Hints for Job Applicants

Read the advertisement carefully and address each of the required qualifications in your cover letter. Using the same language as the advertisement is especially helpful. Sometimes, the person sorting qualified applicants from non-qualified applicants is a personnel officer who does not know library lingo. They may not know that having worked as a "media specialist" means you have worked as a "librarian."

Below is an example of hiring procedures in an academic library:

We create a search committee. Some members of the committee will know exactly what the 'new hire' will be doing, some may not be as familiar with the job. The individuals on the search committee have a chart for evaluating the applicants. This chart is a table with rows and columns. At the top of each column is a required or preferred qualification. Each applicant gets a row and we check off whether they meet the required qualifications.

An empty chart:

		Required				Preferred
Applicant Name	Meets Minimimum Qualifications	MLS	Reference Experience	Knowledge of full-text database systems	Proven use of technology to solve problems	Experience with a NOTIS catalog

Sometimes we also rate qualifications (5=extremely qualified; 1=barely qualified; 0=not qualified). After we have looked at every application, we examine our charts. The only applicants who make it to the next stage are those who have a check or a number for each of the required qualifications. A completed chart:

		Required				Preferred
Applicant Name	Meets Minimal Qualifications	MLS	Reference Experience	Knowledge of full-text database systems	Proven use of technology to solve problems	Experience with a NOTIS catalog
Jane Smith	No	UCLA '94	4	4	0	4
John Jones	No	UW '85	5	0	0	0
Chris Taylor	Yes	IU '98	3	3	1	3

Even though Chris Taylor does not have high ratings in the required categories, s/he is the only applicant who discussed everything and the only applicant who will move to the next stage. We receive many applications from people who are probably qualified, but who do not discuss all of the requirements. We cannot move them into the pool of qualified applicants.

So, even if you only have experience tangentially in a given area, mention it! That will get you into the pool and keep you in the running. If you don't meet all of the required qualifications in any way, don't waste your time and effort in applying for that position.

When it comes time for an interview, prepare in advance. Have something ready to say about your experience in every one of the responsibilities described in the job announcement. Don't let yourself be surprised by questions directly related to the advertised duties of the job. You may be caught off-guard by questions outside the job description, but the hiring individuals will assume you did not expect those questions.

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Last update: 11/04