By Dr Simon Mantell, Head of the Careers Service
Chances are that if you are reading a blog on making applications for unadvertised job vacancies, you are not seeing enough advertised positions that that are attractive to you. This post will help you identify employers who will welcome unsolicited applications, give you some tips on writing the applications and present alternative methods of finding suitable jobs.
Why apply for an unadvertised job?
Writing to a potential employer and asking if they have a suitable job for you, often referred to as writing a speculative application, is a useful practice in many employment areas and essential in some. It tends to work best for smaller employers since they are more likely to value the cost and time savings associated with a shorter recruitment process. Large and public sector organisations will usually have recruitment processes that preclude taking staff or interns from speculative applications. Some areas, eg. customer service roles, charities, publishing and creative industries, will often not advertise their vacancies and instead take interns / staff from speculative applications.
Who should I send my application to and what should I send?
Speculative applications should be sent to the person who might be your supervisor if you gain work with the organisation, or the head of HR, not to a general inbox. It may be possible to identify the right people by looking on LinkedIn, or at organisation’s websites or social media output. Speculative applications require both a CV and a Cover letter. The CV should contain information about experiences, achievements and skills. You can work out which skills and experiences to include in the CV by looking at similar positions being advertised by similar employers.
The Cover Letter should detail why you want the job and give information that will help the recruiter decide whether they wish to progress your application further. The extra information in the Cover Letter should include desired job duties, hours of work, starting date and how long you expect the position to last. It would also be helpful to say whether you have the facilities required for homeworking, and if it is the case, that you can work in the UK without visa sponsorship.
How do I follow up my application?
One of the most frustrating parts of applying for jobs is waiting to hear back from an employer after you have sent your application. Unfortunately, after sending a speculative application, you will need to wait a couple of weeks before contacting the employer. This ensures that they have time to get your application to the appropriate people and review it. After two weeks, send a polite email asking whether they have a position for you. If, after another week, you still don’t get a response then try ringing the organisation’s main contact number and asking whether there is anyone you can speak to.
How can I get a job or internship without writing lots of applications?
Emailing a speculative application shows initiative and commitment, but for some jobs there is another approach. Employers who have the public as their customers will, pandemic allowing, respond favourably to an in-person enquiry. This works well for hospitality settings, museums, public facing charities etc. To do this, dress smartly, visit the place of work, ask to speak to a manager and have paper copies of your CV available. Be prepared to answer some questions about why you want the job and what relevant experience you have.
I hope you now feel more prepared to apply for unadvertised jobs, for more information please take a look at our recorded workshop on this topic.