Q. I was so excited about the job I applied for. I know my resume is top-notch and I am confident of my interview skills. They said that I would hear in two weeks whether or not I was selected for an interview but no message has arrived. I check every day (even my spam folder!) and nothing. How long should I wait?
A. Any number of problems could have caused your resume or their reply to go astray. They might have lost your resume, mis-typed your email address, become too overwhelmed to reply to everyone, or changed their mind about the job opening. Perhaps you made an error on your contact information—the more familiar information is to you, the more likely you will simply assume it is correct. It is worth your time to check in with the company once.
However, by waiting for an invitation to interview that may never arrive, you are limiting your chances for finding a job. Waiting even a day is waiting too long. Continue to send out your resume until you have an actual offer letter or contract in your hand. You never know when another dream job will appear. Let your resume continue working for you even while you hope.
Before you send out your resume for those other positions, make sure your resume:
- Helps you stand out (in a good way). If you merely repeat the qualifications every candidate is expected to offer, you will miss the opportunity to stand out through individual skills, experiences, and achievements. On the other hand, if you skim over a problem—like a gap in employment—a recruiter or hiring manager may well hesitate to contact you.
- Is customized for the job. Align your job summary statement with the keywords that appear in the job application and with anything you have researched about the goals and values of the company. For example, is the company seeking people with certain educational attainments, experience with diversity and inclusion, or proven communication skills?
- Is still accurate. For example, are you still looking for opportunities to lead, mentor, travel, work remotely, work onsite, or use your language skills? Are your certifications still up to date? Has your boss or job title changed? Have your responsibilities changed?
- Has been proofread again. Any time you make one change to your resume, you affect the entire content. You might repeat an exact bullet point that appears elsewhere, misspell a company name, or change an acronym. You might forget to indent, bold, or line space to match the rest of the resume.
If you need an objective third party to make sure your resume meets all those criteria, please contact Robin’s Resumes®.