Haven’t Been Called for an Interview Yet?
How long has it been since you applied for that job? You definitely should have been called for an interview by now. So what went wrong. In the journey of searching for a job, there are different stages and several parameters to consider; understanding the rules that apply to the different stages of a job hunt are vital to landing that dream job. The default method most people use is to search for a job, then forward their cover letter and static CV, then wait for an invitation to an interview.
When the invitation doesn’t show up eventually, they brush it off as bad luck and start the cycle of job search and application all over again without doing anything different. It’s kind of irresponsible to just brush off failure to secure an interview as merely bad luck and hope that somehow things will miraculously get better the next time. We ought to be curious enough to find out if something can be done differently, perhaps something can be changed to bring the desired result in our job search. In today's article, we explore 13 reasons why applicants fail to make it to the interview stage of a job search and suggest ways to circumvent this hurdle.
1 Poorly Prepared CV
A bad CV is arguably the number one reason most applicants fail to make it to the interview stage. Though its highly recommended that a CV be prepared by the applicant personally, it’s also a good idea to have someone more professional and proficient in the language being used do a little bit of proofreading on the final draft. The quality of most applicants’ CVs are below average. Talk or poor text formatting, grammatical errors, inappropriate language, including irrelevant information while excluding relevant ones, CV being too lengthy or too short, etc. Bottom line, a bad CV will always bring the job search to an abrupt end even before it begins. Click here to check out some of our professional and fully customizable CV templates to help in preparing a good CV
2 Poorly Written Cover Letter
The rules of CV writing also apply to cover letters. It should be tailored to the job requirements. It’s not good to have one generic cover letter for applying to every kind of job. The tone of language, grammar, tenses, text formatting and length of the letter among several other factors must be checked for consistency and excellence.
3 Suspicious Professional Background
The professional backgrounds of certain applicants have been their undoing in a job search. Factors like changing jobs very frequently usually signals an employee who is not loyal and trustworthy. In some cases, it’s also seen as someone who is most likely rebellious and insubordinate. Again having a work history with company names which cannot be traced also raises questions and can lead to the applicants document to be regarded as a forgery. Try to provide truthful information on work experience.
4 Lack of Experience
Depending on the particular vacancy, the recruiters may not necessarily be in need of just someone with the skills needed for the job but someone who has also worked in that position or industry for a certain number of years. Not meeting the minimum year’s requirement can also lead to not being contacted for an interview.
5 Referral Problems
Referral problems occur in two different ways. The first is that the referees provided on your CV are not reachable, so they cannot vouch for you, mainly for your skills, qualities and character. The second is that your referees were reachable but did not give an impressive testimony of you. It’s important to know how people perceive you before using them as your referees. That is why it’s not such a bad idea to be diligent and all out at your current place of work and wherever you find yourself. That way people will gladly vouch for you when contacted by recruiters.
6 Questionable Social Media Presence
One of the ways recruiters narrow down job applications is to visit the social media profiles of the applicants. The image you put out there of yourself may or may not help your chances. The social media profiles of applicants should depict responsible, educated and civilized individuals. Habits like posting images of yourself half-naked and posting racially inspired comments should be avoided. Some companies even fire their employees for unacceptable social media activities.
7 Location Issues
Some job advertisements specifically state that the prospective applicants be residing in a particular country, city or neighborhood. Be sure to take those into consideration when applying and edit your CV and cover letter accordingly.
8 Late Application
In some cases, applications were sent after the deadline provided on the advertisement. If you are quite certain of your qualification and think you stand a chance of landing the job as long as your application is reviewed, maybe you should consider going to submit your application in person. Alternatively, you can add a note explaining why your application was delivered late.
9 Company Bias
Company bias occurs in so many ways. In some cases, the recruiters already had candidates for the position even before they advertised the job. The advertisement in this case was just a mere formality. It was done simply because company policy probably stipulates that every vacancy be advertised. Some recruiters may also be partial in processing applications. If you are sure you’ve checked all the boxes of things to do while applying for a job and still didn’t get it, just encourage yourself and move on.
10 Not Qualified for the Job
Another reason for not reaching the interview stage is falling below the prescribed qualification and requirements for applicants. Maybe an application was sent by a BSc degree holder for a job that clearly stated that that the minimum qualification be an MSc. It’s a good idea to make sure most of the requirements are met when applying for a job. Qualification entails a lot; age, spoken languages, academic degree, computer literacy, knowledge of certain software or tools, specific skills, etc. Study the listings carefully to know where you stand as far as qualifications are concerned. If you realize that you lack too many skills required in your field, perhaps you should consider taking a professional or online course to upgrade yourself. Udemy and LinkedIn Learning are two outstanding online learning platforms to acquire a new skill.
11 Over Qualified
In some rare cases, the applicant may be overqualified for the job. Think of a PhD holder applying for a job meant for a BSc holder. It’s easy to think that someone who is more than qualified should stand the high chance of getting hired but it doesn’t quite work that way. If your qualifications are way above what is advertised, you tend to be overlooked in most cases.
12 Not Reachable After Applying
Though not commonplace as some of the other factors, this can also be a reason for missing out on an interview. Maybe you lost your phone after applying for job, or forgot the password to your email, or had your email account hacked. Not being reachable via the specific phone number or email provided on your application documents can mean forfeiting an interview. Be sure to be always reachable after submitting an application for a job.
13 Competitors With More Impressive Resumes
Sometimes you are just way in over your head. You are competing against people who apparently are smarter, more intelligent, have more impressive CVs and cover letters and are basically better than you in every way. Yeah it happens, no bad feelings.
Hope this post helps you find good fortunes in your search for a job starting with making it to the interview stage. Prepare very well, be confident and most of all pray and all will be well. Be sure to check out our CV templates to use as a model to design yours. Ghanaians who wish to order professional CV writing services should click here.
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