Good At Getting Interviews, Not Good At Getting Job.?
I am relatively elective with ahat i apply for, i only apply for 2-3 jobs a week (so glad i can afford to live without the dole) and i have about a 50% success rate at getting interviews, and that seems to go up since i started including my academic transcript. But so far i’ve had 8 interviews (at each of which i was only competing with 2-5 other applicats) but still no job!
hypothesies?
I am a fresh graduate applying for jobs in scienceresearch.
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Posted On: Jul 19th, 2009 at 5:27 am
ask for the job !
“when can I start?”
“hire me!”
“give ME the chance”
and follow up a day later,
“Thanks for the interview!”
“I’m really interested and want to do the job well, when will you hire ?” -
Find a business professional to do some practice interviews with … to see if you’re doing something wrong.
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As a general rule, if you are getting job interviews you will get the job.
Large companies and government organisations and unversities apply systematic approaches to interviewing people. So it is not going to be that they don’t like you, or that you dress in the wrong way (though that can help).
Here are some real tips.
Don’t be pushy. Don’t say, “when can I start”. Only the worst employers will be take someone that pushy.
Be friendly. Most people find it easier to give a job to someone that they like.
Make sure that questions about career and your future match up to the job you are applying for.
Make sure you can answer the technical questions that prove you have the knowledge. Some people’s resumes are ambiguous so you interview them not knowing if they really can do the job or not.
Answer their questions. Some people talk a lot, but you never get an answer to the questions.
Think about how you dress and look.
Finally, you don’t want to be stuck. Maybe you need to set your sights a little lower. Take a job that will give you some experience. Or even do some volunteer work just to build up that experience.
Maybe they are interviewing you because your academic record is very good, but they end up taking someone with more experience.
You can also do this. Ring up the human resources department, or the interviewer and ask “very politely” for advice. Don’t ask, “Why didn’t I get the job”, tell them “You have been failing at interviews for a while, can you give me any advice about what I did wrong.” -
I guess its how you portray yourself in the interview. Go in there and be confident. act like you have already got the job without being cocky. And even though you haven’t got the jobs you’ve had interviews for yet they are good practice. be sure not to fidget and always ask a question t the end. you will get one soon enough.
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The reason could be one of these:
- position is super competitive,
- you did not convince the interviewer enough that you are THE BEST for the job.
There is always a chance they will hire you.
There was a case with me, when they hired someone else and she did not perform, and they called me back, because apparently I was a second candidate “in line” (but I didn’t know it LOL).. -
First I have a question. Are you applying nearby or out of state? My husband is a science researcher and when he was fresh out of graduate school he wanted to get a job outside of Memphis, TN. He applied and recieved numerous phone interviews…but they never hired him in favor of local people. After several months of trying, he gave up and applied for a job in Memphis at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. He was hired immediately and without reservation.
Part of the problem is that you are fresh out of school. You don’t have any working experience under your belt and so many places don’t want to go to the effort of training someone.
Take a careful look at how you are presenting yourself as well. Appearance, mannerisms, age/maturity, low confidence (or too much confidence) can all be off-putting.
When it comes down to it, there are so many reasons why you might not be getting the jobs. Do you have a friend in your field…or a mentor that you could use for a practice interview…someone that will be completely honest with you? Just a suggestion…but if it’s something to do with you and not your resume/experience, it might be a great way to figure it out.
Best of luck…I know it’s not easy. -
Maybe it’s the way you interview. Have you ever had a mock interview done? That’s an interview done with a professional where they ask you standard interview-type questions, then at the end of the interview they rate the way you interviewed and offer you tips on correcting your interview mistakes and just general tips to make the interview process go smoothly.
Make use of your school’s career services center (you’re a recent grad so you can go back to your old school), they always offer mock interviews. Speak with one of the counselors in the career service department and they can help you better than anyone on YA (plus it’s free since you’re an alum).
Good luck on your job search. -
There are many good answers already posted. I just have one more thing to add.
Do you have to write much on the applications? I noticed you did not spell-check your question before posting it. You have several spelling/grammar errors in your question. Besides all the personal presentation needed to obtain a job, applicants need to be sharp in skills. Someone who is going to work in science/research needs to be accurate and detail conscious. Even if you have a great personality and interview well, other little mistakes can diminish your chances to get the job.
Having said that, I know it’s not easy getting a job. Try not to get discouraged; I’m sure you will find a job, it’s a great field!
LeslieAnn -
well your obviously good enough to get your foot in the door..but not good enough for the job…maybe your just a few cards short of a full deck there toots…know what i mean…got qualifications…dont got experience…start at bottom…work upwards..keep nocking down doors…beam me up coach
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do a mock interview with a friend who can point out any thing you might subconsciously do at interviews – it is difficult to assess your own performance at interviews.
Ask for feedback if you don’t get the job as interviewers might point out something which you are not aware of.
The number one rule of interviews is to show enthusiasm – therefore learn as much as possible about the company, as interviewers love this.