A Step by Step Guide on How to Follow Up on Your Job Application

A Step by Step Guide on How to Follow Up on Your Job Application

After you applied for a job, if you don’t follow up on the job application, you might not have a chance of getting the job. But with proper follow-up, you can be sure that your application has gotten to the right person. Now the question is, “How to follow up on your job application?” This article has provided all the answers.

How to Follow Up on Your Job Application

You should proactively follow up while keeping in mind that dozens — even hundreds — of other resumes are also flooding the same HR department, making it difficult to respond to each applicant personally.

This doesn’t take away the value of sending a courteous and concise follow up. Following up (the right way) may be just what’s needed to distinguish your application from the pack. Consider these steps to follow up after submitting your online application.

1. Follow up the Contact Mail

If a contact email is provided, make a note of this along with the date you submitted your application.

• Approximately one week after submitting your application, plan a brief, courteous email check-in to confirm they received it. Use this opportunity also to reinforce your enthusiasm for the role.
• If another week passes and you still have not heard back, then another short, one- to two-paragraph note is in order, indicating genuine interest in the position and inquiring about the next steps.
• You may also use this second follow-up to reinforce how you envision using your skills to solve a potential challenge you suspect — or even know — the company is facing. Keep this “solution” very brief (1-3 sentences). The power of this “future impact” proposal is to trigger a connection between your value proposition and their pain points.

2. If Not Provided

If a contact email is NOT provided during the application process, you will need to be more creative.

• Search the company site to locate contact names related to the particular role or division for which you applied. If you find a name but no method of reaching them, then note the term.
• Next, research that person and company name online, and when you locate them, hunt for an email address. Using the email address, conduct the follow-up similarly (but not the same) as mentioned above – brief, polite, and enthusiastic notes indicating you have applied to a role in this person’s company.
• Communicate that upon researching further, you discovered this person may be a person of influence, and perhaps even is the one vetting resumes for the open job. As such, you wanted to reach out with a brief status inquiry while further expressing your interest. Be careful not to imply an expected response and that you intend to define different parts of the role.
• If you have a name but cannot locate an email, then perhaps a call into the company reception desk will help. Indicate whom you are trying to reach and request the best way to email them. Search Facebook or other social media sites to unearth more information.

Applying for jobs at smaller or mid-sized companies may provide a more direct route to following up as often, critical leadership/ownership are listed, along with contact information, directly on the site.

Conclusion

Whether emailing or phoning, keep your tone upbeat and professionally passionate, indicating that you would love to explore working for this company. Also, be specific to prove your sentiments are credible.

Always be prepared to walk away from the conversation and move on to the next potential opportunity without leaving a trail of angst or pressure in your wake. Stay positive, which will not only serve your job search well but will also help you move more confidently throughout the process.

StudentsandScholarship Team.