Rejected without having an interview?

Did you apply for a role and got rejected before even speaking with anyone from that company? Did it leave you wondering why??? Don't worry, it happened to all of us, many times (countless times to me??), but how to avoid it? Well, while I don't have all answers, here are some ideas that could perhaps help you understand why you were rejected and what you could do to increase your chances of success next time. ??????

??CV/portfolio does not meet the requirements for the role

This is common. Make sure to read the job description carefully and check that you meet all stated requirements. Sometimes candidates do not mention relevant experience/skills in their CV or don't show relevant work in their portfolio, because they assume that it's "obvious" or not important, while it might be the reason of why they were rejected.

?? Of course there could be exceptions in which companies might consider you for that role even if you don't meet all requirements because you captured their attention or they purposely added more requirements than needed to see if such ?? exists.

??Location

This is a tricky one. Nowadays many companies have different approaches when it comes to location and work style: onsite, hybrid, remote, not/having budget for relocation... you might not always know everything that is happening in the background. Maybe you applied for a job on a different continent but the company does not have budget for relocation? Maybe you stated in your CV that you are looking for remote work only but the company is looking for someone to work onsite? Maybe the role needs to be filled urgently and company can't afford to go through visa process and relocation? Maybe you applied for remote position but?you are in location in which that company isn't able to offer you a cooperation?

??Sometimes this information is not clear until you actually speak with the recruiter, but if possible, try to seek such information in the job advertisement.

??Language of your CV

If you are applying for a role at international company, it's better to have your CV in English (especially if the job post is in English - as it indicates international environment). Even if you are applying for a job in the location where you are from/at and/or speak local language, you might even know that the recruiter and hiring manager speak local language too. But what you might not know is if other interviewers/stakeholders involved in the hiring process speak the language too.?

??While some recruiters will reach out to you and request your CV in English, others might not and will proceed with other candidates instead.

??Show your interest

If you mention the roles you are interested in in your CV/cover letter, or even specify the role that you are applying for with that specific company, make sure that it actually corresponds with the title??. If the job application contains questions, it's advised to not skip them as it's great opportunity to increase your chances by explaining what your motivation is.

??I often see mismatch between role stated in cover letter with the role people actually applied for, or answering questions in the application form as short as possible (by that I mean one word or even just a dot symbol) and while it's not necessarily for me the reason to reject such candidate, it's not the best look either.

The points above are based on my personal observation, so you might have different experience/opinion and that's totally fair. Feel free to share yours with me, I am curious.