As a career coach, I’m often asked, “why don’t they call me?”
A major complaint of job seekers is not receiving responses to their job applications. This complaint has two sides. On one hand, companies may receive hundreds of applications for one job opening and simply do not have time to respond to every applicant. On the other hand, applicants who apply for jobs at least want an acknowledgement that the company received their application. When you’re the applicant, what can you do to improve your chances of being considered for a job?
If you know the name of the person to whom you sent your application, you can call that person to ask if they received your application. While your call is unlikely to change whether or not the company is considering you for the job, you may feel as if you have some control.
You can also ask someone already working for the company to which you are applying to recommend you to the hiring manager or ask the hiring manager to at least review your application. This method of networking is one reason www.LinkedIn.com is so popular. On this website, you can search for names of employees working at specific companies to which you are applying and ask their help to improve your chances of being hired.
Direct calls to prospective employers and networking are two means that may help improve the chances you are considered for a position. Patience and persistence are others. And while you’re waiting for a reply, nothing is more helpful than support from family, friends, and even your career coach!
We hope this is helpful to you! Terry L. Wynne, Ed.S., LPC, BCC, Career Coach at HallieCrawford.com.
