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I have been looking for a full time job for months, mostly secretarial or administrative assistant positions. I have a great resume, experience, etc. I feel like I am an excellent candidate for all the positions I apply for and I always meet the qualifications the company is looking for.
When I come in for the interviewing I am always well liked. On the interviews I have been on so far the person interviewing always compliments me on how great my resume is and how they really like me and my qualifications are what they are looking for.
So, great resume, the interview goes well and ends on a positive note but then I don't end up getting the job...
I know that sometimes this just happens- they hire someone else, find another candidate more fabulous than you and pick them instead.
It's just sooo frustrating though. What happens when you don't have any real weaknesses but over and over again you are just not the right candidate?
It happens on these forums all the time; someone not having the right resume or maybe they don't interview well or don't dress for the job. Maybe they don't have enough experience or enough education. I dont have any of those problems. The reason I am lead to believe this is because I always get such positive feedback from interviewers stating that I have a glowing resume and a great personality.
Recently I had an interview for a secretarial position at a law firm. The interview went well and the man told me he was going to hire me, but that he had two more candidates to interview. He said I basically had the job and he would call me in two days. A week passed and I called to speak with him. His response was, "I am sorry Lucy, but unfortunately I can't hire you. Good luck!" Then hung up.
Thursday I had an interview for the perfect, perfect pay, perfect location. The employer said he loved me. We discussed the job, life etc. He loved my resume and how close by I live. He said he thinks I'm perfect for the job. During the interview he stated that I seem like a hard worker and he doesn't think I should have any trouble finding a job.
In the follow up thank you email he told me that the decision would be made on Monday. He also restated that I truly impressed him and that he admires work ethic and that he thinks I will find work.
The decision hasn't been made yet but I feel like he's not going to hire me because of his "you'll find a job" comments. It's not been decided yet but I just have that feeling it's not going to happen. It's so disappointing.
I don't know what I can do to better myself as a candidate. Argh.
Have you asked someone who is a hiring manager to look over your stuff for you?
It's hard to know what you're doing wrong until you have someone tell you and point stuff out. Most people aren't going to point it out to you so that you can be a better candidate. They'll just look at what you have and listen to what you say, then make their decision. Sometimes it's a Q&A session instead of having a discussion. If you don't give them the "right answer," they "mark it wrong" and go to the next question. Only some interviewers will try to ask you more questions so that you can arrive at the answer they were looking for, or to see how you handle situations/how you dealt with it in the past.
Maybe there was someone in the company who knew you and the interviewer asked that person about you, and then decided not to hire you (based on rumors, lies, etc). Or they decided to hire a friend, a family member, etc.
I've seen it happen in a small business where the manager/owner fired a recently hired employee so that he could hire his son and daughter after they graduated from school.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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When you consider how many people are applying for every job, you may have to be the best out of 100 or more to be selected. The odds are not very good. It sounds like you are coming out right near the top and just need a little something extra to push you up there. Next time research the company thoroughly, and take any opportunity to cite fact about them during the interview. Also, make sure they know how much you want to work for them,
that you are not just looking for any job. For example, when asked why you want to work there: "I see that your company has grown 23% over the last two years, and have expanded by adding 2 new locations. I am excited to be a part of your successful organization."
Is it possible that your references are not checking out well? This is the only thing I can think of since you seem to make it through the interview with flying colors.
What happened to you often happened to me. I used to wonder why. After all, I did everything right---dressed well, showed up on time for the interview, properly answered the questions, had a good resume, etc.
Then, after watching a segment on either 20/20 or DatelineNBC, it dawned on me. What this segment showed was that people who weren't beautiful/handsome often got passed over for jobs in favor of someone with the perfect body and looks. Not only did less than perfect-looking people get passed by but the good-looking ones were even offered more money.
The TV program sent people to interview for jobs. All candidates were dressed identically. They were each given the exact same resume and instructed in how to respond to certain questions. Every time, the perfect-looking people got job offers while the less-than-perfect people didn't get offers.
In one case, 2 men applied for stock broker jobs. The ordinary looking man was blown off with "We don't have any openings" while the good-looking man was offered a job on the spot. When the TV show questioned the man doing the hiring, he said that the good-looking man looked like a stock broker, that's why he got offered the job!
Watching this was an "aha!" moment for me.
I know nothing about you or how you look or how old you are. I'm just pointing out that this, unfortunately, does happen. Also, there is a lot of ageism in the work force, sad to say.
All that said, I must say the best bosses I ever had were the ones who hired me based on my experience. Don't give up. You will find that one future boss who is not shallow and will appreciate your work experience. Best of luck to you!
Is it possible that your references are not checking out well? This is the only thing I can think of since you seem to make it through the interview with flying colors.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mystique13
I would have someone call your refs to see what they're actually saying/not saying.
What happened to you often happened to me. I used to wonder why. After all, I did everything right---dressed well, showed up on time for the interview, properly answered the questions, had a good resume, etc.
Then, after watching a segment on either 20/20 or DatelineNBC, it dawned on me. What this segment showed was that people who weren't beautiful/handsome often got passed over for jobs in favor of someone with the perfect body and looks. Not only did less than perfect-looking people get passed by but the good-looking ones were even offered more money.
The TV program sent people to interview for jobs. All candidates were dressed identically. They were each given the exact same resume and instructed in how to respond to certain questions. Every time, the perfect-looking people got job offers while the less-than-perfect people didn't get offers.
In one case, 2 men applied for stock broker jobs. The ordinary looking man was blown off with "We don't have any openings" while the good-looking man was offered a job on the spot. When the TV show questioned the man doing the hiring, he said that the good-looking man looked like a stock broker, that's why he got offered the job!
Watching this was an "aha!" moment for me.
I know nothing about you or how you look or how old you are. I'm just pointing out that this, unfortunately, does happen. Also, there is a lot of ageism in the work force, sad to say.
All that said, I must say the best bosses I ever had were the ones who hired me based on my experience. Don't give up. You will find that one future boss who is not shallow and will appreciate your work experience. Best of luck to you!
I'm in my twenties, so maybe it's a "young" thing. I hadn't considered a lot of what you said. I'm pretty average looking (I do wear make-up, heels, fix my hair) so it's possible that that is why I'm not getting hired. Unfortunately there's not a lot I can do about that besides dressing well I take pride in my appearance and hopefully I'll find the right job.
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I take pride in my appearance and hopefully I'll find the right job.
