Should I send a follow-up email after no response for a job position?

MusicEnthusiast · Jul 21, 2013

Hi all, I have something I'd like to ask the community regarding recent college-grad job hunting.

I applied for a job on May 29. The instructions were to attach a resume in .docx format and a cover letter in the body of the email. There was no name I could find anywhere on the company's website, so in my email I referred to them as XXX Company HR Team.

Now it being mid July, I haven't heard a response from them. This job appears to fit my skills almost perfectly and I truly feel I'd be a great asset to their team. I'm wondering if it's worth sending them a follow-up email (in case my resume got lost or something). I know it ultimately depends on the person reading it... can he/she tolerate a follow-up email from someone sending a gentle reminder about his application?

You tell me, MacRumors! Thanks for the help.

maflynn · Jul 21, 2013

By all means. Companies use software to weed through the resumes and so the HR staff may not even have seen your resume. At this point it can't hurt asking about it

ucfgrad93 · Jul 21, 2013

maflynn said:
By all means. Companies use software to weed through the resumes and so the HR staff may not even have seen your resume. At this point it can't hurt asking about it

Agreed. You have nothing to lose by contacting them. However, I would try and call them and talk to someone in HR rather than emailing them.

kolax · Jul 21, 2013

It's been long enough. Some people come across needy by asking very soon after applying/interviews which never looks good. But 7 weeks is quite a while, and worth investigating.

With recruitment done online there's no excuse for companies not to send an automated rejection email.

Apple fanboy · Jul 22, 2013

Kilamite said:
With recruitment done online there's no excuse for companies not to send an automated rejection email.

Except when you get corespondents asking you to explain why they weren't successful. You don't always want to say why they didn't fulfil the criteria for fear of being told you are sexist/racist/agist etc.

kolax · Jul 22, 2013

Apple fanboy said:
Except when you get corespondents asking you to explain why they weren't successful. You don't always want to say why they didn't fulfil the criteria for fear of being told you are sexist/racist/agist etc.

I never bother to find out why I get rejected from a job - someone else got it because they are better than me with more experience. People who demand to know why they never got the job are incredibly needy and insecure, and as you said, they'll never get told the real reasons for it.

A rejection letter should be compulsory for companies as they are wasting candidates' time by not letting them know they've been unsuccessful. It can be a huge dilemma between waiting to hear back from a dream job and accepting an offer for an alright job.

Apple fanboy · Jul 22, 2013

Kilamite said:
A rejection letter should be compulsory for companies as you are wasting candidates' time by not letting them know they've been unsuccessful. It can be a huge dilemma between waiting to hear back from a dream job and accepting an offer for an alright job.

Agree, but i've had over 100 applicants for a position before. My work time is probably more precious than somebody who is unemployed.

Plus to be honest people often choose a candidate but hold back on the others to see if it works out. That way you can go back to choice number 2 or 3 and they are non the wiser. When I applied for my current position (6 years ago now), I was thinking I was about to be offered an alternative position. They called me up 2 weeks after I had started my current job and offered me the position, telling me that the number 1 candidate was useless and they had let him go. I decided to stay where I am. I'll never know if that was the right or wrong decision.

kolax · Jul 22, 2013

Apple fanboy said:
Agree, but i've had over 100 applicants for a position before. My work time is probably more precious than somebody who is unemployed.

Plus to be honest people often choose a candidate but hold back on the others to see if it works out. That way you can go back to choice number 2 or 3 and they are non the wiser. When I applied for my current position (6 years ago now), I was thinking I was about to be offered an alternative position. They called me up 2 weeks after I had started my current job and offered me the position, telling me that the number 1 candidate was useless and they had let him go. I decided to stay where I am. I'll never know if that was the right or wrong decision.

Most companies are using online recruitment now, so you can pick out the three candidates you want, and send an automated rejection email to the other 97.

If you pick a candidate after the interview process, then you should let the other candidates know they've been unsuccessful but that they are all second choice should the chosen candidate not work out.

I've been rejected after an interview, only to be called a couple of weeks later offering me the post. In that time, I had accepted another job offer because I didn't sit around waiting on that first job.

There's no difference between not telling candidates they've been rejected after the interview process and telling candidates they were unsuccessful but were second choice should the chosen candidate not work out.

Did you expect the 2-3 backup candidates to sit around and not apply for other jobs while they wait to hear back from you?

Apple fanboy · Jul 22, 2013

Kilamite said:
Did you expect the 2-3 backup candidates to sit around and not apply for other jobs while they wait to hear back from you?

Hay I didn't say I did it! To be honest if they got an interview, I called or emailed the unsuccessful candidates.

velocityg4 · Jul 22, 2013

Frankly I would try calling them rather than emailing. Calling shows more initiative and forces someones attention. Some random email from an applicant is too easy to ignore and delete. A call forces them to talk to you, associate a person with your name, and perhaps even pull up your resume while talking to you and giving it a look.

Also you shouldn't be waiting so long. After a couple days it's time to start calling. You want them to notice you and stand out. I'm not saying harass them endlessly, beg or plead. Just make contact. They've probably have gotten a hundred resumes and assume you've applied for a hundred other jobs.

Perhaps even add a small head shot, taken by a good/professional photographer, in your resume. You'll stand out more. The reason for a good or professional photographer is to avoid a bad picture that can leave a negative impression you want to look your best.

Capt Underpants · Jul 22, 2013

IMO 7 weeks is far too long. The position is probably already filled.

I call one week after I submit my resume to make sure that they received it, and I ask to speak with the hiring manager for the position. When I get the hiring manager on the phone, I ask when they expect to start interviewing, and when they expect to fill the position. I tell him a little about my experience and why I, at the very least, deserve to be interviewed for the position.

Your goal at this point in time is simply to get an interview. You have to be proactive as a recent grad looking for jobs. Waiting two months to follow up isn't going to do it.

I graduated last year with a liberal arts degree, and I had a job within two months using this strategy.

Best of luck.

MegamanX · Jul 22, 2013

Apple fanboy said:
Agree, but i've had over 100 applicants for a position before. My work time is probably more precious than somebody who is unemployed.

Plus to be honest people often choose a candidate but hold back on the others to see if it works out. That way you can go back to choice number 2 or 3 and they are non the wiser. When I applied for my current position (6 years ago now), I was thinking I was about to be offered an alternative position. They called me up 2 weeks after I had started my current job and offered me the position, telling me that the number 1 candidate was useless and they had let him go. I decided to stay where I am. I'll never know if that was the right or wrong decision.

In todays age that is not an excuse. It is not hard to set up an automatic system that would fire a reject email/ letter when the position is marked as closed.

Now if you call them in for an interview I saw a phone call is the only correct thing to do to tell them that. At that point you should give them that respect for them getting dressed up and taking the time to come in and interview.

----------

Apple fanboy said:
Except when you get corespondents asking you to explain why they weren't successful. You don't always want to say why they didn't fulfil the criteria for fear of being told you are sexist/racist/agist etc.

That is why you have a generic response. To me it always pissed me off not hearing ANYTHING back. A simple automatized email would be nice.

Now what really gets me and a sure fired way for me to never consider a company again is call me in for an interview and give me no response. I had one do that to me and a year later they tried to recruit me. In a professional manner I more or less told them no. I really wanted to say f off but I have more respect for myself and chose to stay professional. Unlike them I am not going to burn bridges.

kolax · Jul 22, 2013

Capt Underpants said:
I call one week after I submit my resume to make sure that they received it, and I ask to speak with the hiring manager for the position. When I get the hiring manager on the phone, I ask when they expect to start interviewing, and when they expect to fill the position. I tell him a little about my experience and why I, at the very least, deserve to be interviewed for the position.

Couldn't disagree more.

As if the manager that wants to hire someone new hasn't got enough on their plate already, they get a nuisance phone call from a needy candidate overly eager to shine.

Best advice: apply and let them do the recruitment process in their own time. They know who you are if you've applied properly, and pretty much all companies send an automated email to acknowledge your application. After that, don't get in touch. If they like you, they'll contact you. Simple as that. They have their internal procedures, such as meetings to go through applications, and toss out the crap ones and work out who to call in for an interview. If you feel need to call them up to tell them how awesome you are, then you must have put in a crap application and don't deserve an interview.

Chasing them up is only going to piss them off, and potentially hurt your application. Recruitment is a tedious procedure for those involved, and to have candidates emailing and phoning up to find out when they expect to hear back is just a huge pain in the arse.

Do not take 'Capt Underpants' advice.

Capt Underpants · Jul 24, 2013

Kilamite said:
Couldn't disagree more.

As if the manager that wants to hire someone new hasn't got enough on their plate already, they get a nuisance phone call from a needy candidate overly eager to shine.

Best advice: apply and let them do the recruitment process in their own time. They know who you are if you've applied properly, and pretty much all companies send an automated email to acknowledge your application. After that, don't get in touch. If they like you, they'll contact you. Simple as that. They have their internal procedures, such as meetings to go through applications, and toss out the crap ones and work out who to call in for an interview. If you feel need to call them up to tell them how awesome you are, then you must have put in a crap application and don't deserve an interview.

Chasing them up is only going to piss them off, and potentially hurt your application. Recruitment is a tedious procedure for those involved, and to have candidates emailing and phoning up to find out when they expect to hear back is just a huge pain in the arse.

Do not take 'Capt Underpants' advice.

I also couldn't disagree more.

I'm sharing my experiences as a recent college graduate, who has landed two jobs in my field in the past year, in a not-so-ideal job market. That's what I did, and it worked.

A short phone call proves that you have initiative, that you follow up, and that you have the social competency to speak to superiors/coworkers. It gives you an edge over the other applicants, who probably don't have the balls to make a simple follow-up phone call. It's very easy to send in an application and cover letter to an employer, and wait on them. It's significantly more difficult to engage and interact with that employer, and to stand out as an applicant during a one-minute phone call.

Hearing my phone demeanor gives me an advantage over you, because you are just a name on a piece of paper. I am a human being with a calm, collected, intelligent, charismatic personality. When the hiring manager gets off the phone with me, he knows at least one person who will be getting an interview -- and that saves him time on the hiring process.

As for you? Well, good luck waiting.

TedM · Jul 24, 2013

Always always always follow up. However its much better if you call instead of email. Email is still alright though.

kolax · Jul 25, 2013

Capt Underpants said:
A short phone call proves that you have initiative, that you follow up, and that you have the social competency to speak to superiors/coworkers. It gives you an edge over the other applicants, who probably don't have the balls to make a simple follow-up phone call. It's very easy to send in an application and cover letter to an employer, and wait on them. It's significantly more difficult to engage and interact with that employer, and to stand out as an applicant during a one-minute phone call.

Employers advertise a post, and give you instructions on what to do, like "fill out this form, leave your details, we'll get in touch if we like you". You calling them up out of the blue is not following the procedure they outlined in the job application.

Recruitment is a drag for everyone involved. If HR rang me to say there was a candidate who applied for a post we advertised wanting to speak to me about it, I would get annoyed. I'm busy enough, and I always make sure the job specification advertised details everything a candidate would need to know about the job. You are interrupting a manager's busy schedule by not following the simplest of instructions when applying.

You have clearly never been involved in any sort of recruitment before. You'll change your mind about this advice when you are dealing with a lot in your busy day, then out of the blue have an annoying candidate wanting to speak to you about how awesome they are and why they should get the job.

Capt Underpants said:
Hearing my phone demeanor gives me an advantage over you, because you are just a name on a piece of paper. I am a human being with a calm, collected, intelligent, charismatic personality. When the hiring manager gets off the phone with me, he knows at least one person who will be getting an interview -- and that saves him time on the hiring process.

All that shows is you have a massive ego and are very demanding.

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Should I send a follow-up email after no response for a job position?

MusicEnthusiast

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maflynn

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ucfgrad93

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kolax

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Apple fanboy

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kolax

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