Author: Future Manager Research Center

Job search is always a tough period of time, especially after you have submitted hundreds of applications and refresh your email boxes every hour to check if there’s any updates. It is very stressful not to know where you stand and not hear back from HRs after the applications. Or sometimes even worse, you have a pleasant interview with the hiring manager, wait for the feedback at home, but after weeks of getting nothing, you realize you are already out.

So why employers don’t tell applicants, while it’s a small and polite thing to do, sometimes it’s just because of poor follow-up communication. Many companies, in particular small companies don’t reply to all the applications, since they have received too many resumes and the HRs are overwhelmed with the heavy workload. In the meantime, you probably already noticed that large corporates send automatic confirmation emails to acknowledge you that they have received the applications, thanks to the software, you are also able to check where do you stand in the application process.

If you fail to pass the first resume screening process, it may be your application that is the problem, check the following tips:

1. Do you have the required credentials to prove your abilities? Like the language certificate.
2. Does your resume match the job requirement? It’s important to make sure your resume shows why you’re a strong candidate for that specific position
3. Write your resume in a good way. If you don’t submit a well-formatted resume, without typos or grammatical errors, you could knock yourself out of contention.
4. Submit the required documents. If a company asks for a cover letter, writing samples, references, or any other material to support your application, you need to submit it when you apply.

If you have already talked with the HR face to face for an interview, the reasons that you don’t get a response could be:

1. The employer already found another person who is the better fit for this position.
2. The company has put a hold on filling this role because of budge reasons or internal planning reasons.
3. They have made an offer for another candidate and waiting for his/her confirmation.  If the first candidate rejects the offer, you will probably get the chance!

Normally an application process could be long according to the HR team’s working schedule. While waiting for the response, you can send a thank-you note to the HR who you had the interview with. It helps to leave a good impression, and possibly increases your chance to be hired if the HR thinks you fit into their company culture.

More importantly, never stops applying for new opportunities, don’t waste your time waiting for the response from the employer who’s probably not so interested in you. Keep the job search till you have a firm offer that you are comfortable accepting.