Recently I came across a LinkedIn post by Gary Travis regarding entry level roles requiring 15 years of experience and how ludicrous it was, in a few more eloquently put words.
This post brought me back to feelings of frustration when conducting my job search post-graduation. How many jobs did I come across that wanted some level of professional work experience while still listing it as entry level?
Unless I was reached out to about a higher level role, I seldom applied for positions unless I felt that I matched every skill they were looking for. I went into those higher level interviews feeling like an imposter, knowing that I didn’t really fit. Even when I did fit the job, I didn’t receive many calls back.
I decided to comment on Gary Travis’ post and reference an article I read about women’s job searching tactics vs. men's.
Essentially there was a LinkedIn study from 2019 that said on average, men will apply to jobs when they meet 60% of the hiring criteria. Women on the other hand only apply when they meet 100% of the hiring criteria.
This results in women applying to about 20% less jobs than men, largely due to screening themselves out before ever applying. The thing is when women do apply for the job, they are 16% more likely to receive it. That number jumps to 18% when the role is more senior level than their current position.
Moral of the story: don’t sell yourself short as a candidate, ladies.
Yes, there are still times when your application may not make sense. For example, you might be in ‘x’ industry wanting to transition to ‘y’ industry with no experience in that particular field. A senior level, 10-year experience needed position might not be the best place to put all of your marbles. A position asking for five years experience when you only have four, however, is worth applying to.
Say you don’t have a degree but have a few good years of applicable work experience in that field: apply anyways! Many employers will look at years of working experience in lieu of a degree. And if they don’t, they don’t sound very open-minded or inclusive anyways.
Employers, this tip is for you: when you stick an arbitrary number in a job description for years of experience and list tons of unnecessary skills, you unintentionally weed out diverse candidates. Instead, list job duties and performance objectives while making it clear what skills are necessary vs. what are nice-to-haves. This sets the scene and lets a candidate know what they’ll be doing day to day, allows them to reflect on if they’ve done this work before/would like doing this work, and helps them make a more informed decision overall on whether to apply or not.
While I’d love to change the recruiting world single-handedly, most employers will continue their same job posting techniques. This is where the importance of not selling yourself short comes in.
Apply for that stretch position you aren’t quite sure you’re qualified for but are really excited about. Put yourself in position to be noticed too. Network with people you know at the company, follow up on your application, etc.
Women are hardwired to apply only for roles they feel 100% qualified for. Be the one to change that for yourself and your job search. You might just find yourself in a better position that you started with.
This article is my own and does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of TEKsystems.
Credit goes to LinkedIn study for research: https://business.linkedin.com/talent-solutions/blog/diversity/2019/how-women-find-jobs-gender-report
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