After being turned down – or just plain ignored – for 200 job applications, Rosie Percy asks what’s a graduate got to do to get noticed?
A year ago I was still a student, clawing my way through my final year in an attempt to rectify the previous months of oversleeping and under working.
The last few months of my studies were a blur of scrawled notes and endless research, and the biggest obstacle I faced was battling the occasional all-consuming hangover.
However I was urged on through the long slog by the chorus of ‘it’ll all be worth it in the end’ chirped at me by hopeful parents and lecturers desperate to keep up their stellar pass rate.
I was promised that the hard work and 4am bedtimes would be worth the degree earned at the end which would be my fast-track golden ticket to my dream career, so I kept my eyes patiently focused on the promises of freedom and success that glimmered on the horizon.
Fast forward to present day and I’m a graduate going nowhere; I’m employed in a monotonous, mind-numbing temping role despite submitting and promptly getting rejected from more than 200 jobs.
Despite my optimism level reaching a dangerous low, I still start each application with a deep breath, a renewed sense of positivity and the fresh hope that maybe this time will be different.
For every 30 job applications I receive one generic rejection and the rest are ignored. My inbox now almost gives me a sympathetic smile and braces for the worst each time I excitedly open an email from a prospective employer.
From my endless applications I have only received feedback twice which vaguely informs me that the company loved my personality, but they’ve selected someone with more experience.
Companies often generate an automated response informing me that I have not been successful on this occasion, and cannot provide any further feedback at this time without any advice on how to progress, how should I know what I’m doing wrong?
In the hope of improving my chances I signed up for instant job alerts, joined endless recruitment agencies and use Twitter to follow media recruiters to hopefully spot a golden opportunity, but to no avail. These sites provide more opportunities, but I’m still knocked back from them without so much as a ‘no thank you’.
I emerge from the settling dust generated by my constant crazed job search and find myself asking why I am so easy to reject and where is the job that I was always promised was waiting for me?
I come to the conclusion that it must be one of two things: either my deodorant has stopped working or my application’s aren’t up to scratch.
Bouncing back from countless rejections is difficult, but after realizing that an hour spent face down in a gallon of Haagen Daz ice cream isn’t helping my career or my waistline, I decide to take action and start with the root cause of potential problems my CV.
More than just a Word document, a great resume is the Holy Grail that every graduate aspires to and hopes will lead to a brighter, better career. To develop a resume that would hopefully grab potential employers by the gonads and shout ‘HIRE ME’ like it should do, I began to adapt my CV to suit each application individually.
However despite my best efforts to overcome rejection and adapt my applications, I find myself still crawling through the unending swamp of unanswered emails and generic job sites in the hope that my efforts won’t go unrewarded.
After receiving 200 rejection letters, it’s no wonder Rosie Percy dreads opening her email and letterbox.
Read entire Article: Graduate view: 200 rejection letters and counting | Guardian careers | guardian.co.uk.
This is re-post of an article by Rosie Percy at guardian.co.uk
