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Career Guide
Ways to Land an Interview with Limited Experience
Paolo Martel, May 27, 2015
Are you facing that universal problem of not getting a particular job due to lack of relevant experience, and yet at the same time, not getting the chance to get the required experience? Well, don’t let your lack of experience scare you. Know that the requirement of relevant experience that is being demanded for the job is flexible, and you need not feel inadequate. Recruiters demand experience but ultimately hire from among those who somewhat fit their expected profile, because rarely do they find any ‘made-in-heaven’ or ‘perfect’ candidates.
Here are some suggestions that may help you get that job abroad despite little experience:
Be practical about your own capabilities.
You can stretch your own experience, but only realistically. Don’t over-reach and expect to move into positions where you have a complete lack of job knowledge because you will not be able to perform at all and soon be dismissed. Instead, only apply to jobs within the chain of the many roles in your own or related profession.
Review your own hidden strengths within.
You can sell yourself effectively only if you truly believe you can contribute. Analyze what you’re really good at, and what you would really like to do professionally. Identify what you enjoyed the most in your past or current job and focus on these for further development. Pursue self-development vigorously in the required areas to succeed in selling yourself. Acquire an unshakable faith in your own abilities so you can offer this with sincere conviction
Amplify your existing capabilities.
Maximize the relevance of your limited experience to the new job requirements. Make overseas recruiters speed-browsing over your resume focus on your attributes of intelligence, approach, attitude, curiosity beyond your own role, good communication skills, enthusiasm, and a good work ethic so they overlook what you don’t have. Highlight your ability for in-depth analysis (of past roles) as a part of the whole work process. Convince recruiters by drawing logical parallels between your past and proposed roles. Show appreciation of the entire work process and your part in it and emphasize your capacity for quickly picking up new tasks. Display your eagerness to move into the new work profile requiring greater experience because you have already outgrown your earlier role, and are now ready for a new one.
Promise a fresh approach.
Sometimes, no experience need not necessarily be a negative, and need not hinder you in getting that new job abroad despite knowing little about the job. Many times, an outsider’s fresh view has proved successful. So turn your inexperience into an asset by displaying your abilities to be original, innovative and free of any conditioning of previous experience. Convey that you are able to see things differently and can add new value to existing ways of handing the new role.
Use soft skills effectively.
If you don’t have adequate or appropriate experience in any field, you will be assessed dually, first on your knowledge of your past/existing field of expertise or training, and secondly, on your potential to perform in the new field. This is where your soft skills - behavior, politeness, appearance, etc - for selling your potential, with subtle down-playing of your lack of necessary experience, become very critical.
Research the new profession.
To talk confidently about the new field, you must first thoroughly research it. Seek out all sources of information relating to the new function, how it works in the whole system of that particular industry, what are the key results areas, and what kind of skills are desired to fill the position.
Use blogging to gather knowledge.
Utilize the unlimited source of new ideas from blogs of the countless professionals who freely express opinion, advice and guidance on all fields and subjects. That’s one way for people with little experience in any field to become more knowledgeable. When blogging with someone who knows the field, a lot of information filters down for you to pick up and use to your professional advantage.
Build industry connections.
Search out and make new connections within that particular industry so that you can use such friendships for employment information, and perhaps, even referrals.
Rewrite your resume for every application.
Getting an interview depends on how you present yourself on paper. Always tailor your resume according to each different job to suit the opening, mentioning every stage of your past work. Include your full job knowledge, even if some of it that you didn’t actually do yourself, but were only associated with. Create a link between your skills, goals and achievements with what the recruiters are looking for.
Develop a powerful Cover Letter.
Remember, the cover letter is your mirror and a power tool that can drill through the barrier between you and the recruiters. Compel the recruiter to check out your resume by a precise but brief introduction to your profile, explaining your reasons for seeking a profession change without omitting any aspect of past jobs.
Create interview opportunities.
Directly approach desired employer organizations abroad for an interview without letting your hesitation of under-experience stop you. With the right ‘of course I can’ attitude, backed by research, create new interview opportunities.
In the end it all boils down to how much you believe you can do a job that’s beyond your experience. Remember, only by believing in your own strengths can you make recruiters consider you as having promise, despite being under-experienced.
More tips from this author:
Impressice Questions to Ask an Interviewer
