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How do you keep going after interview rejections?

11 replies

Star2015 · 26/11/2016 05:21

I've had 2 in the past 2 weeks and last night had a little melt down feeling like I'm not good enough, I'll never find another job etc etc.

I have been trying to stay positive, what's meant to be will be etc, but it's hard when you want a job so badly and don't get it.

My CV and application forms are obviously working as I have 5 more interviews lined up in the next 2 weeks, but things are getting a bit more serious as I finish my current job next week and would really like to have an offer this side of Christmas.

Any advice for not letting rejections knock your confidence going into other interviews?

Thanks!

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Rubyslippers7780 · 26/11/2016 05:29

Keep positive!! You have 5 interviews lined up.. that is fabulous.
Don't let the 2 rejections knock you - each interview is fresh. You have no idea who / how many people are applying or being interviewed.
You are obviously great at applying and getting to interview - well done!

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LRDtheFeministDragon · 26/11/2016 07:59

I dunno how true it is, but people keep telling me if you're good enough to get interviews (plural), you should eventually get a job. Which I find comforting and which is probably true.

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AddictedtoLove · 26/11/2016 11:15

LRD I think that's largely true. In my field (Humanities) there are actually quite a few jobs about - more than there were when I finished my PhD and graduated into a recession. I was lucky if there were 2 jobs in a year in the whole country, and post-docs in the Humanities were unheard of, they were a science thing.

If you have the right combination of stuff on your CV, and are getting interviews, then mostly I think you will eventually get a job.

I'm usually on the other side of the table, interviewing people for entry-level jobs. Sometimes, it's really hard to give feedback other than ":Someone else fitted the requirements more closely" or "Someone else had a bit more experience in area X."

I think that's the hardest feedback to receive as well as give, because there's nothing the person did wrong that they could fix. I do know about that frustration.

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iveburntthetoast · 26/11/2016 12:10

When I was on the job market, I found that it was the same people being interviewed (which thankfully included me). One of them would get a job and another person kept appearing repeatedly. So if you're getting interviews, it's a good sign.

I think I had about 4 interviews before I got a permanent job. I'm also in the humanities and there used to be only 2-3 jobs a year. It also seems positive if you've got that many jobs to apply for.

I'm wanting to move jobs--while there are more jobs now than 10 years ago, I'm also in competition with Americans because i work on an American topic. The job situation is dire over in the US so they're looking to UK jobs. I had an interview at a Russell Group uni this year. 3 out of 5 candidates were American and one of them got the job.

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Star2015 · 26/11/2016 19:34

Thanks everyone for your messages, it's nice to know I'm not the only one who has been in this position. I find I don't bounce back from hits as easily as previously!!

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deathtoheadlice · 28/11/2016 19:16

If you can get honest feedback it might help. They shouldn't really just say "it's about fit" -- even that, they could say that they had priorities in fields x, y and z, or wanted someone who could jump right in and teach 300 students, or who could build a master's programme in topic A, or whatever. I'd be curious what others think about this but I have wondered if "fit" is sometimes too close to "fitting in": being, looking, talking like everyone else. I think "fit" is less a factor in the UK than in the US, which makes the UK more open, academically (to our benefit!).