A study in rejection

Let's look at 2 new examples of rejection.  First let's go traditional:

Dear Nicole,

Thank you very much for submitting your resume/ profile for employment with ****.

Your application/resume was reviewed for the above position. I wanted to let you know that at this time, the manager is seeking an applicant with knowledge of medical rehab as well as a marketing background for this position in this department. Therefore, you are not currently being considered for this particular position.

Please visit **** for an up to date list of opportunities at ****

We wish you all the best in your search.

Sincerely,
*****
Senior Recruiter

To be fair, I don't have exact experience in medical rehab, but I did work at a health insurance company for 3 years right out of school and combined with my marketing/communication experience thought that would perhaps give me an edge.  Perhaps not.

Second example: peculiar e-mail exchange.  A contact told me about an open position at this next company, and this is the email exchange that followed:

From: Company X
To: Nicole
Subject: Interview
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2011 18:19:00 -0500

Hi, Nicole –

Let’s get together and explore a possible fit with what we’re doing here at ***.  Please bring your portfolio if you’ve designed any materials.  Can you meet on Friday, February 18^th at 10:00am?

Vice President - Sales, Marketing & Support

------------------------------ 

From: Nicole
Sent: Tuesday, February 15, 2011 9:35 PM
To: Company X
Subject: RE: Interview

Hi ****,

I'd love to get together to discuss the position with you, however I do have a prior commitment for this Friday.  I'm free tomorrow, Thursday and Monday if any of those days work for you.  Let me know if any of those days are a possibility for you.

Thank you,
Nicole

 -----------------------------

 

 From: Company X
To: Nicole
Subject: RE: Interview
Date: Wed, 16 Feb 2011 12:37:21 -0500 

They’re not.

------------------------

From: Nicole
Sent: Wednesday, February 16, 2011 2:04 PM
To: Company X
Subject: RE: Interview

****,

I'm sorry to hear that.  Since no day except Friday works with your schedule, it looks like we unfortunately won't have the opportunity to meet and discuss this position further.  Thank you for your time, and I hope you'll keep me in mind for future positions with ****.  I wish you the best of luck with your search for the right candidate for your company.

Best Regards,
Nicole 

----------------------

No parts (except my favorite little stars, of course) were changed.  Which means that "They're not." response is exactly what I received.  Perhaps I offended this person by being unavailable, for which I am sorry.  But, even unemployed folk do have commitments that cannot always be broken.  Maybe suggesting a different day is a cardinal sin of job searching?  Alas, live and learn, I suppose.   

Who doesn't love a little generic rejection in the morning?


Dear Nicole,

Thank you for taking the time to apply for the position of Events Coordinator **** Foundation, Job Requisition #34332 at *****. While your credentials and experience are certainly impressive, you were not selected for this position.

Although we cannot provide you with additional feedback at this time due to the volume of applications that we receive, we would like to keep your application on file and contact you in the future should other opportunities arise that more closely fit your background.  At the same time, we would like to encourage you to visit our website at **** to review other open positions that maybe of interest to you.

We sincerely wish you all the best in your career search.

Human Resources Department


I put in  some clever little stars where the name of the place was because I'm not sure if I'll encounter any troubles by leaving them in, best to avoid, yes? Yes.  Although, at least I actually heard back.  With the amount of applications going out these days, most places don't get back to you at all, even on auto-reply.  So thanks, ****.