Spin when applying for a job that is "beneath you".

02gf74

Old School Grand Master
Feedback
View
.... following on from the "debt" thread.

Friend has >10 years exeperience as QA analyst/tester but has not been able to find work in that field and is crippled financially. She must get some income immediately if she is to remain in her current house.

What I plan to do to help is to sit with her and go through jobs on a website to apply for many of them, starting at the bottom of the ladder but exclude those that are smelly i.e. toilet cleaning in Heathrow etc. (ok , you may argue that beggars are not choosers and be correct but .... ).

Nearly all jobs are now advertised on the internet which involves submitting a CV and cover note.

A accurate cover note would be along the lines of "I will put in 100% effort to do this job as well or better than your associates even though I am not interested in your company nor your job but am so desparate to get some money and as soon as I can get a better job I am out of here before you can say 'Do you want fires with that?'"

Although honest, I don't think that will go down well with the agency nor employer.

So my question is how to put a spin on this which also answers the question "Why do you want to do this job when you are over-qualified?"

I mean something like "I have been unsuccessful in finding a job in my field of expertise so am looking for a career in an alternative area where I can contribute immediately and which has potential for further development" or some such BS.... I'm sure you can come up with better.

BTW the purpose is to have a generic cover note/letter than can be used instead of writing a different one for each different job.

Thanks in advance. ;)
 
In my opinion the covering letter needs to have a little tailoring for each post as if it just looks like a generic photocopy type thing it won't have a positive effect.
 
I know, and in fact the CV should be tailored too but I plan to do a mass application run, maybe 100 jobs so I do not want to spend time to edit each one.

I would like your help to put together a generic letter which has a number of bullet points listing say skills applicable to the job that can be deleted if not required for each application and that is not crying out: "I'm desperate, gis a job"
 
I think key issue which, when she is lucky enough, will be at interview and will be "What have you been doing for last 4 years ?" and "Why have you waited until now for change of career?". Running through the employers mind will be what happens if a better job comes along, a lot of over qualified people don't get jobs as the employer goes for the low risk option of a well qualified individual who is going to stick around. Once you know the answers to these questions then easier to work out what to write to get interviews. As above it needs to be tailored. A recruiter will spot the generic and ask "does she really want the job if can't be bothered with specific letter. Looking for a job is a time consuming business. Ideally she wants to meet potential recruitment agencies to sell herself because that's what it will take after all this time. She needs someone pushing her CV. The other thing is that the best way to get a job is the "personal network" i.e. friends / formal colleagues, LinkedIn, etc cannot be underestimated.

Without wishing to be negative, it will take well over 100 letters, and she should expect a low response rate as that is what happens, and not be down hearted by it.
 
^^^ yes, we realise all that - it is catch 22 situation the longer you are out of work the more you need work and the harder it is to get work.

I plan to start at the low end of the jobs so for example surely shelf-stacking doesn't need tailored application?
 
I don't mean to sound nasty but if she has a degree, QA wasn't actually using her qualifications to their full potential anyway, you can do that on a couple of relevant A'Levels, I was for some time a Laboratory Analyst with only having studied science and maths to A'Level and a couple of years later a foundation course in science to boost my knowledge before uni, I gave up quickly as I hated it and got the analyst job, all I had to do was show I could analyse scientifically, understand results and use chromatography and I was away.

Sorry

The embarrassing thing is I didn't get the job for my experience, it was my first science job and there were better candidates, nor for my amazing interview prowess, I'm seriously rubbish at interviews, I got the job because I was the only applicant not dependant on public transport, now there's a reason for getting work.

Alison
 
if your friend is in serious debt then as the saying goes, beggars can't be choosers.
whatever job your friend gets, she will have to show some enthusiasm.
an employer will be looking for enthusiastic candidates.
it sounds like she is lucky to have you.
i just hope you are not doing all the work for her.
 
Fictional CV is the way to go. I have a fake degree from a pretend university so I had to basically pretend it didn't happen to stand any chance of a job that exceeded £2/hr.
 
BobToo":113ryo34 said:
Fictional CV is the way to go. I have a fake degree from a pretend university so I had to basically pretend it didn't happen to stand any chance of a job that exceeded £2/hr.

You are "Dr." Gillian McKeith, and I claim my £5. ;)

David
 
BertR00t":44w2emry said:
In my opinion the covering letter needs to have a little tailoring for each post as if it just looks like a generic photocopy type thing it won't have a positive effect.

+1 to that, generic cut & paste covering letters will scream "minimal effort" in the eyes of a prospective employer. A well-written bespoke one will show that you're keen on applying for the role as well as having bothered to read the post description properly and mugged up on the profile of the firm itself to some extent.

David
 
Back
Top