that it takes schools time to develop a system to effectively communicate with all of the candidates. I can see both sides, but really all I want is a reply. I totally feel your pain. Finally if you liked this post, you may enjoy a future post entitled "Cover Letter + Resume = Crap Shoot." This piece discusses the pangs of applying to many positions and how it boils down to a numbers game. Thanks so much for following me, and good luck in your job search
I wish I could be so confident about items that are sent via email. Most emails do arrive where they are supposed to, however, I always question if they were received. Some schools have accounts just for job applications but when your materials are being sent to staff member's account, who knows if they read it or if it got lost in a torrent of other emails. I feel like at least one or two emails I send in a week (in general, not just job materials) are received but end up getting buried and never read.
I agree, there is a middle ground between being patient and being prudent. There are automated ways to respond to emails and I think some nature of a confirmation is a reasonable expectation.
I am glad that I am not the only one who is facing this sort of thing. Until I read this I was sure I was alone in this.
One thing that I have found that some of those emails are being lost. I applied to what I consider one of my top choices and did not get a reply. I finally broke down and called them to see where they were in their process. It was a good thing that I did. The email ended up in their Junk Mail folder and they had no plans to check that folder.
I have even gone as far as updating my resueme and sending it out to all the places I have replied to see if I get back some sort of response.
from candidate 1...
Admittedly, it takes some faith and trust in technology to believe that if my email doesn't bounce back that someone ACTUALLY received it. Like you, I still question whether or not it gets there. And I also over simply the process of sending a reply. Seems like there should be someone on the other end waiting at a moment's click to respond to my job application. Unfortunately, I have to deal with the bitter reality that this isn't true. I am with you, I think there should be some savvy automated way to ensure applicants that their application was received. I guess the only reassuring thing we have at the end of the day is the idea that if it is meant to be, it will be. I mean maybe our application being buried for a potential employer is a good thing, because it would have never worked out anyway. Just some food for thought. Thank you again for your comment and I hope you continue to follow my posts.
As an employer, I get multiple resumes a day, sometimes through email, sometimes in the mail, and many of our school's human resources site. I know it would be beneficial to give a confirmation but the reality is there's no time.
However, if someone writes me and asks for a confirmation, I don't mind at all.
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