Monday, March 12, 2012

Providing More Than What's Requested in a Job Application

I always hear that you want to make yourself stand out, so I’m thinking I should do more than what’s required in a job application. Like if they ask for three references, maybe I should give them five. Or if they want two writing samples, I’ll provide four. What do you think?

1 comment:

USDCareerBlog said...

We understand the sentiment, but what you’re really doing is demonstrating that you can’t or won’t follow directions. So we recommend that you explicitly follow the directions in a job application. But if you want to “go the extra yard,” you can always indicate in a cover letter that additional recommendations or writing samples are available upon request. That way you show that you can follow directions, but are willing to provide additional material at the discretion of the recruiter.