1. Follow-up with a Call
Between their laborious work agendas, chances are employers aren’t going to alert us to the tricky application-parsing process before need be. For a sense of what’s going on, it’s often up to the candidate to reach out and unravel the murky behind-the-hiring-scenes. We recommend waiting at least a week to assure your application has been processed and filtered. Chances of eliciting concrete answers (and leaving an effective impact) are probably heightened via phone, offering the perks and potentials of a long, free-flowing conversation. (Plus email too often goes unanswered, especially if it’s a vague firm-wide address).
Once linked
to the voice of an employer (or who knows—your potential hirer?), it’s important to phrase your questions smartly. You might consider retiring the classic, “Where does my application stand?” for inquiries just as information-eliciting but not quite as upfront. You might try asking something like, “What does your hiring timeline look like?”- a gentle probe into the hiring agenda not quite as embedded with “me-specific” implications.But as in the jittery post-interview phone call, your motives are two-fold. Along with untangling the hiring agenda and reckoning your oh-so-hopeful chances, the first call-back is an opportunity to reinforce your interest. It’s a time to buttress your electronic application with an animated human voice and express your job compatibility in ways your paperwork can’t. Employers don’t want to hear you tick off your resume or gurgle out clichéd strings of excitement; instead, in this tricky-but-totally-doable manner, our goal is to articulate our capabilities and obvious match-up without having to blab it outright. As opposed to uttering the self-proclaimed, “I think I am the best person for this position,” let them infer this hollow statement by shrewdly proving it rings true. Ask intelligent questions that speak to your company knowledge or remark on something news-worthy that grabbed you; essentially, fortify your application by offering your employer a quick glimpse into your intelligent, in-the-know, totally-job-worthy persona.
2. Subsequent Follow-up
As I touched on in my last post, this follow-up—the potentially second or third over-the-phone encounters with your dream firm—highly depends on the quality and effectiveness of the first. If your hirer seems rushed or not overly inclined to chat with candidates (and no worries—it’s not personal!), then following up with another phone call might be more harmful than it’s worth. In this case, as hard as this is for our exponentially wired Tufts’ brains, waiting it out might be our only option. But let’s say your first call is progressing in a promising direction, that you’re employer seems more-or-less willing to expound on the hiring process and engage in some job banter. Asking something along the lines of, “Would you mind if I follow up in a week or two if I have any additional questions?” is an astute way to pave the way for another friendly chat session. Rather than awkwardly stuttering a reason for calling the next go-around, how great to confidently say, “You told me it would be alright to follow up with you the last time we spoke.” And here’s the best part: not only do you elicit employer-candidate bonding part-two, but you make it appear like (as the responsible student you are) you were dutifully staying true to your word.
Sure, the
tricky hiring and candidate weed-out process is different at every firm. But, taking that one extra step—pitching yourself not just as a solid batch of paperwork but an invested voice—is sometimes just what it takes to highlight your name from your swarms of qualified competitors. If you materialize as more than a strong resume but a likeable person, it’s much more likely you’ll be requested at the office face-to-face--at which point you’ll know the applicant pool is down to its best slim pickings. In the face of today’s ultra-competitive, applicant-surging job market, it often comes down to that assertive extra step.Whether it's follow-up after an application submission or follow-up after an interview, we know the process can be tricky! Let an advisor from Career Services help you navigate the process and showcase your professionalism to employers. Call to make an appointment or stop by our drop-in hours to chat!
