Why Are CV’s Of Overqualified Candidates Rejected?

It’s very discouraging to send countless CVs out into the world, and hear absolutely nothing back. It’s hard not to take it personally. Yet if you talk to those in the HR profession on why they reject most CVs, the reasons are pretty predictable.

One of the most common is that the CV shows the applicant is overqualified. In other words, they’re too good for the job! (It sounds better put that way, doesn’t it?)

At a private school where my sister worked, they were looking for an office secretary. Among the applicants? A woman with a degree in Bcom Marketing! She wasn’t offered the job.

My sister’s comment: “Wow, she must really have been desperate to apply for that!”

So why would someone apply for a job they were clearly overqualified for, by experience and/or education? A few of the most common:

Desperation: As my sister noted, people sometimes find themselves in positions where they really are desperate for a job, any job. It could be a high-level manager who’s been suddenly laid off in an unexpected downsizing, or blindsided when his/her company suddenly went under. It could be someone looking for work in a field glutted with other people looking for work. It could be a highly-educated woman suddenly thrown onto the crowded job market by divorce, with no recent experience.

Desire for a less stressful job: Not all overqualified people are desperate. A successful Accountant working for KPMG left suddenly and amazed everyone by becoming an auditor with a smaller firm. Why? He wanted a life that was simpler and less stressful. From all accounts, he found it.

Nowadays, it isn’t uncommon for people to want to scale down and simplify their lives, so you might have an ex-CEO applying for a job as a manager. Or a high school teacher trying to get hired on as an administrative assistant.

Why do those in HR reject the CV’s of overqualified candidates? Usually it’s from the fear that:

They’ll get bored and leave. (And this is often a correct assessment.) They’re just marking time till something better comes along. (Also frequently correct.)

They’re desperate. And desperation is not an attractive quality in a job seeker. Something bad happened at their last, more prestigious job that led to them having to leave that particular field. Maybe they were caught embezzling, or fired for incompetence.

They’ll be impossible to direct since they’ll know so much more than everyone else at the job. (Or at least think they do.) If you send out a CV for a job you know you’re overqualified for, is there anything you can do to improve your chances? Here are some suggestions:

At the start of your CV, as well as in your cover letter, you must find a way to address the obvious: Say something briefly in your Profile explaining what’s going on.

It won’t be easy to do, but a possible example could be: “Dedicated and hardworking professional, with many successful years in the teaching field, with the goal of making the transition to a rewarding, long-term role in administration.”

The worst thing you can do is ignore the fact that you’re overqualified. Make sure your CV and cover letter stress that your goal is to stay in this job long-term. This will help allay the fears that you’re taking it until something better shows up.

Usually on the CV’s, we highlight professional achievements and education, but if you’re applying for something drastically lower down the employment ladder, it would be a very good idea to tone down your achievements and professional development.

Don’t lie, but leave out information that would scream, “I’m too good for this job!” Make sure your CV highlights only the skills and education that are vital to the job you’re applying for.

Even with these suggestions, your chances of getting an interview when you’re overqualified are not as high as if you were a perfect match for the job, but a good CV and cover letter will go a long way to overcoming this obstacle.

So don’t give up! With perseverance, it will happen.

The writer works for Corporate Staffing Services. www.staff-kenya.com

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