It can be very frustrating when you find a fantastic role that is exactly what you have been looking for, only to see that you don’t have the experience or qualifications required.
However, even if you don’t tick every box on the requirements list this doesn’t mean that you should give up. You may still be able to impress the hiring manager by using keywords that will stand out and hopefully help you to get your foot through the door.
When you are applying and interviewing for jobs, it’s important to remember that experience and qualifications aren’t everything. If you can connect with your interviewer and win them over, they may well overlook the fact that you aren’t 100 per cent qualified. After all, you can always learn new things once you get started.
With that being said, your biggest challenge is making sure they don’t disregard your CV. Here are some tips on how you can compensate for your lack of experience and get your foot in the door.
1. Tailor your CV with key terms from the job description
There’s nothing worse than firing out the same generic CV to loads of employers. It may seem like a quick and easy option to improve your chances, but this will not win you interviews.
Every application you send should be specifically tailored to the role and company you are applying for. When tailoring your CV, read the job description carefully and pick out all the required skills/experience that you have. You should then go through your CV and insert these key terms where relevant.
2. Write a compelling personal profile
At the top of your CV, you should include a personal statement that grabs the reader’s attention and acts as an elevator pitch. In a few lines, you should aim to tell the hiring manager why you are the perfect person for the job. Include some key terms, highlight relevant experience and tell them what you can bring to their company.
Imagine that you are already in an interview and have been asked, “Tell me about yourself”. This should help you to come up with a fantastic personal statement.
3. Interact with the company on social media
How great would it be if you sent in your application and the hiring manager recognises your name? this would certainly help you to stand out from the rest of the applicants.
One way of achieving this would be to interact with the company on their social media channels before submitting your application. Liking, commenting on and sharing their posts is a great way to get you on their radar.
4. Connect with the hiring manager
Have a look on LinkedIn and see if you can find the hiring manager or head of recruitment. As with the company pages, you can connect with them and interact with their content. You should also be creating and sharing your own content in order to stand out on LinkedIn.
If you can catch their eye on LinkedIn, they are much more likely to invite you to an interview and they’ll know you are enthusiastic about joining their company.
5. Be Confident
So, you may not have the required level of experience for the role, but if you’re confident about your ability to do the job, the hiring manager will be too. Fake it until you make it sometimes work and many professionals climb the career ladder much more quickly by having self-belief and sounding confident.
Bringing it all together
When you’re applying for jobs, you don’t necessarily need to tick every box on the requirements list. Follow our steps above, don’t be put off from applying and see how you get on.