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I swear I keep reading that there are an average of six applicants for every job opening now. Oh yes, see this from NPR, this from The Wall Street Journal’s MarketWatch and this from The New York Times. (I’m sure y’all are going read all of those; I’ll save you the trouble: They agree with me.) Am I the only one who thinks six is not a lot? You could conduct at least a phone screen with six applicants, right? Or, more likely, only three because I bet half don’t write a cover letter or follow instructions or something similar. I’ve been under the impression that there are more like 30 applicants for each job. Was that ever true, or did I make that up?
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Comments
10.29.09
I helped screen applicants for the internship I was leaving back in September and there were over 100 applicants for the position. Now, many were easily screened out because, like you said, they didn't follow the instructions or they didn't bother to read what the position was and tailor their cover letter accordingly. But there were still over 30 resumes that could have been a fit. I also remember when I was interviewing for the internship (in Dec 2008), my future bosses told me they had over 100 applicants at that time as well. They interviewed about six people, but there were certainly more than that seeking to fill the position. Six is definitely a low number. At least in my experience.
10.29.09
Thanks to commenters like you, Amanda, I've now come to see that six is just the average. Like, the number of "unemployed" people versus the number of job openings. It's a useless statistic, just like all that stuff on the news about the unemployment rate and rehiring.
11.23.10
my future bosses told me they had over 100 applicants at that time as well. They interviewed about six people, but there were certainly more than that seeking to fill the position. Six is definitely a low number. At least in my experience.jackey
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