New Year’s Networking Resolution

Welcome to 2015!!

Here at CNSPY, we’re excited to get another calendar year started, and we’re making some New Year’s Resolutions that we want you to be a part of.

For 2015, we’re vowing to make networking a priority, and we hope you’ll do the same!

Here’s why…

1) 95% of all resumes submitted online never get a response back.

Regardless of whether it would be a positive or a negative response, you’ll likely never hear back either way. This is because of the sheer volume of resumes submitted through online job postings daily. Nearly 2,000 resumes are submitted per company per day – PER DAY! Thus, most companies only respond to those individuals they want to interview, and it’s tight competition out there. Less than 20% of all applicants will secure an interview. It’s so competitive because everyone applying to PhD-level jobs have PhDs, they all have publications, they all have amazing resumes… the only way to stand out in crowd of equally talented and intelligent individuals is to network and have a connection on the inside before you even apply.

2) 80% of jobs aren’t advertised.

Most companies don’t advertise their high-level positions because there’s no need to. Without any advertising, there is already a high influx of applications coming from within the company itself – from those in more subordinate roles who are trying to move up. Furthermore, most companies would actually prefer to fill those higher-level positions internally because their employees are already familiar with the company and, likewise, the company is already familiar with them. Even if they don’t hire internally, they still won’t advertise; they’ll seek referrals as a first-pass method of screening candidates with whom they are unfamiliar. Thus, if you haven’t done a good job of networking, there is no way you will ever know about these positions, and you’ll miss out on many great opportunities… because… let’s face it, if most jobs aren’t advertised, the only ones you’ll be able to search for on the internet are the lower-end jobs, the entry level jobs, or the not-so-desired jobs. If you want the good jobs, you HAVE to network.

3) Over 50% of jobs are filled via referrals. 

Companies receive SO many resumes and applications each day that there just aren’t enough hours in the day or employees available to read through them all. As a result, it becomes easier to disregard all of the applications and rely solely on referrals. This means that only those who have networked and made connections will have a chance at securing these jobs. This also means that if you don’t network, you will severely limit yourself and be excluded from approximately half of the job market. So make networking a priority!

4) The average job/position has over 100 applicants.

Yes, even for non-academic jobs, this statistic is true. In fact, many jobs reach upwards of multiple hundreds of applicants! This is a large number of resumes and cover letters to read through, and after a while, they all start to appear the same. To be successful, you have to stand out. You have to be heard above the noise, and the best way to do that is to network and subsequently reference an individual at the company in your cover letter whom you may have met or may have recommended that you apply for the position. This form of name-dropping is a useful technique in getting a hiring manager to take a second look at your application and move it to the top of the candidate pile. However, you won’t be able to name-drop in this manner if you haven’t built up a strong network.

5) On average, it can take up to 8 months to find a job.

With the incredible numbers game outlined above, it’s not surprising that it can take almost eight months to successfully secure a job. It takes this long because there are so many eligible candidates for very few available positions. The academic system awards over 51,000 PhD degrees every year, and that number increases by about 4-5% each year. However, the number of academic positions opening each year is only about 3,000, and the vast majority of non-academic jobs are unadvertised. With the intense competition out there, the sad truth is that it doesn’t matter how intelligent you are or how perfect a fit you are for the job, if you don’t network well, you will never be found amongst the plethora of eligible candidates – this is why nearly 40% of PhDs are left unemployed at graduation. However, there is hope. Those with well-established networks can reduce the time spent job hunting down to about two months. This highlights that it’s not necessarily what you know, it’s WHO you know. So start networking!

Collectively, these statistics highlight the necessity of networking.

The current job market isn’t the greatest, but there are ways to beat the system so-to-speak. The best way to get around these numbers, which are highly stacked against you, is to build a strong network of professional connections. So we implore you to make networking a priority this year (and being active in CNSPY can help!).

Make it part of your New Year’s Resolution to spend more time networking in 2015!

References for Statistics:  National Science Foundation, University of Chicago, Nature Publishing Group, and Cheeky Scientist

** Make “better networking” part of your New Year’s Resolution and share your strategies and new successes with us! **

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