You already get rejected for jobs where you meet all the requirements.
So if you're applying for jobs where you don't qualify and expecting an interview, you're expecting LeBron James to score 200 points in his next game.
It could be the job you want. You could love the company. The title could be exactly what you're looking for. None of that changes whether you can do the work they're hiring someone to do.
Qualifying doesn't guarantee an interview
You read the job description, meet the requirements, send your resume, and still get rejected. Sometimes you don't even get a response.
That's frustrating. You can have the experience a company asks for and still lose out to another candidate. Meeting the requirements gets you into consideration; it doesn't mean the interview is yours.
But if you're struggling to get interviews for roles you qualify for, why expect better results from roles where you barely meet the requirements?
Sending more applications doesn't close that gap.
Apply where your experience fits
Suppose you've spent the last three years building data pipelines with Python and SQL. A data engineering role asking for that experience is worth your time, even if the company uses an orchestration tool you haven't used.
Now compare that with an ML engineering role asking you to train models, deploy them, and maintain their performance in production. Knowing Python doesn't mean you meet those requirements.
Both roles might interest you. Your experience fits one much more closely than the other.
That's the distinction to make before you apply. Read the responsibilities, not just the title, and ask whether you've done most of what the team needs.
Most of the requirements, not every single one
You don't need to wait until you match every line in a posting. A missing tool or an unfamiliar industry doesn't automatically make you unqualified.
But there's a difference between learning a new tool to do work you already understand and learning most of the job after you're hired.
If you meet most of the requirements, apply. Show how your experience matches the role. If you barely meet any, spend that time finding a closer match or gaining the experience you're missing.
You can still work toward a different role. Wanting it is a reason to prepare for it, not evidence that you qualify for it today.
Getting rejected when you qualify is hard enough. Don't make an already difficult job search harder by expecting interviews for jobs you don't qualify for.
Comments