Remember when you thought writing papers is bad? Well, once you start looking for a job during your studies or after graduation, that idea is most likely up for review.  

Even the most nerve-wracking group project will feel like a walk in a sunny meadow compared to the frustrating and confidence-shaking process of

...sitting in front of a blank page that will simply not turn into a cover letter (no matter how hard you stare at it)

...coming up with a creative idea how to “show your personality” on a 1 page long CV

...sending off this product of your hours of hard labour and then never hearing anything about it ever again  

- all of which is also known as “job hunting”.

The silver lining: You can skip some of it!

University assignments you have to hand in at some point. With job applications, you can actually work your way around some the frustrations. Here is how:   

Skip the Black Hole of no feedback

Nothing is worse than just sitting on your hands and hoping that some recruiter out there might answer your email. And guess what? Some employers already know that.

Benefit of chatting with employers

That’s why more and more are experimenting with online chat modules - on Graduateland, for example, we have got Graduateland LIVE. There you can see which companies with open positions are available for talking online and get an answer to your question within minutes instead of days (or never).

“Sending a resume the traditional way often leaves one waiting in confusion about if the resume even got read or not. This platform is good to feel real contact with the employer”, says finance student Henrik.

 Try out chatting on LIVE 

Skip your writer’s block

Very few jobs require you to be a great writer (it helps, but it’s very rarely a necessity). In most cases, its only point is to create a feeling of communication, but it can feel more like you’re holding a monologue in front of a wall.  

Chatting (even via written messages) already feels more like a natural 1-on-1 conversation - after all, there is a reason why messenger apps are by far the most popular tool of communication now. With videos on the rise, the future of job applications will hopefully involve even more face-to-face conversations rather than lengthy letters.  

By the way, very soon, video chat will also be available on Graduateland LIVE, so stay tuned.  

Skip the limits on showing your personality

Making your application stand out from the rest is hard enough - and it’s particularly difficult when you have a page limit or are not even in the same country as the recruiter. The LIVE chat is a good way to work around that. Business student Anne says about her chat experience on Graduateland: “It is a really really great opportunity that I can still do some networking, despite living abroad.”

The 1 thing you should NEVER skip in a job application

With these annoyances out of the way, you can focus on the 1 thing that you should always do in the job application process: Really researching the organisation and job which you will be talking about so that you can have a relevant and meaningful conversation.

 Try out chatting on LIVE 

Further tips for researching: