Just something I thought I'd pose to the forum since I'm curious as to other peoples' experiences with this. Calling about an application for a job.
Every time I do a job hunt and tell my friends about all the places I've applied, they always ask, "well, did you call them back?" When I say no, they go into a lecture about how I have to call them. My personal experience with calling is this: I used to do it, but every single time I've called a place to ask about my application, I've gotten the same general response along the lines of "we're currently looking at applications and we'll call you if we need to." The way this has been said has ranged anywhere from a polite brush-off to a really rude "don't bother calling again, it won't make a difference." If I was applying for important corporate jobs where there are hundreds/thousands of applicants for a prime position, maybe I could see the value of getting your name in someone's mind. But positions in restaurants/retail, I honestly don't think it makes any sort of difference. I've applied to places that constantly have a "hiring now" sign in the window that have blown me off with the "looking through applications" line when I've called, and I've applied to places that I've never called and had them call me months later when they finally had an opening. My thought on places like this is basically that if they need you, they'll call you; if they don't, they won't, and no amount of your calling will make a difference. I'm thoroughly convinced that 5 seconds after they hang up, they don't even remember my name. I've never in my life gotten a job by calling up and asking about my application, and in turn, had them actually pull it up and look at it. And out of every time a friend tries to give me this "call them" advice, I have yet to hear them share a personal story about how this has actually gotten them a job at any point.
This is just my take on it, but I'm curious how others feel about it. Do you always call places you've applied to, and has it ever actually made a difference?



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