Unsuccessful outcome
This page describes how to handle an unsuccessful job application.
Information for unsuccessful applicants –
don’t be disheartened
Having taken the time and energy to apply for a role and hopefully you have had an interview, not being appointed can feel like rejection. However, in some cases it is not that you could not do the role or that you did not have the experience or skills, it may sometimes be someone else had more experience than you or someone else came across differently to you. Your time will come but how do you keep motivated?
Tips
- Seek out feedback, from both the people who interviewed or the people who did the shortlist (if they are different, or you did not get offered an interview)
- Ask what the organisation was looking for and what could you have presented differently?
- Seek out information about what you can directly impact –
- Your communication style;
- Your knowledge of a particular subject or situation;
- Your writing style;
- Your presentation skills both in terms of how you presented at interview as well as the presentation of any information you provided
- For those areas which you cannot immediately change ask what more you may need to do. For example
- What additional experience or skills do you need to develop;
- How soon can you reapply having gained these experiences;
- What additional evidence could you provide with regard to your personal situation;
- How do you learn to approach a given situation so that you are better prepared
- Also consider whether the organisation or role is the right one for you. You may find that applying for a similar role in a different organisation, or apply for a different type of role may suit your needs and aspirations.